Hungary upholds ban on Ukrainian wheat and corn to shield local farmers

Hungary has no plans to resume imports of wheat and corn from Ukraine, citing the protection of European farmers’ interests, according to Hungarian Minister of Agriculture István Nagy.

He made the statement following a meeting in Budapest with Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, Taras Kachka, as per Caliber.Az.

“The interests of Hungarian farmers remain our top priority. I welcomed Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Taras Kachka to the Ministry of Agriculture. We agreed that Kyiv will not export corn and wheat to Hungary until our country requests it. We will continue to enforce the import ban and protect the livelihoods and markets of Hungarian farmers!” Minister Nagy wrote on Facebook.

The Hungarian government has repeatedly highlighted that European farmers are facing significant losses due to the influx of Ukrainian agricultural products sold at dumping prices. The EU’s 2022 decision to remove customs duties and quotas on Ukrainian agricultural imports has notably harmed Eastern European nations. Differences in production standards and agricultural land size have allowed cheaper Ukrainian goods to displace local European products in traditional markets.

In the fall of 2023, several Eastern European countries had to impose bans on Ukrainian agricultural imports after the European Commission refused to extend an embargo covering four categories of grain and oilseeds — wheat, corn, rapeseed, and sunflower seeds.

Hungary independently maintained the embargo and expanded it to include an additional 20 types of Ukrainian agricultural products, such as cereals, meat, eggs, vegetable oil, vegetables, and honey.

By Tamilla Hasanova