Bulgaria believes that the EC's compensation for the Ukrainian grain will not be enough

Whatever the compensations from the European Commission (EC), they will not be enough. This was stated by the Minister of Agriculture, Yavor Gechev, in response to questions from MPs during his hearing in Parliament today regarding the government's intention to cancel the imposed restrictions on the access of products originating in Ukraine. He explained that the problem is that the production is too large and it will be difficult for Bulgaria to realize it. The hearing in the National Assembly was at the request of the "Vazrazhdane" parliamentary group, BTA reported.

In practice, what can be said is that, despite the weaker harvest, the oversaturation of the market in the Black Sea region leads to anomalies that we cannot control, commented Gechev. And he emphasized - each of the countries has its own anomalies.

The problem is that we have about 3 billion euros worth of production, which we will hardly realize, he said.

The availability of wheat as of March 31, 2022 was 1 million and 600 thousand tons, and at the same period of this year - 2 million and 400 thousand tons, he pointed out. According to the data presented by the minister, the quantities of corn and sunflower are also more this year.

Regarding wheat, we have 32% in small exports, although the harvest is weaker, he also said.

The wheat harvest begins in June, we must release as many quantities as possible to empty the warehouses, Gechev also pointed out.

As an "absolutely important topic", the Minister of Agriculture defined the issues of phytosanitary control of products imported from Ukraine. Gechev explained that substances not authorized for the European Union are used in Ukraine, but this does not mean that the wheat does not meet the requirements. And he explained that Bulgaria is the second country in the chain, the control is also done by Romania.

We had a number of indicators, so we did a secondary enhanced control, he stressed. According to him, in addition to grain, there is also one for sunflower, dry milk and honey.

Every sample is tested for genetically modified organisms (GMOs), the samples come out in about 10 days, Gechev stressed. He noted that in terms of GMOs, there are no concerns about sunflowers, but rather about corn.

"There is a decision of the Council of Ministers, which will have to be canceled under the European ban," he also added.

If Bulgaria does not cancel the ban, it will not be able to benefit from the relevant funds, Gechev also said. He indicated that he has released a letter of agreement to the Minister of Economy for this.

The attitude towards Ukraine should not be associated with trade relations, the minister noted during the hearing. And he explained that trade negotiations are conducted by the Ministry of Economy.

When asked about prices, Yavor Gechev expressed the opinion that there are no prerequisites for raising the price of bread.

"Most likely, the price will change with a new harvest, I don't know if up or down," he commented.

The minister pointed out that the market reacts quickly when prices go up, but "extremely slowly" when prices go down, especially for final products. He said that an ordinance has been prepared for traceability along the entire chain of wholesale food products. Gechev specified that the smallest part of the formation of the price of bread is due to wheat, the main one is production costs and transport.

Gechev said that a meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart is coming up on Friday.