In France, they complained about competition with suppliers from Ukraine

Figaro: poultry farmers in France complained about competition with suppliers from Ukraine

French poultry farmers suffer from the doubling of chicken meat exports from Ukraine. If 1 kg of meat from French suppliers costs € 4.80, then from Ukrainian — €2.40. All this is "unfair competition", businessmen believe

The explosive growth of chicken meat exports from Ukraine to France is damaging French poultry farmers. This was stated by the president of the Interprofessional Association of suppliers of chicken meat Anvol Jean-Michel Schaeffer, reports Le Figaro.

According to him, after the European Commission exempted Ukrainian poultry and eggs from customs duties and export restrictions on June 5, 2022, there was a twofold increase in the supply of goods from Ukraine on the French market.

"Before this unfortunate conflict [in Ukraine] we imported about 10 thousand tons of poultry every month, and now we import 20 thousand or even more tons every month. It's really shocking," he said.

One kilogram of chicken meat from French producers costs about €4.80, while one kilogram of chicken meat from Ukrainian producers costs €2.40. All this is "unfair competition," Schaeffer is sure.

He pointed out that in Europe poultry farming is usually a family business, while Ukrainian enterprises are in a "different weight category". The profit from the sale of chicken goes not to the "Ukrainian people", but to the giant Ukrainian chicken producer MHP, the businessman emphasizes. Schaeffer called on the EC to protect local producers.

The head of Anvol added that not only French poultry farmers face this situation, but all European businessmen. "Whether it's Germans, Dutch, Poles — everyone is in the same situation when this flow of Ukrainian chickens destabilizes the entire market," he said.

In April, Poland became the first country in Eastern Europe to ban the import of Ukrainian food. Polish farmers are protesting against the supply of Ukrainian grain, claiming that they are suffering losses.

Then Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary and Slovakia made such a decision. According to local authorities, these states lost a total of €417 million due to the influx of cheap Ukrainian grain. The measure was approved by the European Commission.

The ban expires on September 15, but Poland intends to extend it. On September 7, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky called on European countries not to extend restrictions on the export of Ukrainian agricultural products.

According to Zelensky, Ukrainian grain "becomes a source of good earnings for different European countries," which process agricultural products and earn on logistics. He added that farmers use Ukrainian feed for the benefit of their farms.

The Ukrainian leader addressed the European Commission, saying that "the foundation of Europe is, in particular, free competition and the fulfillment of promises." According to him, Kiev complies with the agreements and does not interfere with free competition.

According to Politico, 22 EU member states, including France and Germany, also oppose the extension of the ban. According to one of the diplomats, the decision to extend the restrictions will be political in nature.