Igor FedykThis week in Bulgaria was marked by nationwide protests of agricultural producers, caused by the decision of the Bulgarian government to lift the ban on the import of agricultural products from Ukraine. Protesters blocked border crossings, main state highways and roads.
Among the main demands that the protesters expressed to the parliament, the government and the president of Bulgaria through the formed initiative committee were the following:
– continuation of the ban on the import of sunflower, wheat, corn and rapeseed from Ukraine;
– introduction of a ban on the import of unrefined oil, vegetables and fruits (fresh and frozen), milk and dairy products, meat and meat products, live animals, honey and beekeeping products;
– strengthening control over the origin, quality and safety of agricultural products imported into Bulgaria;
– payment to agricultural producers until September 30 the full amount of compensation for the increase in the cost of production as a result of the Russian-Ukrainian war and the abolition of the subsidy ceiling.
During the protests, their participants spread manipulative information about agricultural products from Ukraine. In particular, it was stated that Ukrainians want to poison Bulgarians, because wheat imported from Ukraine contains heavy metals; that Bulgarians eat bread from Ukrainian wheat filled with all kinds of chemicals; that the government’s actions in favor of Ukrainian agricultural products will lead to the bankruptcy of local producers. In addition, it was stated that the current Bulgarian government is the handiwork of the United States, and that its goal is to destroy Bulgarian agriculture. The protesters also criticized the European Union, saying that if Bulgaria had not been its member, everything would have been fine.
After negotiations between the representatives of the Bulgarian government and the protesters, a memorandum was concluded between them, according to which a ban on the import of sunflowers from Ukraine will be in effect in Bulgaria until the end of November, and after that a licensing regime will be maintained for certain types of imported Ukrainian agricultural products.
“The ban on imports of sunflower from Ukraine is to be extended until the amount produced in Bulgaria in the 2022/2023 marketing year is exhausted. The quantities required by processing operations for production are to be determined. Negotiations are underway with the European Commission to ban Ukrainian imports of crops exceeding 10% of the net national production volume. A licensing requirement for wheat, maize and rapeseed imports will be elaborated as agreed between Ukraine and the European Commission”, states the first paragraph of the memorandum published on the official website of the Bulgarian government.
Comment:
– Despite the fact that grain itself was the most talked about, the lifting of the ban on its import from Ukraine does not actually pose a real threat to local grain producers. According to Bulgarian economic experts, Ukrainian grain is currently actively exported through the Romanian port in Constanta. It makes no sense to send it to Bulgarian ports, because it will increase the price of its transportation.
– The problem with sunflower is more real. But the problem here is not so much sunflowers from Ukraine, but the fact that local producers demand higher purchase prices than the international ones. Serious sunflower processing facilities have been built on the territory of Bulgaria, while there is not enough raw material for them. Bulgarian sunflower producers, seeing this problem, produced approximately 1 million tons of sunflower this year more than last year. At the same time, they want to sell it not at international prices (about 400 Euros per ton), but at 100 Euros more. Under such conditions, after the lifting of restrictions on the import of agricultural products from Ukraine, local processing plants would probably buy cheaper Ukrainian sunflowers, and the products of Bulgarian producers would remain unsold.
– The main organizers of the protests are representatives of large companies producing agricultural products, which have been receiving considerable subsidies for many years, the lion’s share of which comes from the EU within the framework of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). At the same time, these companies (mainly producers of wheat, corn and sunflower) receive about 80-85% of agricultural subsidies. Small and medium-sized producers do not receive subsidies and either close down or are on the verge of survival, unable to compete with local agricultural monopolists. In general, Bulgaria is among the top three EU countries with the largest allocation of funds from CAP to large companies (these are about 50 in the country). By the way, back in 2019, The Economist published an article entitled “Some farmers are particularly good at milking European taxpayers”, which mainly focused on Eastern European farmers.
– Currently, the Bulgarian government is working on changing the methodology of subsidizing the production of agricultural products. The essence of these changes is that subsidies should also go to small and medium-sized producers, in particular, those products that have disappeared from the Bulgarian market (vegetables, fruits, meat, milk and honey). In other words, by its actions, the government is breaking the scheme of subsidizing the agricultural sector, which allowed local agro-monopolists to enrich themselves for years. Therefore, their protests are caused not only by unwillingness to compete with cheaper Ukrainian imports, but also by unwillingness to lose access to generous European subsidies and the opportunity to receive superprofits.
– It is interesting that some of the organizers of the anti-government protests are close to certain political figures, in particular, President Rumen Radev, who is known for his pro-Russian statements. In particular, one of the most active participants in the protests against the lifting of the veto on the import of Ukrainian grain was the former deputy minister of agriculture in the last interim government (appointed and de facto led by the President).
– Local pro-Russian forces are trying to use every opportunity to overthrow the current “Euro-Atlantic” government. And the farmers’ protests were no exception. Therefore, they themselves joined the protests and called on other citizens who “care about the fate of Bulgaria” to do so. Therefore, it is not surprising that anti-European and anti-American slogans were heard during the protests.
– The government managed to reach a certain compromise with local farmers and, as can be seen from the memorandum, this was done, in particular, at the price of Ukrainian products. On the one hand, this is not very good news for Ukraine. However, on the other hand, an important conclusion for Kyiv is that the Bulgarian “Euro-Atlantic” government passed farmers’ protest test and continues its work. And this means that the current level of support (and primarily military) that Ukraine receives from Bulgaria under this government, will continue.