Polish deputy finance minister has revealed that the estimated cost of financial aid for farmers affected by issues stemming from Ukrainian grain imports will be closer to PLN 5 billion (EUR 1.08 billion) than the previously estimated PLN 10 billion (EUR 2.2 billion).
The government announced its intention to intervene in order to assist farmers struggling with the influx of low-priced grain and other food items from Ukraine, which have caused prices to drop drastically.
“We have already allocated PLN 2 billion (EUR 435 million) from the state budget and assistance fund to aid farmers,”
Artur Sobon told a private radio programme on Tuesday.
He added that more funds were available if the need arose.
On Saturday, the Polish government announced a temporary ban on all Ukrainian food imports and transit foods through the country. The ban will take effect until June 30th and is intended to protect Polish consumers from any potential health or safety risks.
“The question of transit and transit corridors should be solved at an EU level. If we want to solve the problem that has emerged on the Polish-Ukrainian border, we must solve the problem that had appeared on the EU-Ukraine frontier,”
Sobon said.
Poland’s ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party has issued a ban on the export of grain, with party leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski announcing the government will conduct a mass purchase of grain stored in silos and warehouses. Subsidies will be applied to increase the price of grain to PLN 1,400 (EUR 300) per tonne – a significant jump from the current price of approximately PLN 900 (EUR 190) per tonne.
Polish farmers are staging protests nationwide due to the influx of Ukrainian grain, which was intended for export to the Middle East and Africa, resulting in plummeting prices for local crops. Furthermore, similar issues have also been observed with poultry and eggs.