Among the reasons for farmers’ irritation is competition from foreign imports, considered unfair, in particular those from Ukraine and Morocco. Our correspondents tell us how these countries view this protest.
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In Ukraine, the first concern remains the war and in the face of the debates which are agitating Europe on the imports of agricultural products, the authorities are trying to remind us that they are precisely vital to financing the war effort.
For its part, Morocco, whose tomatoes are often cited as an example of this competition, deplores the actions of destruction of their products. The country is seeking to diversify its customers and has doubled the number of importing countries in the space of five years.
Ukraine: “Here we are fighting for our survival”
The number one subject in Ukraine is obviously the urgency of the war, much more than agricultural policy. But it is at the heart of political discussions, because Ukraine is not in a position to get angry with European countries. This is the issue which is damaging relations, particularly with neighboring countries, such as Poland or Moldova. With the war, these countries claim to be flooded with Ukrainian agricultural products.
Anger has spread among French farmers who claim that Ukrainian products represent unfair competition. Three months after the start of the war, Brussels suspended customs duties on Ukrainian imports into the 27 EU countries. This exemption has been extended until June 2024. In Ukraine, obviously, we understand these fears, but we put them into perspective. “Here we are fighting for our survival”, says a farmer from southern Ukraine. The authorities are trying to remind people that these exports are quite simply vital to finance the war effort.
Ukraine among the most fertile lands on the planet
This is the speech made by kyiv in Poland, the agricultural issue harms relations between the two countries. But in December, the Ukrainian ambassador congratulated Poland’s new agriculture minister on his appointment. He wanted to express how Ukrainian exports significantly contribute to the state budget and that in this context of war, Ukraine simply has no choice. Poland was conciliatory and said it wanted to find a formula to support Ukraine, but without disturbing the balance of the Polish market. Since the end of January, working meetings have been taking place between the two countries to achieve this and the atmosphere seems to be warming up little by little.
Ukraine has the most fertile land on the planet. It is one of the largest exporters of agricultural products in the world. Before the war, Ukraine was the world’s largest exporter of sunflower oil, the third largest exporter of barley, the fourth largest exporter of corn and the fifth largest exporter of wheat. But Ukrainian farmers remind that the majority of agricultural production is intended not for European countries, but for Asia and Africa. Before the war, these continents imported 92% of Ukraine’s wheat. It was the Russian invasion and the difficulties in exporting through Black Sea ports that disrupted everything.
Morocco: third world exporter of tomatoes
Moroccan farmers have seen blockages and sometimes destruction of their goods on French roads. Actions that they deplore through the voice of the president of the Moroccan Interprofessional Federation for the production and export of Fruits and Vegetables (FIFEL). Lahoucine Aderdour regrets also seeing cargo stuck on the roads rotting. But he reassures farmers, there is insurance that will cover their losses.
The Moroccan tomato has become the symbol of out-of-season vegetable consumption. It grows in summer in Europe, but in Morocco it grows all year round and is exported. Farmers’ charges are not the same as in France. Here the SMAG, the agricultural minimum wage, is 8.5 euros per day. We must also count inputs such as fertilizers, phytosanitary products and even water, which has become rare in Morocco.
Africa, Russia, South Korea… opportunities everywhere
But tomatoes remain very competitive and Morocco is the third largest exporter in the world. Last year exports reached a record with 716,000 tonnes, half of which were destined for the French market. But the country is seeking to diversify its customers and has doubled the number of importing countries in the space of five years.
The United Kingdom and the Netherlands are fond of Moroccan tomatoes. These also find new outlets in Eastern Europe, but they sometimes travel much further. This summer, China concluded an agricultural agreement with Morocco. Russia and South Korea also sign free trade agreements with the Shereef kingdom. We remember that in 2016, when European justice called into question the Morocco-EU agricultural agreement, Russia rubbed its hands and doubled its imports of Moroccan fruits and vegetables.
In Morocco, tomatoes sell for around 50 cents per kilo on the markets. But it is not the same tomato that is exported to Europe, since the EU requires precise grading, the same size and the same color for all tomatoes. The Moroccan consumer absorbs the rest. When this remainder is not also exported, to Africa in particular.