During talks between Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Henryk Kowalczyk and the Minister of Agricultural Policy and Food of Ukraine Mykola Solski, it was agreed that the transit of Ukrainian grain through Poland, both by road and rail, would be secured by sealing. 

The seals will be removed either at concessionary port warehouses or in other countries designated as destinations. Grain destined for Poland will be subject to strict controls by the relevant services – as before. 

“We have agreed two ways of proceeding in the case of transit of grain from Ukraine through the territory of Poland”, said Deputy Prime Minister Henryk Kowalczyk after the talks.

The head of the Ministry of Agriculture explained the reasons why Poland has recently intensified border controls on cereals coming from Ukraine. He drew attention to the cases of shipments which had been detained because irregularities had been found. He stressed that it is in the interest of both the Polish and Ukrainian sides to guarantee food safety and high quality of exported agri-food goods.

Minister Mykola Solski agreed that grain transported across the border must meet all necessary standards. He proposed a modification of transit procedures for goods routed through Polish sea ports to third countries and goods routed through Poland to other European Union countries.

Grain destined for Poland will continue to be strictly controlled by the relevant services, depending on its destination.

Ukraine is an important partner of Poland in terms of trade in agri-food goods. In 2022. Poland recorded a 16 % increase in agricultural exports to the Ukrainian market (from EUR 811.5 to EUR 945.3 million). The main exports to Ukraine included cheese and cottage cheese, products used for animal feed and coffee.

Adrian Andrzejewski