Slovakia becomes next EU member state to restrict Ukrainian grain imports

Slovakia’s Agriculture Ministry banned Ukrainian grain from its markets on April 13 over pesticides found in the grain that are prohibited in the EU, the ministry said in a press release.

The statement also said that Romania and Bulgaria’s agriculture ministers will meet on April 14 to discuss how to protect their markets against cheap commodity imports from Ukraine.

Hungary on April 9 said it would introduce new measures to curb Ukrainian grain volumes, citing concerns over large quantities of cheap Ukrainian products entering the country and hurting its domestic markets.

Earlier this week, Poland reached an agreement with Ukraine to halt grain imports until at least July due to a large influx of cheap Ukrainian grain in Poland that has angered Polish farmers.

Following protests in Poland, the government demanded that the European Commission use “all regulatory instruments–quotas, tariffs, which will limit or block the import of Ukrainian grain into Poland,” Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said, Reuters reported.

Cheap Ukrainian grain has been flooding the EU market since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, helped by the European Union waiving customs duties and import quotas to keep Ukraine's agricultural sector running.