Austrian food company Agrana, which continues to operate in Russia, has claimed that duty-free sugar imports from Ukraine to the European Union cuts into the company’s profits, Ukrainian state news agency Ukrinform reported on Jan. 12, citing the company’s CEO, Stefan Büttner.
“This (large volumes of duty-free sugar imports from Ukraine to the EU – ed.) is a significant loss for us, because we have lost a significant amount of sales, as well as lost margins and have higher storage costs,” Büttner said.
Read also: Slovakia extends and expands ban on agricultural imports from Ukraine
These criticisms specifically apply to the company’s sugar, fruit, and starch production in Romania, Bulgaria, and Hungary. Büttner also claimed that the status quo actually benefits the sugar traders who export sugar to Europe, not the Ukrainian producers.
Ukraine could export only about 20,000 tons of sugar per year to the EU until June 2022. In order to support Ukrainian agriculture, which is suffering from Russian aggression, the bloc canceled some agricultural tariffs until June 2024. Ukraine is thus expected to expert up to 700,000 tons of sugar in the current 2023/24 marketing year. The CEO of Agrana suggested that the quota for Ukrainian sugar should be set at a maximum of 200,000 tons per year.
Read also: Global beverage giant PepsiCo bans mention of war and Ukrainian Armed Forces in ads
However, Agrana continues to operate in Russia, where Agrana has its own plant, and is not considering plans to the Russian market.
“Withdrawal from Russia is neither legally nor economically possible from our point of view,” Büttner said.
Agrana is primarily known to end consumers for its Wiener Zucker brand. The group employs about 9,000 people at 55 production sites around the world.
French sugar beet and sugar producers demanded at the end of November 2023 that Ukrainian sugar be re-exported outside the EU.
We’re bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!
Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
Signup bonus from
