Ukraine needs to increase the production of agricultural commodities with high added value and the share of alternate products which are in demand on foreign markets, the Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine Taras Kutovyi declared.
According to him, Ukrainian producers of organic foods are quite competitive on the EU market. And the price of such products is much more expensive compared with the standard products with similar quality. Therefore, it is necessary to support small and medium businesses which are interested in development of the production of high value-added products and alternate products.
The Minister added that to date, Ukrainian farmers are ready to work with alternate crops, but the lack of machinery and opportunities to develop new technologies still slow down the new trend. In terms of the land bank at 500 ha, it is almost impossible to get a loan.
Kutovyi informed that farmers had to subrent their land areas to large-scale agricultural holdings. At least 3 billion UAH are required for direct financial support of small and medium-scale farmers. The Ministry is trying to put the money into the next year’s state budget. If there are no funds, the Ministry will have to look for an opportunity to grant farmers through preferential tax treatment. (APK-Inform/Business World Magazine)