Poland and Hungary temporarily ban imports of grain from Ukraine

Poland and Hungary have decided to temporarily ban imports of grain and other items from Ukraine. According to the New York Times (NYT) on the 16th (local time), the Hungarian Minister of Agriculture announced the previous day that “in the absence of significant EU action, we will follow Poland in restricting grain imports from Ukraine at the end of June.” Poland also decided to temporarily suspend grain imports from Ukraine on the 14th. The following day, Poland also included dozens of other agricultural products in its ban on imports. After Russia's invasion of Ukraine last year, the EU has applied duty-free treatment for Ukrainian grain, but this has led to overproduction in Europe. As a result, incomes for farmers in Poland, Hungary and elsewhere have plummeted. Last month, Poland, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Slovakia called on the EU to take action to curb imports of agricultural products from Ukraine, which are driving prices down. The European Commission (EC) criticized ...