LAPAR: Transit of Ukrainian grains through our country must be strictly monitored

The League of Agricultural Producers Associations of Romania (LAPAR) demands full traceability, firm controls and priority for Romanian goods in the transport infrastructure and port operations. Farmers in our country are asking the authorities to implement a strict control mechanism for Ukrainian grains in transit, amid information regarding the possible reactivation of solidarity corridors. The employers' federation warns that a repeat of the situation in 2022-2023 could put pressure on Romanian farmers and the national logistics infrastructure again.

"Agriculture needs a miracle or at least a series of common sense measures to deal with the problems associated with the transit of Ukrainian cereals on Romanian territory. Taking into account the recent memory of what happened in 2022-2023, corroborated with the fact that we hear in the public space about the possibility of reopening the solidarity corridors, I want to sound an alarm: this can generate very large disproportions in the market, with negative effects on the agricultural sector and logistics," said Matei Titianu, president of LAPAR, during a press conference held yesterday at the headquarters of IMM Romania. In a document sent to the authorities in our country, LAPAR proposes to approve each transport before entering Romania, regardless of whether it comes directly from Ukraine or through the Republic of Moldova. The approval would indicate the cargo, the mode of transport and the border crossing point, and the data would be reported at three-day intervals. Farmers also demand the mandatory correlation of entry and exit documents, so that the entire quantity declared in transit can be tracked until it leaves the national territory.

"We need rigorous control and full traceability of agricultural products from Ukraine on Romanian territory. We do not want the origins to be washed away again, so that Ukrainian products are sold as Moldovan cereals or Romanian cereals. We need prior approval of flows; at the time of entry into Romania, we need an approval that precisely specifies the crossing point, the goods and the transit mode. We need the approvals at entry to coincide with those at exit from the country. We need the prioritization of Romanian goods by rail, through a transparent mechanism, protected from commercial interference", stated Matei Titianu.

The list of requested measures also includes the activation of warehouses on Romanian territory, the use of predefined routes monitored by CNAIR and the Romanian Police, dedicated transfer lines and weighing of transport at all border points, including the border with the Republic of Moldova. For rail transport, LAPAR requests the verification of the seals of the loading and unloading gates.

"We need to know how transport and the quantities transiting the Romanian state are monitored. In 2022-2023, access to the port of Constanţa was very difficult, and farmers waited for days. Romania's infrastructure must be seen as critical infrastructure. Therefore, we request the establishment of a real consultation framework before adopting new measures regarding solidarity corridors," said the LAPAR president.

He recalled that the pressure on transport infrastructure is amplified by the low level of the Danube, the overloading of the road network and the increase in energy and road and rail transport costs. Under these conditions, LAPAR believes that transit must be organized through clear rules, effective controls and verifiable traceability mechanisms, in order not to restrict the real access of Romanian products to the market.