The insufficiency of storage and drying facilities forces the farmers to sell their agricultural products as soon as possible, immediately after the harvest, instead of waiting for a better price on the market. In a roundtable meeting staged by the Competition Council, the participants conferred on the provision of sunflower seed storage and transportation services. Producers and representatives of exporters said the infrastructure is old and it is difficult to find units of transport in the periods when sales are high, IPN reports.

Chairman of the Union of Agricultural Producers Associations UniAgroProtect Alexandru Slusari said that during two weeks after last year’s harvest, a processing company profited from its dominant position on the market. It thus contributed to a reduction in the purchase prices of sunflower seeds, to levels lower than in the region – in Ukraine and Romania. As a result, the agricultural producers sustained losses. “We informed the Competition Council and want to know if the situation won’t repeat this year. We want not a high purchase price, but a correct price in line with the prices on the regional commodity exchanges,” stated Alexandru Slusari.

The representative of the mentioned processing company Jhashi Vaja said the relevant conclusions were drawn and the prices now returned to the regional levels. “We cooperate with producers and exporters. We are ready to provide them with freight cars, if they need them. For money, of course. But we must understand that the purchase price may fall in the immediate future as Ukraine has sunflower seed reserves that are by 70% larger than in the corresponding period last year,” he said.

Deputy Minister of Transport and Road Infrastructure Vladimir Cebotari stated that a clear formula for distributing freight cars was agreed. He voiced hope that the producers and exports will not face such problems this year. Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food Industry Viorel Gutu said the Ministry pays special attention to the creation of post-harvest infrastructure. The construction of storage, drying and cold storage facilities is subsidized and the access to European funds will stimulate these activities.