Are fertiliser prices likely to skyrocket again?
The European Parliament’s international trade committee has voted in favour of customs duties on fertilisers imported from Russia and Belarus. The Russian Federation and its Belarussian ally are both major producers of agricultural fertilisers, on whom many European farmers have depended in the past. The decision by the EU trade committee has therefore made the agricultural sector uneasy, as it raises the prospect of higher prices and potential supply shortages.
No consideration of farmers’ situation?
According to Copa Cogeca, an organization that represents various EU farming organisations and co-ops, the trade committee vote has been taken without “considering their consequences” for farmers. According to Copa, customs duties imposed on Russian and Belarussian fertilisers are “potentially devastating” for European agriculture. The organisation decried the trade committee’s failure to consider “alternative plans” before pressing ahead with the vote.
No interest in solutions
In a recent statement, Copa Cogeca acknowledged the political rationale for the trade measures against Russia and Belarus, but strongly criticised what it called “the lack of amendments to the original text and the absence of any call for a proper impact assessment.” The statement also stressed that mitigating solutions and alternatives sourcing arrangements could have been explored, as highlighted by the EU agriculture committee.
Copa Cogeca described the decision to ignore these solutions as “alarming, given the severe economic implications for European farmers and agricultural co-operatives.”
Fertiliser already a “substantial expense”
Copa Cogeca’s assessment is that new tariffs on Russian and Belarussian fertilisers will drive farm production costs at a time when “fertiliser already represents one of the most substantial expenses for farmers”. A rise in production costs due to fertiliser prices, the group points out, will lead to a collapse in European agricultural competitiveness, reduced farmer income and disruption of European food security.
Request to reconsider…
The Copa Cogeca group has requested that the European Parliament reconsider the proposal when the Parliament meets for a plenary sitting this week. In its statement, it stressed that the agricultural sector must not be the victim of foreign policy decisions: “The agricultural sector must not be expected to bear the brunt of foreign policy decisions without adequate mitigation measures and a thorough impact analysis”.
However, the group did express its support for the EU’s “commitment to addressing geopolitical challenges” and stressed its concern that farmers not become collateral damage.
