Europe votes to close poultry loophole
The European Parliament has voted in favour of measures that will end the legal loophole that allowed Ukrainian poultrymeat producers to export unlimited amounts of breastmeat into the bloc.
The resolution passed with 444 votes in favour, 128 voted against and 74 MEPs abstained.
Breastmeat with a wing tip attached was not subject to tariffs under the trade agreement between the EU and Ukraine. Exports of poultrymeat rocketed almost 15-fold between 2016 and 2018 – to 55,000t.
As part of the settlement, Ukraine will receive additional tariff-free quota roughly equivalent to the amount it exported using the loophole last year.
This modification ensures that EU producers will now be protected against unlimited imports of poultry meat. In the future, Ukraine should respect the spirit of faithful cooperation with the EU, while the EU should work to exclude loopholes. I call on Ukrainian exporters to abide by the provisions of the full trade agreement, including respecting sanitary and phytosanitary rules.” – EU Rapporteur Enikő Győri.
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