Border blockades result in over EUR 1.5 billion losses for Ukraine’s economy and producers

Blockades of the border crossings between Ukraine and Poland resulted in the loss of over EUR 1.5 billion for domestic economy and producers in November and December 2023.

Denys Marchuk, Deputy Chairman of the Ukrainian Agrarian Council, made this statement during a briefing at Media Center Ukraine – Ukrinform.

“If we talk about the consequences of the blockade itself, first of all, we need to remember the consequences of the first bans on the import of Ukrainian products in May-September, when the ban on the import of Ukrainian products to five Eastern European countries was in effect. Then, the consequence of all these actions was the blockades of the custom checkpoints between Ukraine and Poland by Polish carriers and Polish farmers. As a matter of fact, if you calculate the losses to the country’s economy in November and all of December, including producers, they exceed EUR 1.5 billion. These are quite large funds, which the Ukrainian budget, as well as producers , logistics companies, and all those connected to the import and export of products from and to the territory of Ukraine did not receive on time,” he explained.

According to Denys Marchuk, the reverberations of the blockades will be felt even during 2024, as a significant number of producers who were forced to stand in queues lost potential contracts with representatives in the European zone.

“I have firsthand knowledge of cases when (companies – Ed.) were unable to deliver products on time, and hypermarkets refused to cooperate with them, and therefore, this business actually cannot ensure to export the corresponding products in this direction in the future based on its pre-established plans,” he explained.

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