Farmers Complain Produce from Ukraine and Turkey Ousts Local Producers from Business

Many vegetable growers in northern Moldova have reported that hundreds of tons of produce are left in warehouses because there is nowhere to sell it. Farmers have appealed to the authorities for help, but so far to no avail. The Ministry of Agriculture believes that producers should form associations to make it easier to sell their produce, according to tvrmoldova.md. Svetlana Albu, a farmer from the village of Ocolina in the Soroca district, cultivates around 10,000 hectares of land. Last year she grew onions and currently has around 200 tons of the crop in storage, which she is unable to sell. She has only managed to sell around 10 tons at the markets in Soroca. “We tried selling at the market in Chisinau, but with no success. We brought the produce back. The stall space is very expensive, and sales were low – we weren’t making any money. We had to come back. There’s a lot of imported onions at the Chisinau market, whereas there’s already plenty in stock in Moldova,” said the farmer. Farmer Victor Sau from Soroca, along with other farmers, grew cabbage. The harvest was large, around 500 tons, but sales turned out to be low. Now the vegetables are also left in storage due to a lack of a market. According to him, cheap produce from Ukraine and Turkey is driving out local producers. “A great deal of produce is imported from other countries. Fresh cabbage is being brought in from Turkey, and this is once again disrupting the market. This is clear competition. Imported cabbage costs 15-20 lei, whereas a price of 4-5 lei would be normal for ours. But because of the large volume of imports, nobody is buying it,” he noted. The Ministry of Agriculture stated that the vegetable sector is sensitive, and production needs to be better aligned with market needs. The ministry’s press secretary, Daniela Turculet, urged producers to join professional organizations, which would help coordinate production and sales volumes. According to the ministry, Moldova produces around 60,000 tons of onions annually, whilst domestic consumption is estimated at approximately 45,000 tons. Nevertheless, the country still imports around 2,300 tons a year. There are currently two specialist associations of vegetable producers and exporters operating in the country.