Peculiarities of sunflower meal import to EU countries

Sunflower meal is one of the main components of feed useful for farm animals.

Sunflower seed meal is rich in proteins that contribute to animal weight gain, as well as strengthen immunity and support the development of cattle and pigs. This product is obtained as a by-product in the production of oil, and it is profitable for farmers to sell it to other countries that cannot boast of a sufficient number of their own sown areas. In particular, EU countries are actively purchasing sunflower meal, where, as you know, there is a permanent lack of sunflower seeds. The thing is that Europe is focused on growing other types of seeds, for example, soybeans or rapeseed, which are considered more environmentally friendly. However, it is the sunflower that is an integral part of animal feed, and therefore this product is actively imported from other countries, for example, from Ukraine.

What is needed for the supply of sunflower meal to the EU

To supply sunflower meal to European countries, local Ukrainian farmers must know several rules and requirements for product quality. It is known that European quality standards are stricter than Ukrainian ones, however, the sales market there is much larger, so it makes sense for Ukrainian farmers to adjust to world standards. In particular, when supplying meal, documents are required that confirm the quality of the original product, that is, sunflower seeds. The documents must indicate all the substances contained in the seeds, and also describe the preparations that were used to grow the crop. Europe highly values ​​seeds grown without the use of GMOs, therefore, even at the sowing stage, these requirements must be taken into account. In addition, the documentation must indicate the proportion of oils in the meal. You can learn more about the specifics of filling out the necessary documents on the website of the Customs Union.

Features of import of sunflower meal

To imagine how much meal can be offered to European partners as imported products, let us turn to the procurement statistics for 2020. So, according to experts from the European Commission, in 2020 the EU countries, including the UK, imported a total of 10.77 million tons of oilseeds, which is 1% higher than in 2019. At the same time, in Europe, the import of sunflower seeds was increased by half – to 593 thousand tons. Basically, sunflower seeds are supplied to Belgium (60%). In addition, it is important to take into account that last year Russia became the leader in the export of this crop with indicators of 248 thousand tons. But Ukraine took the third line in the list, having supplied 112 thousand tons of seeds. But, despite this, Ukraine became the first in the import of sunflower meal and oil to the EU countries, exceeding 512 thousand tons of oilseed meal (46% of the total share) and 718 thousand tons of oil. (88% of total supplies).