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Sunflower remains one of the crops, the supply of which to the world markets continues to grow from year to year, despite new requirements.
According to the forecast of the global harvest of oilseeds by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), in 2019/20 MY, the production of rapeseed in the world will decline, and the production of sunflower will rise to a new record. It is planned that the farmers will harvest up to 54.5 million tons of sunflower, although a year earlier the figures were more modest – 51.5 million tons.
The import of this crop to the EU countries is a priority for Ukraine, since it is our local production that is appreciated abroad.
Therefore, it is important for local farmers to know the features and requirements for the supply of this crop to Europe in order to sell the crop most profitably. According to statistics, Ukraine occupies one of the leading places in this market, and according to forecasts, the export of sunflower from our country will only grow.
What is needed for the supply of sunflower to the EU
In order to successfully export sunflower to the EU, it is necessary that the seeds meet export quotas. To do this, the company must be one of the first to submit a relevant application, or receive a licensed quota from the EU Directorate General for Agriculture. Also, all products must comply with EU quality standards, for which there must be appropriate documents.
According to the norms, sunflower seeds are divided into three classes. For convenience, we present the following table.
| Indicator name | Indicator value for sunflower class | ||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Condition | Healthy, no self-heating or heat damage during drying | ||
| Colour | Inherent in the normal color of sunflower seeds, according to certain varietal characteristics | ||
| Запах | Typical of healthy sunflower seeds (free of foreign, musty and moldy odors) | ||
| Moisture content, % | 6,0-8,0 | ||
| Mass fraction of oil in terms of dry matter,%, not less | 50,0 | 45,0 | 40,0 |
| Acid number of oil, mg KOH / g, for seeds, no more | 1,3 | 2,2 | 5,0 |
| Oil impurity,%, no more | 3,0 | 5,0 | 7,0 |
| including germinated seeds | 1,0 | 2,0 | 3,0 |
| Weed admixture,%, not more, including: | 1,0 | 2,0 | 3,0 |
| spoiled seeds | 0,2 | 0,5 | 1,0 |
| mineral admixture | 0,3 | 0,5 | 0,5 |
| including mineral impurities: | |||
| pebbles, slag, ore | 0,15 | 0,3 | 0,3 |
| harmful impurity: | |||
| castor bean seeds | Not allowed |
At the same time, the content of toxic elements, pesticides and other chemical substances should not exceed the permissible levels adopted in the EU – you can find them in the relevant documents. Sometimes these rates can vary from country to country.
Features of sunflower import
Of course, most often in the EU countries they are guided by their own norms and requirements for imported crops, therefore, for our producers, sunflower supplies have their own characteristics, which depend on the purpose of this crop. Sunflower can be used to produce oil, confectionery or oleic acid. Mass fraction of oil on dry matter when using sunflower for oil production should be at least 40%. At the same time, sunflower with an oil content of 50% and above belongs to the 1st class, 45% and above – to the 3rd class. Along with this, the level of oil content in the production of confectionery products should not exceed 42%. All exported products should be controlled during storage in elevators, and only healthy seeds are allowed for export, without self-heating, without heat damage.