European integration draft law on organic production goes for repeat reading
The Verkhovna Rada Committee on Agrarian and Land Policy has supported the draft law prepared for a repeated second reading, which is intended to introduce unified standards for the cultivation, production and labeling of organic products.
The adoption of the draft law «On State Regulation of Organic Production, Circulation and Labeling of Organic Products» (No. 13204-1) will protect consumers and open access to the EU market, the parliament’s press service reports.
«This is a key European integration draft law for the development of modern organic production in Ukraine. Its main goal is to make the organic products market in our country clear, fair and fully compliant with European rules. In practice, this means introducing unified and transparent rules for everyone: how to grow, produce and label organic products. Accordingly, consumers will finally be confident that the word ‘organic’ on packaging indicates a truly high-quality and verified product,» said Oleksandr Haidu, Chairman of the Committee.
According to him, the draft law also provides for a significant strengthening of state control over the relevant products.
«We will remove unscrupulous producers and abuses of labeling from the market. This is important both for protecting people and for fair competition. In addition, this law opens up new economic opportunities for the development of rural areas and the creation of new jobs, as well as for the development of processing and the production of high value-added products,» the MP said.
He separately emphasized that if the document is adopted and comes into force, Ukrainian legislation will be fully harmonized with the requirements of the European Union. In particular, a key European regulation in the field of organic production will be implemented.
«This means that Ukrainian organic products will be able to compete on the European Union market without barriers. The law also introduces modern tools such as product traceability from field to table, group certification for small producers, expansion of the list of organic products, digital registers and a transparent control system. In addition, the draft law stimulates the transition to sustainable agriculture, soil conservation, biodiversity preservation and adaptation to climate change,» the parliamentarian stressed.
He added that, overall, this is not merely a sectoral law, but a matter of consumer trust, economic development, support for farmers and Ukraine’s integration into the European space.
