European integration

Ukraine has fulfilled all the requirements for opening the agricultural chapters within the fifth cluster of negotiations on accession to the European Union and is currently awaiting a political decision.

Ukraine can help the European Union move from responding to food crises around the world to finding ways to resolve them.

2032 is a realistic timeframe for Ukraine to join the European Union.

At the beginning of the year, Olha Trofimtseva took over as head of the APD Ukraine project, which focuses, among other things, on supporting Ukraine’s alignment with European Union policies. What the German-Ukrainian Agricultural Policy Dialogue has already managed to implement and what is still planned — in our conversation.

Ukraine is transitioning to a new model for the regulation of veterinary medicinal products, an important part of which is the full implementation of Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP).

Enterprises accredited to export products to the European Union produce 83% of poultry meat and 75% of table eggs in Ukraine.

Today, Ukraine marks the 35th anniversary of its independence and, along with it, 35 years of development of its agri-food sector. Over this period, the industry has transformed from the collective and state farm system into an agricultural business sector, becoming one of the largest players on the global market.

Germany, one of Europe’s major consumers of soybeans for the feed industry, is tightening requirements for traceability and verification of the origin of imported raw materials.

Taras Vysotskyi is not a new figure at the agricultural ministry. Having served as Deputy Minister for seven years, both in a separate ministry and within merged ministries, he remained a source of stability for participants in the agri-food sector.

Concerns over Ukraine's European integration are being voiced not only by farmers in Poland and neighbouring countries, but also by agricultural stakeholders in France and Spain.

Ukrainian agricultural producers—from large-scale operations to small-scale craft producers—are paying increasing attention to safety, traceability, and transparency in production. These principles are driven not only by changes in the legislative framework as Ukraine moves toward European integration, but also by consumer demand.

In June, Ukraine officially opened negotiations with the European Union under the first negotiating cluster, Fundamentals. There are hopes that all negotiating clusters will be opened by the end of the summer, including the one covering the agricultural sector — Cluster 5, which encompasses agricultural policy, food safety, and fisheries.

Ukraine is moving along the path of European integration by harmonizing its legislation with EU rules. For the veterinary medicinal products market, this should mean modern regulation, predictable rules and favorable conditions for attracting investment and introducing innovation. However, certain provisions of the new legislation may have the opposite effect, creating additional regulatory barriers for international manufacturers and complicating access to high-quality veterinary medicinal products on the Ukrainian market.

The future of European and Ukrainian agriculture is not a confrontation between Ukraine and the EU, but a partnership aimed at building a stronger and more resilient agricultural sector.

The European Union has already set the course for its future development—climate neutrality, energy security, and a competitive economy have become specific strategic goals enshrined in the European Green Deal, REPowerEU, RED III, and other initiatives.

Ukraine’s EU membership requires the adaptation of livestock farming to stricter standards for product safety, animal welfare and environmental regulations. At the same time, the changes and innovations that agricultural producers will have to implement on farms will help raise production standards and expand export opportunities for Ukrainian products.