The European Commission will be represented by the Commissioner for the Environment, Oceans and Fisheries, Virginijus Sinkevičius, the Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, Stella Kyriakides, and the Commissioner for Agriculture, Janusz Wojciechowski.

The session will start with the adoption of "A" items and will continue with a discussion on fishing opportunities for 2023, looking at EU-UK, Norway and Coastal States. This will be followed by a ministerial lunch where ministers will discuss current food labelling rules in the EU and the need for improvement. After lunch, ministers will reconvene to discuss the situation of agricultural production and logistics in Ukraine, as well as the implementation of transport routes to the EU. This discussion will take place in the presence of Ukrainian Minister for Agrarian Policy and Food, Mykola Solskyi.

During the session, under "Other business”, ministers will discuss the current situation of eel stock and the protection of vulnerable marine ecosystems. They will moreover discuss the agricultural aspects of the industrial emission directive and the sustainable use of plant protection products proposal. Finally, ministers will exchange views on the rise of large carnivores, the maintenance of grassland under GAEC1, temporary state aid measures in light of the Russian aggression against Ukraine, and the current situation of the dairy sector.

A press conference will be held after the session, with Czech Minister for Agriculture, Zdeněk Nekula, Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski and Ukrainian Minister, Mykola Solskyi.

Discussion on the agricultural production and logistics in Ukraine and connections to the EU

Ministers will discuss the situation in Ukraine in terms of agricultural production and logistics, as well as the implementation of transport routes to the EU and beyond. During this discussion, they will be joined by Ukrainian Minister of Agriculture, Mykola Solskyi. Russia's aggression against Ukraine affected both the production and export capacity of Ukraine. In 2021/22 Ukraine reached a record cereal and oilseeds crops harvest of 108 million tonnes, however, due to the war, the total grains area has decreased by 26,6 % compared to last year. This year, Ukraine expects yields of cereals and oilseeds crops at the average level of the last 6 years, around 67 million tonnes.

Considering that Ukraine exports more than half of its production, it still needs to export about 13 million tonnes of last year's harvest. While the partial reopening of Ukrainian ports will be welcomed by ministers as a positive development, with general cereal prices having slightly declined over the summer, ministers are expected to stress that the situation remains difficult in Ukraine and globally. They are further expected to emphasize that it remains to be seen whether the Black Sea ports agreement will continue to be implemented after October, ensuring stable and predictable flow of food exports from Ukraine, including further development of so called solidarity lanes. Finally, ministers are expected to discuss how to best counter the recent narrative from Russia, accusing the EU of withholding exports to third countries for its own markets.

Market situation, in particular following the invasion of Ukraine

Impact of Russia's invasion of Ukraine on the markets: EU response

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