Ukraine should switch to domestic food purchases, farm minister says
KYIV (Reuters) – Ukraine, seeking to save money for military needs to fight Russia, should reorient state food purchases from imported to Ukrainian goods, agriculture minister Vitaliy Koval said on Wednesday.
The government has said Ukraine, one of the world’s major exporters of grain and vegetable oils, produces more than 90% of the food it needs but still imports significant amounts of agricultural goods.
Koval said the reorientation would start with the procurement of fish, which state agencies purchase at a cost of about $1 billion a year.
“This will have a positive impact on the country’s balance of payments, create additional demand for fish grown in Ukraine and give a boost to the industry,” Koval said.
Earlier this autumn, the government launched a programme to urge Ukrainians to buy more Ukrainian goods to help domestic producers.
