Miller Magazine Issue: 132 December 2020

29 NEWS MILLER / december 2020 European Parliament has recognized equivalence of cereal seed produced in Ukraine. Growth of corn seed exports to the EU by international seed companies might be the most likely outcome. These might be followed by wheat and barley seed exports to the European market, according to USDA. Green light for Ukrainian seeds to the EU The European Parliament amended Council Decision 2003/17/EC to recognize the equivalence of cereal seed produced in Ukraine. The relevant Decision 2020/1544 of the European Parliament and of the Council (Seed Equ- ivalence Decision) was published on October 21, 2020. The Ministry of Economic Development, Trade and Agriculture (MEDTA) was named as Ukraine’s officially certification authority. In accordance with Ukrainian seed laws: MEDTA executes the policymaking functions and is responsible for maintaining Ukraine’s official seed re- gistry, while the State Service for Food Safety and Con- sumer Protection (SSFSCP) of Ukraine maintains the pra- ctical control over all stages of seed production and trade (including exports and imports), as well as managing data relevant to the seed registries in custody of MEDTA. According to De- puty Minister Ta- ras Kachka MEDTA (in Ukrainian), this decision should en- courage global seed companies to pro- duce seed in Ukraine with the purpose of subsequent export to the European Union. Ukraine sells seed in two major markets: the EU and in the Eurasian Economic Uni- on (EAEU) countries of Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Russia.