Initiated by UCAB Association round table on “Meat production development and beef export’s perspectives” was held on 28 of July, 2016 in Kyiv. Representatives of industry companies, related associations, State Food Safety and Consumer Protection Service of Ukraine, processing entities and beef meat traders have gathered at the event.

Primary focus of the event devoted to issues of animal breeding industry, product quality and safety assurance as on internal and the same for foreign markets, ideas of stagnation overcome with foreign market expansion.

Cattle livestock, meat and processing products demand derived from EU countries, along with other destinations. Nevertheless, lack of conformity from Ukrainian producers with EU regulations narrows quotas on Ukrainian products being supplied to EU. In particular, monitoring absence of encephalopathy in Ukraine influences export of all meat food’s products.

“SVAROG West Group is cattle meat producing company looks for export options to EU countries and supports such events. Beef meat self-sufficiency of European counties estimated at 50% of required volumes. In DCFTA framework Ukraine possess a quota for cattle meat export meaning that Ukrainian producers have perspectives of production growth being able to grab their niche in the market to achieve additional benefits. Besides, via organization of production and marketing cooperatives new job will be created in rural areas. Financial institutions also may support export oriented animal breeding companies”, said Inna Meteleva, vice-president at SVAROG.

Vitalii Bashynskyi, FAO consultant, has marked urgency in question of industry stakeholders’ collaboration aiming to strength work on solution development for common problems, commitments and barriers as poor financial situation has caused weak perspectives of governmental support of the industry. “Government does not possess money for organization of encephalopathy monitoring and that is one we have to act together. First of all, industry has to be strongly agreed on the way of further developments due to complexity of existing issues. If out of thirty companies one will get the license than it would be success for the industry”, said Vitalii Bashynskyi.

Summarizing round table, experts’ community has formed a group of involved companies which will take participation in promotion of national meat products within European markets and action plan development for initiation of procedures related to application and status certification devoted to encephalopathy issues.