Peasants produce less milk and meat

In the first quarter of 2017 the production of certain types of agricultural livestock products in households fell by almost 3% compared to the same period last year. Such data is provided by the State Statistics Service.

Thus, the slaughtering of farm animals in the households this year amounted to 296.3 thousand tons, while last year this figure was 304.8 thousand tons, so it has decreased by 2.8%.

Exactly by 3% the milk production of the population decreased, it is 1272.8 thousand tons, while in the first quarter of 2017 the figures were 1312.8 thousand tons.

At the same time, similar indicators in agricultural enterprises rose respectively by 1.3% (live animals) and 3% (milk).

These facts indicate that the production of livestock products in Ukraine is gradually shifting towards industrial enterprises. Although production, in particular milk, still prevails in the households, almost twice (673.5 thousand tons - industrial, 1272.8 thousand tons - the economy of the population).

According to the Ukrainian Stock Breeders Association, one of the reasons for this is the introduction from July 1 of this year of new European sanitary and hygienic norms for milk, for which the second grade of milk produced in households cannot be used for food production. Also, a legislative initiative that has high chances to be adopted (bill No. 7489) - the prohibition since 2020 of the use of meat obtained as a result of slaughter not in the slaughterhouse with the operational permit, excluding own consumption.

"On the one hand, the transition to the prevalence of farming production is the right European way, Iryna Palamar, head of the USBA commented. - In developed countries, it is the farm enterprises and agricultural cooperatives that produce the lion's share of agricultural products. Grandmothers, for example, in the Netherlands, do not keep cows. There farms can provide and the corresponding quality of products, which is not able to give subsidiary farming.

However, one should not compare standards of living of Ukrainians and Europeans. The latter are provided enough to not have the need to keep a subsidiary farm, because they can buy these products. In our country, the keeping of a cow or pigs is almost the only way for Ukrainians to survive.

Therefore, now it is necessary to help the small producer, the peasant, so that he can create, for example, a family farm where he would produce competitive quality products. And the state should help.

Today we have the opposite situation: the state helps only large holdings with subsidies, but they are doing quiet well. And this was again demonstrated this year by the Ministry of Agrarian Policy, having divided 4 billion UAH of state grants in such a way that only large farms can receive them. A small producer who does not have a large land area in rent and property for bail and will again be left with nothing.

Our Ukrainian Stock Breeders Association carried out a huge work on this issue: we took part in the meetings of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy, wrote an open letter to the Prime Minister, and collected producers for the meeting, and even organized a protest against the opaque distribution of subsidies. However, nobody listens to us".