[Asia Economy Reporter Park Byung-hee] The European Union (EU) is expected to provide approximately 500 million euros (about 671.1 billion KRW) in support to the agricultural sector to address the food crisis caused by the Russia-Ukraine war.
According to Bloomberg on the 21st (local time), the EU Commission is scheduled to propose nearly 500 million euros in funding for the agricultural sector on the 22nd.
An EU official explained that the purpose is to reduce the impact of the war between Russia and Ukraine on the agricultural sector and to protect the EU's food security. This is the first time the EU has taken financial measures to respond to a crisis related to the agricultural sector.
Due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the price of natural gas, an energy raw material, has soared, and the costs of fertilizers and feed have also increased, putting the European agricultural sector in a serious crisis.
Janusz Wojciechowski, EU Commissioner for Agriculture, said last week, "We are preparing measures to allow fallow land to be used for crop cultivation to prevent feed shortages and support the pork industry."
EU agriculture ministers discussed various measures to respond to the agricultural crisis on the 21st, including domestic fertilizer production. Julien Denormandie, France's Minister of Agriculture, said, "We import too much fertilizer from Russia and Belarus." The EU agriculture ministers also agreed to provide supplies and funds to support Ukraine's agricultural sector.
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