More and more farms export their products directly, as they say, "from the field to abroad." Today, Ukrainian millet, legumes, corn, some grain and niche crops are in demand on the international market.

Sergey Salnikov, a researcher at the Institute of Plant Health, spoke about this, noting that in order to confirm quality indicators, foreign buyers must have an international research protocol for a batch of products. According to him, only a few laboratories accredited in accordance with DSTU ISO / IEC 17025 "General requirements for the competence of testing laboratories", including the Institute of Plant Health, can provide this document in Ukraine.

“When preparing a batch of any product, grain, apples or vegetables for export, in addition to quality indicators, it is imperative to study the residual amounts of pesticides, mycotoxins and heavy metals. Indeed, if the standards for these characteristics are observed, the cost of products increases significantly. In addition, no one wants to transport goods that have exceeded standards across the seas and oceans, especially in Europe, China and the United Arab Emirates,” says Sergei Salnikov.

He adds that in practice there are farms that grow products directly to order. For example, if a foreign pharmaceutical company requires high-quality raw materials (pumpkin seeds, chamomile flowers, phacelia, saffron, etc.), its representative, carrying out certain calculations, finds a region in which this crop can be grown, and looks for farms with which it is possible cooperate. After the conclusion of a contract with an indication of the price of the grown products, the farm is provided with cultivation technology, seeds, etc. And again, the main factor determining the performance of the contract is the quantity, quality and safety of the products received.

“For now, Ukraine is more and more oriented towards Europe, adopting its experience, laws and regulations. In my opinion, in a few years control of the content of residual amounts of pesticides and heavy metals in products will become more stringent or even mandatory, which will require specific research not only of the finished product, but also of individual elements of technology during the period of its cultivation,” notes Sergey Salnikov.

According to him, today the number of such studies is increasing: if earlier the customers were large agricultural holdings, traders or food manufacturing companies, today both medium and small farms are turning.

The Institute of Plant Health carries out all the necessary studies of quality indicators (content of protein, fats, sugars, etc.) and safety indicators (residual amounts of pesticides, heavy metals, mycotoxins, etc.) at Ukrainian prices.

AgroPortal