President of the Union of Latvian Fish Processing Industry Jānis Endele explained in a press release that the food sector is at risk of a crisis and producers “expect active actions from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Economy to prevent a dramatic drop of export and tax revenue”.
According to him, the cause of the crisis is the blockade of Ukraine’s economy by Polish truckers. This has caused a state of emergency for Latvia’s food sector. The export volumes of fish processing businesses is down by at least EUR 10 million because of it. This is why representatives of the fish processing industry invite Latvian authorities to take action to resolve the situation
by commencing talks with their Polish colleagues
in order to prevent further damage to a sector that is so important for Latvia’s national economy.
Endele explains: “The situation really is dramatic. Latvian businesses that continue actively working with Ukraine despite the war are at risk of shutting down operations. The behaviour of Polish truckers on the Polish-Ukrainian border
is similar to a full blockade of Ukraine’s economy,
but representatives of Latvian institutions have yet to take notice of this.”
He continues: “We have reported this information to the Ministry of Economy and Ministry of Foreign Affairs. We expect both ministries to actively work on resolving this situation. Action needs to be taken by turning to both Polish and European Union institutions and services.”
The Union of Latvian Fish Processing Industry unites 13 leading fish processing companies whose total sales volume exceeded EUR 222 million in 2022. More 85% of this volume comes from export of products.
Also read: Grain freight turnover on a rise in Latvia’s transit sector
Follow us on Facebook and X!