Ukraine and Germany have agreed to further expand cooperation in the forestry, food, and agricultural sectors. The discussions took place during a meeting between Ukraine’s Minister of Economy, Environment and Agriculture Oleksii Sobolev and Germany’s Minister of Food, Agriculture and Regional Identity Alois Rainer, focusing on the exchange of experience in seed production and biomethane, as well as support for aligning Ukraine’s agricultural sector with EU standards.
“We are grateful to Germany for its practical and systematic cooperation, which primarily helps us adapt our agricultural sector to EU integration. Together we are working on developing quality vocational education and strengthening food safety systems. We have laid the groundwork for joint projects in biomethane production and sustainable forest management. It is important for us that Ukrainian agricultural producers operate under EU standards, which will ensure fair competition and strengthen global food security,” said Oleksii Sobolev.
“Germany firmly stands with Ukraine. We are united in our appreciation of agriculture and forestry as a cornerstone of our economy and our homeland. As equal partners, we can learn a great deal from each other. That is why we are deepening our Agricultural Policy Dialogue and focusing even more on economic cooperation. We will continue to support and accompany Ukraine on its path to EU accession. Equal legal frameworks and standards are the basis for balanced and fair competition. We share a clear vision of a sustainable and forward-looking European agricultural market and want to shape it together,” said Alois Rainer.
During the meeting, the following new bilateral initiatives were outlined:
- Expansion of the EU Agricultural Policy Dialogue (APD), including conferences, seminars, study visits, and publications on seed production, biomethane, irrigation, and dairy processing.
- Strengthening cooperation between Germany’s Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety (BVL) and Ukraine’s State Service on Food Safety and Consumer Protection, including information exchange with involvement of the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) and the Friedrich Loeffler Institute (FLI).
- Expansion of cooperation in the forestry sector, including sustainable forest management, new technologies, and innovation in forestry and wood processing—important for Ukraine’s reconstruction and economic development.
The two sides also agreed to establish a high-level working group to support reforms in Ukraine’s agricultural and food sectors, including representatives of ministries, parliamentary committees, the European Commission, business associations, and research institutions.
