Thousands of Bulgarian and Romanian farmers blocked border crossings into Ukraine on Friday 7 April.

The farmers, who used hundreds of tractors, trucks, and agricultural machinery to block roads, are angry about cheap grain and other produce flooding their markets.

When Russia invaded Ukraine its produce became cheaper in some places both because it was harder to sell further afield and because the EU lifted duty on Ukraine's agricultural exports.

The National Association of Grain Producers of Bulgaria blocked the border crossings at Ruse and Kardam.

Protests are taking place in Bucharest, Constanta, Giurgiu, Negru Voda, along the border with Moldova, and in the interior of the country.

The farmers want the EU not to extend the duty free treatment of Ukrainian agricultural goods without regulations to limit excessive inflows, such as quotas, anti-dumping duties and import deposit fees.

They argue that removing import tariffs and agricultural trade barriers with Ukraine should have been a joint EU commitment, but its negative consequences have been disproportionately borne by member states geographically close to Ukraine, with farmers having their livelihood taken away.

Thousands of farmers are protesting in Bulgaria and Romania

Thousands of farmers are protesting in Bulgaria and Romania

Thousands of farmers are protesting in Bulgaria and Romania

Hundreds of tractors and agricultural machinery blocked the border points of Bulgaria with Romania and Romania with Ukraine. Effective protest actions of farmers' organizations from Bulgaria and Romania against the import of goods of agricultural origin from Ukraine have begun.

The National Association of Grain Producers of Bulgaria blocked the border crossings at Ruse and Kardam. Hundreds of trucks from and to Ukraine remained blocked.

Protests are taking place in Bucharest, Constanta, Giurgiu, Negru Voda, along the border with Moldova, as well as in the interior of the country.

Bulgarian and Romanian farmers are taking effective protest actions with a single demand:

Not to extend for Bulgaria and Romania the effect of Regulation (EU) 2022/870 of the European Parliament and of the Council of May 30, 2022, concerning the duty-free import of goods of agricultural origin from Ukraine, without introducing working protective clauses and mechanisms, which enable the regulation of excessive flows of agricultural production, such as quotas, anti-dumping duties and import deposit fees.

Removing import tariffs and agricultural trade barriers with Ukraine should have been a joint EU commitment, but its negative consequences and defects have been disproportionately borne by member states geographically close to Ukraine, protesters say. The EU's solidarity with Ukrainian agriculture is logical and understandable, but unfortunately it is dooming entire agricultural industries in European countries and taking away the livelihood of European farmers, according to farmers in Bulgaria and Romania.

Thousands of farmers are protesting in Bulgaria and Romania