Moldova’s agricultural producers can at least double up their exports of particular products – for one year – to the European Union without customs duties now that trade in seven Moldovan agricultural products was temporarily liberalized, says the official information verification channel First Source.

The potential tariff-free volumes will now be worth around €55 million. The quota for plums was raised from 15,000 to 40,000 tonnes, for table grapes – from 20,000 to 58,000 tonnes, for grape juice – from 500 to 1,000 tonnes, for apples – from 40,000 to 80,000 tonnes, for cherries – from 1,500 to 3,000 tonnes, for tomatoes – from 2,000 to 4,000 tonnes, while for garlic – from 220 to 440 tonnes, IPN reports.

The European Union remains the main economic partner of the Republic of Moldova. In 2021, trade between Moldova and the EU was over US$5 billion, representing 49.10% of Moldova’s commercial exchanges, noted the First Source.

The Council of the EU on July 18 adopted the regulation that temporarily liberalizes trade in the seven Moldovan agricultural products that are not already fully liberalized: tomatoes, garlic, table grapes, apples, cherries, plums and grape juice.

The European Parliament on July 5 accepted the European Commission’s proposal to allow for temporary improved market access for the seven products from Moldova. The Commission presented its initiative as a demonstration of EU’s solidarity designed to help Moldova deal with the loss of its main markets and transit hubs for these key agricultural products resulting from Russia’s unjustified war of aggression against Ukraine.