Agriculture Ministry promotes deposit mechanism to protect grain producers

The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry advises grain producers not to hurry to sell the wheat of the 2010 harvest, because it is expected that prices will rise on the grain market. Minister Valeriu Cosarciuc said in an interview the farmers have the opportunity to deposit the wheat or other grains at the grain companies licensed to issue deposit certificates, Info-Prim Neo reports. “The producers that deposit grains at the authorized specialized companies will obtain a deposit certificate for the deposited amounts. These certificates can be further transmitted to other business entity or individual without the need to relocate those grains, or can be used as security for a loan”, explained Valeriu Cosarciuc. The minister said such deposits placed with government-owned companies will be kept for free for a period of three months. If meanwhile the depositors take out a loan, the interest rate for three months will be covered by the Farmers Subvention Fund. In the event the depositors want to keep the grains for a period longer than three months, for the fourth month they will be given a 25% discount on the deposit fee. “The mechanism of deposit certificates protects producers, offering them the opportunity to market the crops they cultivate so hard at reasonable prices”, said Valeriu Cosarciuc. The loans received thanks to these certificates could be used to cover some expenses or pay tax liabilities, suggested the minister. This would exclude cases where the grain is impounded over liabilities and then sold out at meager prices. The government owns four specialized companies, in Cupcini, Floresti, Marculesti and Chisinau, with an overall capacity of 150,000 tonnes. The Ministry forecasts the harvest of wheat to be 800,000 tonnes this year, with barley standing at 250,000.