The wheat harvest is a good one this year, but farmers are facing low selling prices. Minister of Agriculture Vladimir Bolea said that in order to cope with the low selling prices of wheat and high prices for fertilizers, the farmers must combine forces. The model of agricultural chambers, promoted by the Ministry, is a solution to the problems experienced by farmers, IPN reports.
The official noted that although the weather conditions were not favorable for the proper development of wheat, the wheat harvest is satisfactory, especially in the north of the country. The sale price of wheat compared to the investments made is the biggest challenge faced by the farmers.
“Autumn was very dry in the first part of it, when the wheat was sown. That is why, even if in spring we had a high level of precipitation all over the Republic of Moldova, the plants are still underdeveloped. I went to Causeni. There, they have 3-3.5 tonnes of wheat per hectare. In the north of the Republic of Moldova, the crop is of about 3.7-4 tonnes per hectare. The quality of wheat is good. A lot of wheat is food wheat, which means that it will be sold at a higher price. Overall, the state of affairs is satisfactory when it comes to the autumn grain group. But farmers still face low prices. They will hardly cope with the problems given the price of 2.75 lei. In Hâncești, a farmer said that he sold wheat for 3.10 lei. We must continue the policy started by the Ministry of Agriculture two years ago, namely the association policy,” Vladimir Bolea stated in the talk show “Emphasis on Today” on TVR Moldova channel.
According to the official, if the producers come join the agricultural chambers, they will have access to information, subsidies and pre-accession funds. Only if the farmers unite, agriculture in the Republic of Moldova can become highly technological and efficient.
“Forming associations is the solution to farmers’ despair. It goes to merging to purchase fertilizers, to reduce the price of fertilizers and to sell the final product. There are no other magic solutions. We have discussions with farmers and the vast majority are aware that the union is an important thing for them. Now we are promoting agricultural chambers. Everyone understands that the poverty witnessed today in agriculture can only be solved by association, having access to information, knowledge, which you cannot have on your own. We took the model from the countries where agriculture developed at the highest level, but they did it within an agricultural chamber. When you are part of a professional community, such as the agricultural chamber, your level of resilience is much higher. You will overcome these difficulties in a completely different way,” said the Minister of Agriculture and Food Industry.
The draft law on the organization and functioning of agricultural chambers was given a first reading by the Parliament. According to the document, the agricultural chambers will provide farmers with access to resources and information, including training and financing programs, facilitating the exchange of knowledge and experiences among members. The agricultural chambers will be constituted in two levels: ten regional agricultural chambers and the National Agricultural Chamber.
