Egg Dumping: Will tariffs be imposed on Ukrainian eggs?

According to Dražen Katalinić, a commentator for the Rijeka-based newspaper Novi list, supporting Ukraine costs the EU more than war did for the Austro-Hungarian Empire. This topic has recently come to the forefront in Croatia, after it became evident that the influx of cheap Ukrainian eggs is threatening domestic production.

Due to the excessive import of cheap eggs, not only is „domestic production” suffering, but according to Croatian sources, on the eve of Easter, Croatia might become the only country in the Northern Hemisphere where eggs will be cheaper despite the expected high demand.

This is happening barely two years after eggs topped the inflation charts in terms of price increases, only to now defy all market trends with falling prices.

We might add, somewhat sarcastically, that they could just export them to Serbia, where demand is currently high.

Neighboring countries also at risk

It is no secret that the planned Ukrainian-owned mega-farms in Croatia pose a threat not only to local producers but also to those in neighboring countries.

Croatian farmers had noticed the surge in imports well before Easter. According to the Croatiastočar, the Croatian livestock farmers’ association, imports intensified towards the end of last year, with Croatia importing 70 percent more eggs than in 2023.

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Eggs were imported at a price of €2.24 per kilogram and exported for €1.98. But it seems that not only Croatian poultry farmers have had enough of uncontrolled imports from Ukraine — the flood of cheap Ukrainian eggs appears to be worrying other EU member states as well.

The European Commission has set limits on the amount of imports, and if these thresholds are exceeded, protective measures, such as tariffs, should be activated. Croatian traders have clearly exaggerated imports, but so far no protective measures have been enforced.

Croatian poultry farmers have once again voiced serious concerns over the planned construction of two Ukrainian-owned mega-farms in Croatia, which, according to the Croatian Chamber of Agriculture, pose a danger not only to Croatian but also Slovenian and Austrian poultry farming.

They cannot compete with Ukrainians

Ukrainian egg production is concentrated among a few large producers who control vast tracts of land — this raw material base explains the large scale of production and lower costs.

The Croatiastočar pointed out that in all forms of livestock farming, feed accounts for more than 60 percent of total costs. This is the largest expenditure, and Ukrainian mega-farmers own hundreds of thousands of hectares, compared to Croatian and European poultry farmers, who own little or no land.

Under such circumstances, it is only logical that they are already suffering significant losses in this competition. The Croatiastočar added that the influx of Ukrainian eggs is having a devastating effect on the sector. According to Branko Bobetić, the director of Croatiastočar, the competition was decided from the outset: while there are around two million laying hens in all of Croatia, a single Ukrainian company has four to five million.

„Essentially, the whole of Europe cannot compete with Ukrainian producers, and that’s why the European Commission adopted a measure limiting the quantity of duty-free imports from Ukraine. If this quota is exceeded, protective measures should be activated — but so far, we haven’t seen this happen. How this flood of Ukrainian eggs will end depends on the European Commission. At this point, everyone is protesting — the Poles, the Hungarians, the Romanians…”

– Bobetić said.

All animals are equal, but some are more equal than others

Although George Orwell intended his Animal Farm as a critique of communism, it remains shockingly relevant today — particularly within the European Union.

Under the guise of a „common European market,” anything that enters the EU market can now be imported into Croatia and other parts of Eastern Europe, even products that are banned in certain member states.

Animal Farm, AI-generated interpretation

If it weren’t for the Croatian Consumers’ Association, no one would have known that in 2018, apples were imported from Poland that had been sprayed with twenty times the amount of pesticides allowed under EU regulations.

Sweden immediately banned these Polish apples, but in Croatia, the „European” product caused no concern. So the common market is clearly common — just more common for some.

As even European companies themselves have admitted, products of lower quality are sent to Eastern member states. Examples like Nutella, Milka chocolate, and Ariel laundry detergent have become symbolic monuments to the double standards practiced by the more developed member states of the Union.

And one can only imagine the kinds of „brilliant deals” we will witness as Europe moves toward rearmament!