August 6 2003, 15:28

Moldova suffers shortages of winter grains seeds

According to web-server Reporter.md, the amount of winter wheat and barley seeds, collected and put in store up to the moment, is 50,000 tonnes in bunker weight. After purification and calibration there will be approximately 40,000 tonnes of seeds of these crops stored.

The Head of Moldova's State Seed Inspectorate Ion Paraskiv noted that this amount would cover just 65 to 70 percent of the country's needs (Moldova needs annually about 90,000 tonnes of winter wheat and barley seeds). With addition of 6,500 tonnes of stored winter wheat and barley seeds of last year's crop, the country will have to import another 25,000 to 27,000 tonnes of winter crops seeds, Paraskiv said, including 20,000 tonnes of wheat and 7,000 tonnes of barley seeds.

He said that at the moment the country had no import seed material in its disposal. The largest part is going to be purchased in August. The country's government created special commission, which would engage itself in purchases of seed material in regions of Russia. According to the First Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food Industry Valery Mironesku, negotiations about supplies of winter seeds are currently underway with farmers of Russian Krasnodar and Stavropol Krai; barley seeds are being already supplied from Oryol Oblast.

To facilitate the seed imports, the government of Moldova has exempted the imports and sales of seeding material from the 20 percent VAT.