Ukraine has officially received permission to export peas to China. The corresponding agreement was signed today, on March 6, by the Ambassador of China to Ukraine, Mr. Ma Shengkun, and the State Service of Ukraine on Food Safety and Consumer Protection at the premises of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine. This marks a significant step in expanding the geography of Ukrainian pulse exports.
Antonina Sklyarenko, President of the Ukraine Pulse and Soybean Association, attended the signing ceremony.
According to her, the process of opening the Chinese market for Ukrainian peas took over five years:
"We have been working on this issue since 2019. The opening of the Chinese market and the opportunity to export Ukrainian peas are expected to encourage an increase in the sowing areas of this crop in Ukraine, as farmers will now have another high-margin sales market.
The process has already been finalized, and while the new crop batches will require field certification and compliance with China’s phytosanitary requirements, Ukrainian producers will be able to start shipping peas to the Chinese market as early as August. We can confidently say that with this year’s new harvest, Ukraine will begin supplying peas to China," noted Antonina Sklyarenko.
Previously, Ukrainian farmers had already received approval to export soybeans to China.
"The field certification procedure for peas will follow the same process applied to soybeans," added the President of the Ukraine Pulse and Soybean Association.
Pea production in Ukraine demonstrates a stable trend. In the 2023/2024 marketing year, it amounted to 409 thousand tons, while in 2024/2025, it is forecasted to reach 476 thousand tons. The main export markets remain Turkey, India, Italy, Malaysia, and the UAE, along with China, which is showing a high growth rate in purchases.
The opening of the Chinese market is expected not only to boost pea production in Ukraine but also to strengthen agricultural export cooperation between the two countries. China is currently one of the world's largest importers of pulses, and Ukraine has the potential to become one of the key suppliers of this product.