Moldovan parliamentary commission asks exporters of nuts to return to acquisition price from 2016

Chisinau, 10 October /MOLDPRES/ - The members of the parliamentary commission for economy, budget and finances today held a news conference, during which they asked the companies exporting nuts to return to the acquisition price from 2016. They also said that the price had been decreased artificially in the last years.  

The head of the aforementioned commission, Igor Munteanu, said that, following an investigation made by the parliamentary commission, decision-makers found out that, in the last years, the acquisition prices for nuts had dropped by 50 per cent and the exports decreased drastically.

„The nuts exporting companies have at their disposal 48 hours to return to the old prices. I expect a quick reaction, so that we do not resort to the Competition Council to solve this situation. Otherwise, this is described as a cartel agreement,” Munteanu said.  

The MP also said that, in the last period, farmers had been desperately cutting their  plantations, as more companies affiliated to the former governance would have established monopoly on export and the State Fiscal Service would have suffocated with controls the exporting companies which were paying more for one kg of walnut kernels. “Thousands of tons of nuts were sequestrated and more persons were detained. Many companies were liquidated; files are pending in courts now too. The companies which were buying walnut kernels from private persons were obliged to prove the origin of the nuts,” Munteanu stressed.    

In last June, the prices of nuts got into the focus of the cabinet, which set up an inter-governmental commission meant to elucidate aspects on the lawfulness of the access of economic operators to the export of nuts. The commission members are to suggest solutions for de-monopolization, by submitting to the government proposals on the liberalization of the export of nuts and their derivatives.

Contacted by MOLDPRES, the head of the Union of Associations of Nut Crops’ Producers from Moldova, Oleg Tarsana, informed that, according to estimations, this year, the production of walnuts would amount to 36,000-38,000 tons and would be bigger than in 2018. Tarsana added that the walnut kernels would be of higher quality than the ones from the last year.  

Estimative data shows that the area of commercial walnut orchards exceeded 20,000 hectares in Moldova. If the alignment belts are added to this, the area planted with walnuts exceeds 30,000 hectares in all. Between 1,500 and 2,000 hectares of walnut orchards are annually planted in Moldova, with the figure based on sales of seedlings.   

In 2018, about 35,000 tons of nuts were produced in Moldova.