Ukraine is taking the top positions on grains and oilseeds exports in the world. The important rate for export volumes saving and increase is the products quality. In order to keep it and to confirm the qualitative parameters the exporters invite independent inspectors the ones as Cotecna, International Surveyor Company.
Arina Kormacheva, the Vice President of the Regional Group of Cotecna Company in CIS countries, was interviewed in order to tell about the features of agricultural cargoes inspecting.
- Arina, please tell about Cotecna activity.
Cotecna is holding independent inspections of grains and oilseeds, veg oils, fodder, fertilizers and other cargoes, and is also certified and provides the service for state contracts concluded with the government of the Middle East countries, South-Eastern Asia and Africa ones. The inspecting is held for the domestic companies-suppliers and for international holdings.
The stationary labs of Cotecna are equipped with modern equipment for analysis making on all the qualitative parameters and cargoes safety. We work on the widening of the range of the services we provide, renew the laboratory equipment, develop and implement new actual methods of analysis, study the problematic situations, issues of concern and falsification. In the Cotecna mobile laboratories there are express-analyzers allowing to provide fast and qualified control of the basic parameters where the cargo is being loaded – in the fields, ports and terminals.
We have been working in the CIS countries since 1993. To date the company's representative offices are in Russia and Ukraine, the main labs are located in St. Petersburg Rostov-on-Don, Novorossiysk, Voronezh, Odessa and Mykolayiv.
Cotecna Company is inspecting according to the current regulatory documents and international standards. The company is certified with ISO 9001:2008, accredited with ICO/IEC 17020:1998, and our labs are – ISO 17025, GAFTA and FOSFA. Cotecna Company is the participant of the range of the international organization as GAFTA, IFIA, FOSFA, IFA, SAL, ASTM.
- What measures should traders do in order to form the required quality agricultural commodities batches?
The large-scale companies-suppliers esteem their reputation on the market are working on the required quality batches formation. Since the beginning of the season there has been forming the preliminary card of grain and oilseeds quality by the regions. Cotecna Company is offering the service on the mutually beneficial conditions in 2015/16 season for its constant and new clients.
There is the practice of grain and oil seeds qualitative batches formation in the acceptance stage onto the terminals or port elevators. Our company is also offering the clients the surveyor services and cargo quality tracking along all the chain – from elevator to the vessel.
Besides, the company is providing consulting services on the statistics analysis of the previous harvest crops and new season expectations.
- Ukraine has recently increased the grain exports and widened sales geography. How did the global importers demand increased for Ukrainian grain quality? What are the unsolved problems negatively influencing the Ukrainian agricultural commodities quality being actual to date?
The previous season showed that in general Europe and Middle East countries are more interested in the Ukrainian agricultural commodities imports. So the demand for grains and other agricultural commodities improved. Thus European countries are based on EU demands, meanwhile Middle East countries – USDA standards and the domestic specific quality standards.
The essential control and attention in Ukraine is required for storing and loading/ unloading of corn. The grain needs more delicate handling while loading/ unloading onto the silos and the vessels as well. In particular Iran and China have rather hard demand for broken grain and impurities as well, the quarantine objects and other qualitative parameters of grain as well. In general the Ukrainian grains and by-products quality is good despite the agrarian sector difficulties being worsened due to the imperfect legislative system of Ukraine.
- What factors should impact the grain and oilseeds quality the next season?
The main factor influencing the grain and oilseeds quality next season is the current country political and economical situation. Of course it is not sufficient to talk about the agrarian complex problems – they should be solved. Otherwise you may loose what you have worked out in the recent years.
Besides the correct fields preparation and treatment, the correct storing and preparing of grain batches, the conditions of storing in the storages and elevators.
- China has recently increased agricultural commodities imports like grain and oilseeds by-products. What are the features of the cargoes inspecting being forwarded to China?
Chinese contracts are very hard: they need the special conditions and state guarantee of cargo quality. To date mostly state enterprises perform such a contract because it needs the procedure of fields checking, accreditation, storage and storing terminals checking for absence of quarantine organisms by the specially authorized services.
Features of cargoes inspection going for China are procedure and equipment needed for quality tests being carried according to the standards of China and analyzes being based on the methods specified in the contract customer. Also, the quality of the goods must comply with phytosanitary regulations / standards and requirements governing the import of goods into the territory of China. In particular, chemical residues contained in the cargo must not exceed the permissible level specified by the Ministry of Health of China.
Cotecna Company lab is equipped with all the necessary equipment, techniques and standards for analysis making taking into account the features and requirements of China.
- What kind of inspecting will face emand increase in 2015/16 MY?
It depends on crop volume. And taking into account the country situation it is hard to forecast. The corn and wheat inspection demand to remain on the last year level, but there is information there will be demand rise for rapeseed and soybeans.
- Cotecna reported about the plans on the realizations of the projects in the spheres of microbiology. GM and dioxines. What stage are they on as of to date? Do you plan to attract investments for the projects realization?
They are expensive, but high image projects. We are very interested in their implementation. Now the company is actively working on the investment attraction, the business cases and reasoned justification of the demand for and profitability of these projects formation. If there is a positive decision this year the company to start the laboratory space repair and preparation, equipment purchasing, staff training. The creation of such laboratories is a long and laborious process, but we are determined to make it a reality. We believe customers will appreciate the improvement of the quality of our services and the empowerment of COTECNA.
Interviewed by Maya Scherbyna
