The public union "Millers of Ukraine" has been working for three years since May 22, 2014, and includes the companies of the flour-milling and groats market segments of Ukraine.
Rodion Rybchinskiy is the Head of Millers of Ukraine Association.
Graduated from the Odessa national academy of food technologies in the specialty of "Storage technology and grain processing".
Nowadays – the Director of public union “Millers of Ukraine”, the Head of Business project unit at APK-Inform Agency, editor-in-chief of the magazine “Grain storage and processing”.
- Rodion, what was the main idea and ultimate goal of creation of the branch association lobbying the interests of flour-milling industry of Ukraine?
This idea proceeds from the fact that flour-milling and adjacent to it cereal industries are the link between grain producers and consumers. There will no any high-quality bread, pasta or rich rolls without high-quality processing. At the same time while the problems of bakers are always in a fix, especially when they raise price for final product or just declare it, we don’t speak about problems of grain processors, while the industry entities were "clamped" between interests of agricultural producers and bakers. Therefore there is a compelling need to create consolidated unit which would advocate the corporate interests ripened and dealt with strategic issues of an industry.
- Millers of Ukraine is rather "young" association, but probably, it is already possible to talk about some achievements during its activities.
It will be three years officially in May since our company started to work so we are getting more experienced stuffing bumps at the same time. It should be noted that our union in coalition with other associations raised the issue of price regulation in industries for wide discussion and its actual cancellation was reached. In the context of it I want to thank the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine, who reacted the problem, and does everything for final cancellation of administrative price regulation – this remnant of state planned economy. Intense work for moving of Ukrainian flour on the new export markets became the second important area of our activity for this period. The association participated in six international exhibitions and trade missions in Asia and Africa, having increased significantly the export of flour, grain and bran. In the context of promotion the flour-milling production for export we get essential assistance of FAO and EBRD whom we are sincerely grateful for.
We began to cooperate more closely also with a number of the leading producers in the sphere of the flour-milling industry equipment and ingredients both within our own activities, and within the cooperation of the European millers association and ICC.
Of course there is still a number of questions that are the permanent decision through routine process by communication with various authorities at the level of ministries, and regional as well.
- How do You plan to achieve the stated aims? What methods of lobbying interests of market participants do You consider to be the most effective?
We are building the work based on formulation the problems facing the industry, their analysis and development of decisions program which is then offered in letters, addresses, resolutions and public committees to get support of our arguments. We consider that only public and transparent methods of representation the interests of market participants which completely match interests of society in general therefore the activities of our association promote improvement of not only industry business conditions, but the agrarian complex in general. As for the methods of our activities we use such of them as public discussions, round tables, publications, conferences, analytical materials and other public work.
- How do You assess the current situation in grain processing activity and production job?
At the moment I would mark several aspects which characterize the general condition of industry. The war in the east of Ukraine and annexation of the Crimea exerted a negative impact on flour-milling demand in terms of reduced purchasing power of the population that led to a competition inside of the industry and forced the entities to look for the foreign markets of sales. And here again the entities face the mass of crucial moments such as search of the bona fide purchaser, analysis of the markets, risks assessment, logistics, etc. Unfortunately, the help from state agencies in this matter is low… And some state industries, besides, being monopolists (like Ukrzaliznytsia, for instance), try to earn as much as possible on export senders. And, regrettably, we don’t see any motions in the question of its service rates reduction… One more problem is the fixed growth on rates for gas and the electric power for industrial enterprises that also affects cost value of our production and reduces competitiveness in the foreign markets, as well as influencing the prices on the domestic market…
- What, in Your opinion, should be undertaken first of all to increase rates of the market work?
The state activities concerning the complete legislative cancellation of even a possibility of administrative price regulation in the competitive markets would be the most important issue for market participants. Actually, it is a nonsense – to regulate prices on the market by administrative methods where is a real competition. The next item is the activities of Ukrzaliznytsia. It is not a problem of specified industry at all - it is a question of general business commodity functioning in Ukraine.
Also the state represented by the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade should develop and implement the efficient mechanism of supporting the export of production with added value and to create trade missions abroad. Besides, constant changes in the tax legislation and law enforcement practice should be stopped.
We need accurate law system which would protect the private property with the right in the guardian, where the rules of game will be clear and predictable for all market participants irrespective of their industry accessory.
- Rodion, how much, in Your opinion, the role of industry associations in development of the agrarian market, and Your association in particular, is important?
The industry associations by their institutional function are the buffer between state bodies and business, respectively they bear the same caseload – assistance of the state policy development and its embodiment, industry analytics about the prospects of development and a risks assessment. Let me note, that during the last year and a half the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and the Ministry of Economic Development often consulted on industry associations, discussing initiatives and consequences. But they also often make decisions which can be considered as politically only as they aren't approved by associations and don't solve business problems. The examples of developed countries show that industry associations are an important institute of functioning the developed society, being blacksmith of the personnel for the same authorities, and also institutions which promote market development, combining a collective willingness of market participants and efforts for the solution of common problems (excluding the questions of the producers competition). It is necessary to understand also, that the association isn’t "end in itself", but the tool of market participants, and its efficiency also depends on the extent of communication between each member of the association and market participants.
- The message of the Head of association to participants of the market?
First of all, I ask participants of the market to declare openly the problems of their industry, urgent interests and give their initiatives. Representation of interests is not a quick process, even as that is our desire, but at the same time it helps to change business conditions structurally.
