Polish official questions odd smell of Ukrainian sugar, calls for investigation – photos

Every batch of sugar arriving in Poland is proposed to be placed under sanitary control by Deputy Minister of Agriculture Michal Kolodziejczak, a statement he made at a press conference on Monday following an inspection trip to the border with Ukraine.

Since 2011, Ukrainian sugar has been exempt from Polish sanitary and epidemiological control.

"It is allowed for trade based on Ukrainian documents, which I do not trust. I do not trust the importers who claim this sugar is good," Wiadomosci quoted Kolodziejczak.

The deputy minister spent the past weekend at the Polish-Ukrainian border, inspecting goods entering Poland and verifying their documents. On Sunday, he published a photo report from the border on X (Twitter). In one of the photos, the deputy minister is seen leaning over a bag of sugar from Ukraine.

"The sugar had at least an odd smell. Staff explained that this could be because it is technical sugar, for example, for jams or lemonades. In my opinion, this issue needs thorough investigation, and if not – it should be returned to Ukraine. Zero tolerance," wrote Kolodziejczak.

At the press conference, the official stated that the amount of sugar that has entered Poland since January 1 is currently being calculated. After completing these calculations, Kolodziejczak will ask the government to limit sugar imports.

"I already know that I will ask Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Minister Siekierski to limit the imports of sugar due to the already excessive quantity that has entered Poland. We are already seeing a huge market disruption today, and we cannot allow this," he said.