Slovakia bans imports of Ukrainian grain following Poland, Hungary

Slovakia will temporarily ban grain imports from Ukraine, its prime minister Eduard Heger announced on Monday.

"Slovakia temporarily suspends imports of grain and other selected products from Ukraine. A working group meeting on this issue will be held today. We will report the results," Mr Heger wrote on Facebook.

Last week, Slovakia’s agriculture ministry issued a ban on processing imported grain from Ukraine, and the sale of Ukrainian grain products in the local market.

The ministry said that the decision was made after traces of the EU-banned pesticide chlorpyrifos, which "has a negative impact on human health", were found in one of the batches of Ukrainian wheat.

Earlier in April, Ukraine pledged to stop exporting grain to Poland due to protests by local farmers. They claim that Ukrainian grain has brought down local grain prices, incurring losses to local producers.

The move was officially announced on Saturday, with Hungary following suit.