Ministry of Agriculture

The Ministry of Agriculture has announced that it has promptly taken measures to tighten the control of grain transported from Russia and other high-risk countries amid reports that Russia may be exporting grain seized in occupied territories of Ukraine through Baltic Sea ports.

The Ministry of Agriculture said Monday it is tightening control of grain imports from Russia and other higher risk countries. The new measures will also apply to the products in transit through the port of Klaipėda.

The Ministry of Agriculture says it will ease controls on farmers who suffer losses due to the dry weather and will not impose sanctions for non-compliance with commitments tied to the European Union’s support.

The Lithuanian government on Wednesday has declared a state-level emergency over the ongoing drought's impact on agriculture.

Lithuanian farmers who have incurred drought-related losses cannot expect compensation from the European Union as it's an insured event, Vice Minister of Agriculture Venantas Griciunas says.

Lithuania has already managed to enter the Chinese dairy market and now the representatives of other industries are looking to enter the largest market in the world. Preparations for this are already well under way for companies planning to export beef, grain and animal fodder.

Responsibility of Lithuania's Agriculture Minister Virginija Baltraitienė should be assessed by the Labour Party that delegated her to the post, the board of the ruling Lithuanian Social Democratic Party stated on Tuesday.

Lithuanian farmers gave out free milk to people in the centre of Vilnius outside the Ministry of Agriculture yesterday in protest at the low prices they are getting from retailers for their milk.

Lithuanian dairy producers are holding a protest in Vilnius today to attract attention to the problems they are experiencing in the country's dairy market with about 1,500 farmers attending the demonstration, according to the police.

About 3,000 dairy farmers are planning to rally outside the Ministry of Agriculture in Vilnius next week, demanding government assistance amidst collapsing milk prices.

Corruption suspicions in several Lithuanian ministries have severely damaged the government's ratings, a new poll shows. Popularity of Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius and his party, the Social Democrats, has suffered as well.

The ministers of environment and agriculture will have to go if they are caught lying about investigations they are currently subject to, Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius has suggested on Monday evening after meeting with the president.

Agriculture Minister Virginija Baltraitienė has accepted resignation of her deputy Vilius Martusevičius over alleged corruption in the ministry's food for poor programme.

The Prosecutor General's Office is to investigate public procurement contracts for the government's food for poor programme after it emerged that companies picked to supply products offered massively inflated prices.

Minister of Agriculture Virginija Baltraitienė might have to explain herself to official ethics watchdogs after it has emerged that the ministry's food for poor programme awarded a government contract to a company linked to the minister's party colleague Viktor Uspaskich.

President Dalia Grybauskaitė is to have a "serious conversation" with Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius about corruption suspicions that have plagued his cabinet over the last week. The meeting is scheduled for next week, after Butkevičius comes back from vacation.