Stefan Dreesmann, Dr. • 3rd+
With over 170 participants, the online seminar held on 23 June 2025 to present the Ukrainian translation of the EU guide A Vade Mecum on Official Investigations in Organic Production” was a resounding success. The event marks an important step towards strengthening organic farming in Ukraine.
The participants were welcomed by Maryna Kyslytska (Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine), Olga Semenchuk (State Service of Ukraine on Food Safety and Consumer Protection), Dr. Stefan Dreesmann (German-Ukrainian Cooperation in Organic Farming (COA) project), and Igor Kravchenko (Swiss-Ukrainian Program Higher Value Added Trade from the Organic and Dairy Sector in Ukraine” (QFTP)). The event was moderated by Kseniia Guliyeva (COA project).
Four high-profile presentations by the following speakers provided initial insights into this publication, which was produced with funding from the German government:
● Nicolas Verlet (formerly European Commission, now Anti-Fraud Initiative, France): Overview of the structure of the publication and Targeted information exchange in the organic supply chain;
● Jochen Neuendorff (organic control body GfRS and Anti-Fraud Initiative, Germany): Laboratory analyses and causes of possible residues;
● Sergiy Galashevskyy (Organic Standard certification body and Anti-Fraud Initiative, Ukraine): Investigations by control bodies.
The guide, now available in Ukrainian, offers concrete assistance, particularly for authorities and organic control bodies in dealing with suspected cases of unauthorised substances — a key issue in the new EU Organic Regulation. However, the comprehensive publication also offers valuable insights for many other stakeholders in organic farming, including organic operators and consultants.
The publication is now available at the following link:
https://lnkd.in/ed_nbqK8
The Ukrainian translation of the publication was made possible with the support of:
– German-Ukrainian Сooperation in Organic Agriculture project (COA) with financial support from the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture of Germany (BMEL),
– Switzerland within the framework of the Swiss-Ukrainian Programme Higher Value Added Trade from the Organic and Dairy Sector in Ukraine” (QFTP), implemented by the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL, Switzerland) in partnership with SAFOSO AG (Switzerland).
GOPA AFC
Stefanie Maak
Elisabeth Christine Rüegg
Oleksandr Kaliberda
Kseniia Guliyeva
Organic Standard
Control Union Certifications Ukraine
Oksana Motrynchuk
Organic Initiative
Eugene Milovanov
Evgenya Yushchenko
Peter Jossi
IFOAM Organics Europe
Bundesanstalt für Landwirtschaft und Ernährung
westandwithukraine