Even in the war, Ukraine continues to be one of the key suppliers of food on the world market, exporting such important products as sunflower oil, grain, corn, wheat, etc. These products play a significant role in ensuring the food security of many countries. However, in the pursuit of profit, some domestic companies are ready to ignore basic safety standards, endangering not only people's health, but also the country's reputation in the international arena.
Our investigation concerns the activities of LLC "SUN FLOWER TERMINAL", which probably uses former oil terminals for storage and transshipment of vegetable oils.
ElitExpert learned about such a blatant fact from its own sources in the port of Pivdenny, after which, in order to find out all the circumstances of the case, we sent official requests to the State Environmental Inspection, AMPU, the Ministry of Agrarian Policy, and the State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and consumer protection and to the company itself. There are no answers yet, but they are already writing about this situation as mass media, and local human rights defenders are hitting the nail on the head, such as Leonid Kolisnychenko.
Therefore, we are dealing with this case. The fact is that the containers, which were previously intended exclusively for working with petroleum products and their derivatives, are now used for products that will later end up on people's tables. This is not just a risk, but a real threat that can turn into a tragedy.
Before delving into the details, it is worth understanding how the former oil terminals turned into facilities for transshipment of sunflower oil. These terminals once belonged to companies connected to fugitive oligarch and former People's Deputy Viktor Medvedchuk. After the start of the war and the confiscation of Russian assets in Ukraine, the terminal came under the control of the National Asset Management and Investigation Agency (ARMA). This agency currently manages almost all confiscated factories, banks, gas station chains, shopping centers and other facilities that were previously owned by Russian businessmen, the government of the Russian Federation or Ukrainians who cooperated with Russia.
It was ARMA that handed over this object in the Port of Pivdenny to the operational management of the Ukrainian company "SUN FLOWER TERMINAL". It is noteworthy that the complex has its own access to the pier, which, in fact, is called "Oil".
When oil and food should not cross
According to information from open sources, the company transships edible vegetable oils using facilities, including storage tanks, which were built as a bunker oil depot (terminal) at the Port of Pivdenny.
It is clear to any person who is not even familiar with the intricacies of production that transshipment of sunflower oil in tanks that were previously used for oil is not a normal practice at all. Moreover, this is a very dangerous experiment with consequences that can be fatal, because the oil residues in the tanks can lead to the contamination of the oil with toxic substances (otherwise - contamination), which are invisible to the eye, but can cause serious damage to the health of hundreds of thousands of people.
That is why the countries of the European Union have strict regulations regarding the content of mineral oils in food products. The EU pays special attention to the control of the quality of vegetable oil, especially of Ukrainian production, since in 2008 cases of contamination of sunflower oil with petroleum products were already found in our products. Then the export of sunflower oil from Ukraine was immediately stopped and recovered later after heavy fines and elimination of all deficiencies.
An unlicensed company: what really happens
Unfortunately, now this scandal may happen again. It is worth noting that LLC "SUN FLOWER TERMINAL" (EDRPOU code 44852434) is not only likely to be using inappropriate oil storage capacity, but also appears to be operating without proper permits.
For example, the mentioned enterprise is not in the State register of market operators and their capacities, which is a direct violation of Article 25 of the Law of Ukraine "On Basic Principles and Requirements for the Safety and Quality of Food Products." It is clear that without registration and licenses it is impossible to talk about compliance with safety standards at all.
In addition, it is highly doubtful that the company adheres to the HACCP system, an international standard. By the way, it is precisely the international certificate (HACCP or ISO 90001) that is needed, because domestic analogues are not trusted in the West. This is what should guarantee the safety of products at all stages of their production. At capacities originally designed for petroleum products, it is simply impossible to properly organize a process that meets these requirements.
Why is this very important?
In recent months, 16 vessels loaded with Ukrainian sunflower oil have passed through the company's terminal in the Port of Pivdenny — these are Riva, Barbaros Hayrettin Vardal, Agartha, Griffin T, Sunbeam, Agartha, Oris Di, Laras, Torc, Mentor, Mubariz Ibrahimov, Olympic Spirit, Barbaros Hayrettin Vardal, New Ranger and Metor. The products were sent to Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands and Greece — countries where the quality of food products is particularly strict.
If traces of petroleum products are found in these supplies, the consequences could be catastrophic. For Ukraine, this is not just a risk of spoiling relations with international partners — it is a threat of a complete stop to the export of sunflower oil, one of the country's key export items.
ElitExpert, as part of its investigation, prepared and sent relevant requests to the company and a number of state bodies. We understand how important it is now to draw attention to this issue and force responsible companies to comply with the law. After all, ignoring the rules by some market participants endangers the rest — from producers to consumers. Such situations cannot be left without a reaction, otherwise the consequences may turn out to be extremely unpleasant for the entire country.
We will follow the development of events.
