The Committee on EU Integration is a platform for consolidating the Ukrainian dairy sector, established in 2024. It aims to bring together businesses, government bodies and professional institutions on the path towards full integration into the EU single market.

The Committee’s objective is to facilitate the harmonisation of Ukrainian legislation with European standards in the field of dairy production and trade, as well as to actively promote the development of exports of Ukrainian dairy products to foreign markets.

In 2025, the Committee carried out significant work, which became particularly important and timely against the backdrop of the intensification of Ukraine’s accession negotiations with the EU. Key initiatives included:

• initiating and coordinating the development of a Roadmap for the integration of Ukraine’s dairy sector into the EU;

• organising a series of expert discussions and a broad debate on the necessary steps towards European integration at the conference ‘Dairy Sector – Ukraine – EU’;

• study visits by delegations of Ukrainian dairy farmers to CNIEL (France) to familiarise themselves with the French cross-sectoral model of dairy sector organisation and pricing mechanisms, and to the Netherlands to study best practices in the European dairy business;

• participation in the annual conference of the European Dairy Association (EDA) in Utrecht and panel discussions at the ‘Dairy Business 2025’ conference;

• analysis of Poland’s experience of European integration and the provision of expert recommendations to government bodies for the negotiation process.

This work is of strategic importance for the free trade developments: the Committee helps to remove technical and trade barriers, enhance the competitiveness of Ukrainian products, attract investment and prepare the industry for full participation in the EU single market. At a time when Ukraine is undergoing screening and opening negotiation clusters, the Committee’s activities ensure that the business community has a voice in the negotiation process, provide practical recommendations for the Ministry of Economy and other agencies, and demonstrate to European partners the readiness of the Ukrainian dairy sector.

The Committee is open to cooperation with state institutions, associations, chambers of commerce, embassies and international programmes that share its goals and are ready to make a tangible contribution to achieving them.

“The Committee’s main achievement is the creation of a Roadmap for the integration of Ukraine’s dairy sector into the EU, involving all interested stakeholders, as well as close cooperation with European partners to study the practices and standards by which European businesses operate, and to promptly convey this information to Ukrainian entrepreneurs. We must clearly demonstrate the current state of the Ukrainian dairy sector and the specific steps we are already taking to become full members of the EU,” said Arsen Didur, Executive Director of the Ukrainian Dairy Industry Association.