On Wednesday, Grybauskaitė met with Butkevičius to discuss the impact of Russia’s restrictions on food and farming product imports on the economy, the president’s office said.
Moscow last week imposed one-year restrictions on imports of meat, vegetables and fruit, milk and milk products from the EU, US and some other countries that supported sanctions against Russia over its policies in Ukraine.
Economy Minister Evaldas Gustas has said that based on preliminary estimates, Russia’s sanctions may slow Lithuania’s GDP growth by 0.2 percent and that new markets need to be found in order to improve the situation of companies affected by the sanctions.
Agriculture Minister Virginija Baltraitienė has said that the government could help companies by making intervention purchases of surplus products. She also considers proposing to reduce the VAT rate for meat and vegetable products.
Lithuania’s four largest dairy producers – Pieno Žvaigždės, Žemaitijos Pienas, Rokiškio Sūris and Vilkyškių Pieninė – stand to lose around 20 million litas (EUR 5.8 million) in revenues monthly due to the sanctions. The country’s carrot growers may lose 15 million litas.
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