2024-02-12 04:48:38
An agreement with the government is expected tomorrow, some of the farmers probably won’t sign it
Additional support for farmers is being considered in three ways according to the area of the land, the Ministry of Agriculture announced.
The first provides support for farms up to 300 hectares. This covered 91.16% of farms and 27.87% of agricultural areas. These farmers also had the greatest need for support.
The second option is for farms up to 600 hectares. More money will be given for the first 300 and less for the rest of the area. 95.64% of farms and 47.18% of areas fall into this category.
The third option is to have help for an area of up to 1000 hectares – this is 98.18% of farms that cultivate 66.55% of the area.
However, there are two conditions for receiving money – help only for farmers who were at a loss last year and who grew wheat, corn, barley, sunflower and rapeseed. In the talks with the grain producers, a payment ceiling based on the Romanian model was also commented on. There, it was decided to give an additional 5,000 euros per farm in addition to the subsidies due according to the type of crops grown.
Yesterday, the Minister of Agriculture Kiril Vatev met with representatives of the agrarian associations to specify the final text of the agreement with the government. His signing itself should happen early this week.
At the end of last week, Vatev announced that they will offer only large farmers to prove losses in order to receive the so-called Ukrainian aid. They will be asked to prove a loss of the crop that was sown in 2022 and realized last year. Small farms – with up to 300 hectares, will receive the additional support unconditionally.
Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov assured that the aid will be provided from the budgets of the Ministry of Agriculture and the “Agriculture” fund and that there will be no damaged sectors.
According to Iliya Prodanov – chairman of the National Association of Grain Producers, an agreement was reached between the protesters and the government. “We are stopping effective protest actions. An agreement text with the specific arrangements will be drawn up, he said. And he specified that the government’s proposal is that small grain producers with land up to 300 hectares should receive an additional BGN 20 per hectare. On Sunday, the association clarified that large farms will receive BGN 5 per 1,000 hectares, there will be no help for the area above them. For those with lands from 300 to 600 hectares, BGN 10 per hectare is given.
The money will be given in two tranches – in March and September.
BGN 150 million has been set to support the other sectors – fruits, vegetables, meat, milk, tobacco and wine vineyards, on which there is already a consensus with the protesting farmers.
Despite expectations that the signatures would put an end to the protests, it turned out that some organizations have no intention of giving up on them.
On Saturday, farmers blocked the “Ilinden – Eksohi” border crossing near the village of Sadovo for two hours. Representatives of the National Association of Potato Growers, as well as grain producers and livestock breeders joined the protest.
Farmers are divided – some already see politics in the protests, others continue with the blockades
Farmers split and found themselves at the end of last week divided in their demands.
On Saturday, an initiative committee of 26 organizations announced that they continue to demand the resignation of Agriculture Minister Kiril Vatev. They also confirm that on Tuesday there will be a national protest that will block the entire country. Among them are large organizations such as associations of agricultural producers and milk processors, as well as animal breeders and gardeners.
According to the initiative committee, a purposeful attempt was made to divide and oppose the non-governmental organizations. And of the 26 branch associations in question, not a single one was admitted to the meetings of the Council of Ministers.
On Sunday, however, the Bulgarian Agrarian Chamber saw a political nuance in the protests. In a statement sent to the media, they say the organizations that want to continue the protests have an unknown membership. That is why they demanded that the government adopt a law on branch organizations and the agrarian chamber, which would clarify and legitimize all structures.
The chamber’s position also states that the continuation of the protests could be seen as a PR action that serves political purposes, and urges farmers not to fall for suggestions that aim to solve personal rather than industry problems.
There is no split in the Bulgarian Agrarian Chamber, the branch organization assures and emphasizes that they remain united and will defend the demands of their members, who are supported by over 10,000 farmers.