2024-02-10 08:57:10
“We have come to an agreement with everyone, although there are claims from those who did not participate in the talks, but what has been achieved will be received by absolutely everyone,” said Minister of Agriculture Kiril Vatev in the Panorama studio on BNT, after it became clear that the agreement with grain producers will sign on Monday.
“Last year in the budget, there were no funds provided for support under the so-called Ukrainian measure, which is temporary. The purpose of it is to support agricultural producers, as a result of the losses due to the war in Ukraine,” he added.
According to him, in 2022, Ukraine could export almost nothing, which created a deficit on world exchanges, this raised prices and Bulgarian farmers earned a lot. But this raised the prices of fuels, fertilizers, preparations.
If we follow the harvest, sown in 2022 and harvested in 2023, the costs are higher than the price they receive for the grain and they are at a loss, we want them to prove this, Vatev explained.
When they realized that in fact the goal was to prove only for the harvest and not for the accounting year, they accepted the terms and rates and calmed down. “On Sunday we will meet and refine all the texts of the agreement and on Monday we will sign”.
According to him, all sectors except grain production received in 2022 and 2023, grain producers did not receive funds under the Ukrainian measure. “This year they also asked,” he says.
According to him, grain producers receive the lowest support per unit area.
Minister Vatev believes that the protesters are right, but “for another reason – because the EU’s ambitious green policy has led them to huge costs and low yields”.
According to him, Europe is protesting against the green deal, dumping imports and the unfair distribution of added value throughout the agro-food chain.
The biggest mistake in Bulgarian agriculture is the lack of irrigation, he believes. “For 20 years we rely on whatever falls from the sky”.
It is categorical that there is no way to fix this from rotation to rotation, a long-term plan of action is needed. “There is no measure that will fix a crisis, but we are calming the situation,” Vatev said.
“If they invite me for this post, I will stay,” added the Minister of Agriculture.