Bulgaria to grant 16.75 mln euro in EU aid to sunflower growers

Bulgarian sunflower growers will receive EU financial support of 16.75 million euro ($18.3 million) to deal with financial losses borne out of increased imports of agricultural goods from Ukraine under the EU’s specially established solidarity lanes, the agriculture ministry in Sofia said.

The state is allowed to provide an equal amount in state aid, or some 32.8 million levs ($18.3 million/16.8 million euro), as long as there is availability in the national agricultural fund, the ministry said in a press release on Wednesday.

Eligible agricultural producers can start applying for the funding on August 9. The grants will be paid out by September 30.

The financial support is the result of a decision by the EU Commission in April to grant an additional 100 million euro in aid of farmers affected by agri-food imports from Ukraine, on the joint insistance of Bulgaria, Romania, Poland, Hungary and Slovakia.

Bulgaria expects a good sunflower seed harvest and 700,000 tonnes remain in grain stores from last year, due to cheap imports of sunflower seeds and unrefined oil, the ministry said in late July. In addition, a significant growth of Ukrainian sunflower seed exports is expected, while Bulgaria and its neighbouring countries are unable to handle the processing of significantly increased quantities, the ministry added.

The EU has put in place a suspension of imports of Ukrainian grains to Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia, in force until September 15.

Tags: Bulgaria, sunflower seed, harvest, sunflower, EU, imports, Solidarity Lanes, financial support, Ukraine