The European Commission will activate 330 million euros from the “agricultural crisis reserve” of the European Union (EU) for all member states, many affected by the drought, announced Tuesday in Stockholm the Commissioner for Agriculture, Janusz Wojciechowski.
After having supported the countries bordering Ukraine, Brussels “is preparing the decision to activate the rest of the crisis reserve, that is, 330 million euros, for the other 22 Member States affected by climatic phenomena and, in general, suffering the consequences of the war in Ukraine,” he said.
The official spoke at the end of a meeting of European agriculture ministers in Stockholm, Sweden, about a reserve with an annual allocation of 450 million euros, which will be increased to a total of 530 million euros, “particularly to support the affected farmers. due to drought or floods in Italy”, in addition to the effects of the conflict in Ukraine, stressed the Polish official, without giving further details.
The distribution of this aid will follow the distribution of direct payments from the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), he added, hoping that the plan will be finalized “next week.”
This crisis reserve has already been activated three times this year by Brussels: in addition to the funds allocated to Italian and Polish farms affected by bird flu, two envelopes were granted to Eastern European countries destabilized by the influx of Ukrainian cereals due to of the war, which are going to saturate their silos and lower local prices.
After having allocated 56 million euros at the end of March, the Commission proposed, in mid-April, the distribution of another 100 million euros to five countries: Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania and Slovakia.
Source: TSF
