The Management Board of the State Fund "Agriculture" (SFA) officially approved the financial parameters of the "de minimis" state aid for the livestock sector in 2025. The decision was made after in-depth consultations with industry organizations during the last meeting of the Livestock Advisory Council.
The main goal of the financial support is to mitigate the negative consequences of extreme climatic conditions, characterized by prolonged drought during the current year. The assistance will be directed towards farmers raising cows, buffaloes, sheep, goats, and bee families, registered according to the relevant regulatory documents.
The differentiated support rates are as follows:
- For dairy and beef cows included in breeding programs, as well as endangered breeds - up to 80 leva per animal. Identical support will be received by farmers raising buffaloes.
- Dairy cows, cattle in mountain areas, and beef cows will be supported with up to 60 leva per animal.
- Mother sheep and mother goats participating in breeding programs or belonging to endangered breeds will receive up to 16 leva per animal.
- For mother sheep and mother goats in mountain areas, as well as under the Transitional National Production-Coupled Aid, the support is up to 12 leva per animal. Beekeepers will receive up to 8 leva per bee family.
Applications will be submitted through an application in accordance with Regulation No. 4 of March 30, 2023, for Campaign 2025. Support will be determined after thorough administrative checks and field inspections.
For beekeepers, the number of available bee families as of May 31, 2025, will be taken into account, according to a reference from the Bulgarian Food Safety Agency (BFSA) after the spring preventive examination.
A new maximum threshold of 50,000 euros per farm for a three-year period under state aid has been introduced. Detailed implementation guidelines will be developed jointly by SFA and the competent directorates in the Ministry of Agriculture.
The fund's management additionally reminds farmers to monitor important application deadlines, especially for areas affected by natural disasters.