The State Fund "Agriculture" has implemented large-scale financial support for farmers within the framework of a national environmental project. The total amount of transferred funds amounts to 8,762,870 leva, which are distributed among 5,169 agricultural producers.
The financing is part of the large-scale intervention "Maintaining and Improving Biodiversity and Ecological Infrastructure" (Eco-BREI), which is included in the Strategic Plan for Agricultural and Rural Development for the period 2023-2027.
The amount of subsidies was determined by an official order of the Minister of Agriculture and Food, published on the Fund's official website. In calculating the financial support, the requirements of Article 31 of European Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 were followed.
The support is provided as compensation for additional expenses and lost income that farmers incur when fulfilling voluntary environmental commitments. The subsidy amount is calculated per hectare, applying specific conversion coefficients according to Regulation No. 3.
The scheme covers financing of various elements of ecological infrastructure, including hedgerows, individual and group trees, anti-erosion strips, field margins, wetlands, green strips along water courses, terraces, and buffer zones.
The support is directed towards farmers who maintain ecological infrastructure on their farms – on arable lands, permanent crops, or permanent grasslands.
Additional information reveals that the total budget for direct payments for 2024 amounts to 817 million euros. Of these, over 503 million euros are allocated for basic, decoupled payments, and 203.6 million euros for eco-schemes financed by the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund.