Farmers who grow fruit trees, berries and oil-bearing roses have until 25 November to apply for state aid for winter spraying and for fighting the black jewel beetle, State Fund Agriculture said. This is the second, autumn round of the scheme.
Applications go to the fund's regional offices. Farmers must report their costs and attach documents for the plant protection products they bought and used. They can do this with the application or by the same deadline at the latest.
The aid covers part of two types of costs. For spraying against winter pests, which is done in autumn when the leaves fall, the fund pays up to €72 per hectare including VAT. The products must be approved under the National Programme for the Control of Pests in Perennial Plantings.
To fight the black jewel beetle, farmers can get up to €138.40 per hectare including VAT for plant protection products and biological agents. These must be approved for the crop in question under the same programme.
The scheme covers apples and pears, peaches, apricots, cherries, sour cherries and plums, strawberries and raspberries, and oil-bearing roses. The aim is to keep losses from pests in perennial plantings as low as possible.
The official name of the scheme is "Aid to compensate farmers for the costs of carrying out measures under the National Programme for the Control of Pests in Perennial Plantings in the winter period and for control of the black jewel beetle (Capnodis tenebrionis)".
The money is paid in two rounds, spring and autumn. The fund's management board approved a budget of €7.8m for 2026. The fund paid out more than €3m for the spring round back in June. The autumn money must reach farmers by 18 December 2026.
In all, the fund is providing more than €9m under three schemes to fight pests.
The list of approved products and biological agents is in the programme itself. It is on the website of the Bulgarian Food Safety Agency (BFSA), under "National Programmes".
Instructions on how to apply are on the fund's website, in the section "Schemes and measures for support", under "State aid" – "Short-term support schemes".