The agriculture ministry will publish an indicative payment schedule for farmers' 2026 campaign next week. Payments start on 20 October, minister Plamen Abrovski said.
Farmers will get a 30% advance on coupled support by the end of October. The State Fund Agriculture expects to make payments under more than 40 schemes by the end of the year.
Abrovski opened a discussion in Plovdiv called "The future of Bulgarian farming - policies, competitiveness and sustainability". It is part of the "Gifts of Thrace" agricultural fair.
The minister called irrigation one of the main priorities of the government and the ministry in the 2027 budget. Under the Strategic Plan for the Development of Agriculture and Rural Areas, 35 projects to renew irrigation systems have been approved. They will allow another 400,000 decares (40,000 hectares) to be irrigated.
The ministry is also drafting a new law on co-operatives. Abrovski says it will give farmers real incentives to join together voluntarily. The minister believes the law will also strengthen their hand when they negotiate the sale of their produce.