The aid is provided for in the national response plan to the economic and social consequences of the war in Ukraine and will be financed with 64.49 million euros from European funds and 128.98 million euros from the ministry.
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After the analysis of the most affected sectors carried out by the ministry together with the autonomous communities, professional agricultural organizations and agri-food cooperatives, the aid will go to producers of beef, sheep and goat meat, chickens, rabbits and citrus fruits.[break]
This aid package complements the 169 million euros that the Government will allocate to producers of cow, sheep and goat milk that will be paid in the coming days.[break]
The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPA) began on April 19, the process of hearing and public information of the draft of the royal decree that will regulate the process of granting the fund of 193.47 million euros of exceptional aid for certain agricultural and livestock sectors as an urgent response to alleviate their delicate situation as a result of the effects of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[break]
A total of 193,470,759 euros will be granted to the sectors most affected by the consequences of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, 64,490,253 euros of which are contributed by the European Union, and the rest, 128,980,506 euros by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.
The ministry, with the autonomous communities, professional agricultural organizations and agri-food cooperatives, has analyzed the magnitude of the market disturbances and the sustained increase in production costs and the imbalance in commercial exchanges.
After this analysis, it has been decided to allocate aid to producers of beef, sheep and goat meat, chicken meat, rabbit meat and citrus fruits.
In the case of the aforementioned livestock sectors, the armed conflict in Ukraine has aggravated the situation that they were already going through in recent months, characterized by a sustained increase in production costs derived from the increase in the prices of raw materials for animal feed and energy and fuels.
The situation is even more critical if the effects of the drought are taken into account, which has caused a lower availability of pastures and, therefore, a greater need for supplementation in animal feed at higher prices.
In the case of aid to the agricultural sectors, citrus is a sector with a high consumption of inputs, especially energy, fertilizers and phytosanitary products, whose costs have increased. Spanish citrus production and exports are of crucial importance for the agri-food sector as a whole.
Its competitiveness has been affected by the war, due to diversions of productions from third countries that were usually destined for Russia, Ukraine or Belarus, towards the community market. These changes in trade flows put downward pressure on the prices of Spanish citrus fruits.
The aid amounts are proposed to be distributed as follows:
• Beef, up to 110,000,000 euros
• Sheep and goat meat, up to 31,700,000 euros.
• Chicken meat, up to 10,000,000 euros.
• Rabbit meat, up to 3,000,000 euros.
• Citrus, up to 38,700,000 euros
Ceilings for animals and eligible hectares will be established and, consequently, maximum aid per farm, as well as maximum unit amounts per animal or hectare.
The management, processing and payment of the aid will correspond to the competent bodies of the autonomous communities, and very simplified application and granting procedures are planned, so that the aid will be granted to all producers of beef, sheep and goats and citrus that they meet some basic requirements, and that they have presented in 2022 the single application for the Common Agricultural Policy (PAC), provided for in Royal Decree 1075/2014.
The autonomous community of the Canary Islands will establish the corresponding procedure to serve its producers.
For these same purposes, the information contained in the CAP aid applications corresponding to 2021 will be used, and the information held by the autonomous communities to determine both the eligible animals and hectares, as well as compliance with the environmental conditions required by the community regulation.
In the case of producers of chicken and rabbit meat, since not all of the above information is available, a simplified management procedure is established based on the most up-to-date data declared by the farmers in the General Registry of Livestock Farms (REGA).
Similarly, a procedure is established for citrus producers who have not submitted the single application, based on the most up-to-date data declared by farmers in the General Registry of Agricultural Production (REGEPA).
The corresponding funds will be transferred by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food to the autonomous communities. Payments to producers will be made before September 30, 2022.
This aid package complements the 169 million euros that the Government will allocate to producers of cow, sheep and goat milk and that will become effective in the coming days.
The project, for reasons of urgency, will be subject to public information for a period of 7 days, until April 26 inclusive. ■