The Ministry of Agriculture stated that a total of 24.18 million euro will be allocated to the production of citrus fruits, which will benefit 29,400 citrus farmers in the Valencian Community as a whole.
"The Sectoral Conference on Agriculture approved the territorial distribution of the aid, which amounts to 128.9 million euro, to compensate for the difficulties of the primary sector resulting from the war in Ukraine. The negotiation and mediation of the Ministry of Agriculture have allowed the Valencian Community to obtain the largest endowment for citrus farms, which will cover an area of 110,400 hectares, i.e. 80.5% of the plots in production," the Ministry detailed in a statement.
"The aid is a recognition of the value and weight of Valencian citrus farming, which is facing a complicated campaign due to the collateral effects of oversupply and price collapse due to the Russian invasion, among other things. Citrus fruits are the only agricultural sector that receives these funds thanks to the work to expose and counter the causes that threaten Valencian citriculture," the Minister of Agriculture, Mireia Mollà, stated.
The aid, which is granted directly, will be collected through the PAC-s single application and is intended for productions from 0.5 hectares. "The distribution confirms the uniqueness of the sector in the Valencian Community, which is characterized by the small farming and the democratization of land, as the first aid instalment is aimed at producers with plots between 0.5 and 5 hectares of land, thus concentrating the largest number of beneficiaries and hectares," the Ministry stressed.
AVA-ASAJA positively appreciated that the Government, with the mediation of ASAJA Nacional and the Ministry of Agriculture, has responded to the request it formulated in different forums and disseminated in a communiqué on April 12 to approve a line of direct aid to citrus farmers to alleviate the serious losses they are experiencing due to the war in Ukraine in this campaign, which the agrarian organization has qualified as disastrous.
The aid, which is granted directly, will be collected before September 30 and it will be taken as the reference area registered in REGEPA on December 31. The amount of aid will be 300 euro per hectare for producers that have 0.5 to 5 hectares, € 250/hectare for 5 to 10 hectares, and € 190/hectare from 10 to 30 hectares. There are two requirements to receive the aid: either to have collected the PAC in 2021 or to sign an environmental commitment.
Source: gva.es / avaasaja.org