Nearly 300,000 decares (30,000 hectares) of fruit orchards in Bulgaria have been affected by frost, drought, or hail this year, according to Deputy Minister of Agriculture Yanislav Yanchev, who spoke in Ruse during the Danube Fruit Growers' exhibition. A total of 5,000 fruit growers have submitted aid applications, and payments are expected to be completed by the end of the month.
The Danube Fruit Growers' Association reported heavy losses, with chairman Nikolay Kolev stating that "over 95% of the orchards in the region have been lost," affecting pears, apricots, peaches, plums, and cherries. Kolev said that "without the support from the Ministry of Agriculture, producers in the region would have gone bankrupt."
Grower groups also raised concerns about the difficulty of forming cooperative structures. Kolev said the main challenge is the shared financial and marketing responsibility required between members. The association currently has 400 members.
Source: BGNES
