The Council of Ministers has agreed to authorize the payment of EUR 300 million in aid to holders of agricultural holdings as compensation for the accumulated increase in the price of fertilizers in recent months. According to Luis Planas, the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food, this measure "is part of the Government's firm commitment to support farmers, ranchers, and fishermen who have had to face very notable increases in production costs since Russia invaded Ukraine, 11 months ago."
Fertilizer prices have tripled in the last year, the minister stated. These products are vital for food production; without them, the crops can decrease by up to 20%, he added. Spanish farmers spend some 2,000 million euros a year on fertilizing products.
Planas is confident that this aid, which aims to maintain the profitability of agricultural holdings, will also lead to a decrease in food prices.
This line of aid is included in Royal Decree-Law 20/2022 that the Council of Ministers approved on December 27, 2022, which has a set of measures to respond to the economic and social consequences of the War in Ukraine and to support the reconstruction of the island of La Palma, among other situations of vulnerability.
The aid shall be granted to natural or legal persons holding agricultural holdings that have permanent crops and agricultural land.
They shall be granted per hectare to areas of permanent crops and arable land (with the exception of fallows and temporary pasture) that have been eligible for the recovery of direct support from the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in the 2022 marketing year. The aid will be for a maximum of 300 hectares and will involve a minimum payment of EUR 200. According to estimates, the measure will benefit some 250,000 farmers.
The Spanish Agricultural Guarantee Fund (FEGA), which is in charge of distributing the aid, will deposit them directly into the accounts of the beneficiaries, who will not have to do any additional procedures to request them.
The information on the procedure for granting this aid will be updated in due course at the following link on FEGA's website.
Source: mapa.gob.es