A sound Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is one that provides the right instruments to farmers in different agricultural realities to operate sustainable farming practices which produce adequate high quality food at competitive prices, a round table was told. The round table was held at the Grand Hotel Excelsior in Floriana as part of Re:turn to the Future, a European Union-funded campaign...
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The second year of implementation of the National Beekeeping Programme 2011-2013 concluded successfully. Beneficiaries signed 1 188 contracts with a total value of 6 763 246 BGN. So far, 5 367 783 BGN have been paid out, which accounts for an 82% annual budget absorption. This is the highest absorption and the largest amount of funds paid out since the start of the programme. There are...
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Germany and France have agreed to keep the European Union farming budget at its current level, following a meeting between their agriculture ministers in Berlin on Wednesday (10 October), reported EurActiv. Germany's Ilse Aigner and France's Stéphane Le Foll said they "support the Commission’s proposal to maintain the agricultural budget to the nominal level of 2013 for the...
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The last working document published by the EU's Cypriot presidency has sparked fears in France that the new EU budget will slash direct subsidies to farmers, despite the country's firm opposition, EurActiv.fr reports. October will mark the second year of formal negotiations for a new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). France, the largest beneficiary of the CAP, has battled since the...
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Flavouring substances in food will become even safer and more transparent thanks to two pieces of legislation adopted today by the European Commission. Only those flavouring substances featuring on the approved lists will be permitted for use by the food industry. Used to alter the taste and/or odour of food, flavourings substances have a long history of safe use in a wide variety of foods,...
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Farmers submitted 1 479 applications worth 72 315 705 BGN during the application period under Measure 112: Setting up young farmers between August 20 and September 11. The budget for this period was 78 232 000 BGN, which is enough to finance all projects that meet the admission criteria set under the decree regulating Measure 112. The funds were transferred to its budget with the seventh...
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The European Commission rejected Monday charges that EU biofuel policy was contributing to soaring food prices but confirmed that it will trim its targets for their use. Biofuels were once seen as a potential source of cheap alternative energy but critics say they are often based on food crops or use land that could and should be used for food production, helping drive prices higher,...
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The Ministers of Agriculture of the EU confirmed their strong commitment to the necessity for the promoting of measures through the new Common Agricultural Policy to adapt to climate change. Water scarcity and land abandonment linked to adverse climate conditions were in the centre of the discussion at the Informal Agriculture Council which was held on the 11th of September 2012 in Nicosia....
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Grape growers are lining up support from EU national governments and the European Parliament to protect limits on vine planting that are due to expire by 2016, a liberalisation move they claim will destroy one of Europe’s premier industries, reported EurActiv. The planting debate is gaining momentum as a high-level group organised by Agriculture Commissioner Dacian Cioloş searches for...
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Breeders will receive subsidies per animal two months earlier than the provisioned deadline. All subsidies will now be paid until the end of October this year and the funds amount to 120 million leva. This was announced by the Minister of Agriculture and Food Dr. Miroslav Naydenov on the meeting with breeders in Dobrich. The measure is taken in relation to the critical state of the industry,...
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Schools, suppliers or organisations that represent one or more schools can participate in the EU scheme. SFA will accept applications in its regional structures based on the school location or the registration address of the rest of the candidates. Documents can be submitted until September 30th. SFA will pay for up to 0.25 litres of milk per child per day. The milk must be given in a...
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A European business group on Wednesday criticised Chinese calls to probe EU wine imports as "protectionist", as a dispute between the major trading partners threatened to escalate, reported AFP. The China Alcoholic Drinks Industry Association this week formally requested the government to investigate whether wine from the European Union was damaging the domestic market. China's commerce...
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The Bulgarian programme “European cheese, please” has concluded successfully. It was the first EU approved program for promotion of Bulgarian dairy products abroad. For the programme’s three-year duration, SFA paid out 3 079 449 BGN – both national and EU resources. The contract activities were implemented 98%. The programme gave milk producers and processors the...
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Approved proposals are now measures 311 ''Diversification of agricultural activities'' and 312 ''Support for the creation and development of micro enterprises'' of the Regional Development Programme (RDP). Five candidates are planning to build or complete guest houses. One of them will build a barbeque and pool, while another plans to invest in a family hotel with three rooms. RDP funds will...
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Pricing of bread will not rise, while the produce is to be the best for the past 20 years in terms of quality while the remaining the cheapest in the European Union. This was stated by the Minister of Agriculture and Food Dr. Miroslav Naydenov after the meeting of the Advisory. "If there is any increase, it will be with mere stotinki and will not affect any social group. Currently we...
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