Farmers' Protests Driven by EU Green Policy: Bulgaria

Mass protests by agricultural producers in Europe were sparked by the European Union's green policy, which does not take current realities into account. This was stated by Bulgaria's Minister of Agriculture and Food, Kiril Vitev, in an interview with BTV TV channel.

“All agricultural producers in Europe face three common problems. Firstly, the EU is implementing an excessively ambitious program regarding ecology and green measures, which includes a ban on the use of various types of fertilizers and plant protection products. A major mistake is that the ban is still enforced until alternative options are developed, leading to low profitability and high production costs. The second issue is the unfair distribution of compensation for damages throughout the agricultural production chain. The third problem is illegal competition related to dumping exports of third-country products (Ukraine). These are issues that concern all European agricultural producers,” the minister said.

Vitev informed that negotiations with Bulgarian farmers, who have declared their readiness to hold mass protests, are ongoing, and discussions are underway regarding the real assistance that the authorities can and are willing to provide. On Sunday, a meeting took place between Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov and representatives of relevant ministries with leaders from the agricultural sector, after which the government's willingness to provide assistance was announced.

“We have conducted constructive negotiations and made proposals to help farmers with a guaranteed budget based on the redistribution of existing resources. Different sectors have been offered assistance of varying amounts,” Denkov stated in a press briefing.

Representatives from the sector expressed readiness to discuss the government’s proposals with their partners and to respond to the authorities no later than Monday. Preparations for a nationwide protest declared by Bulgarian agricultural producers on February 6 are ongoing.

Denkov noted that he has decided to cancel his planned visit to the United States next week due to the necessity of concluding negotiations with representatives of the agricultural sector; however, Bulgaria's finance, energy, and economy ministers will travel to the United States.