The Agriculture Ministry on Tuesday presented a set of 12 regulations adopted by the government last week which provide the framework for the distribution of direct payments in agriculture and rural development aid worth a total of SIT 56bn (EUR 233.6m) this year.
According to Marija Lukacic, the minister of agriculture, forestry and food, direct payments for 2005 amount to 90 percent of farm subsidies in old EU member states, except for almonds, walnuts and olive oil production, where the level is 60 percent. The EU will provide 30 percent of the funds, while the rest will be funded from the state budget.
Out of the total of SIT 24.3bn (EUR 101.45m) worth of direct farm payments, SIT 8.8bn (EUR 36.84m) is allocated for field crops, SIT 14.5bn (EUR 60.48m) for cattle breeding, SIT 512m (EUR 2.14m) for sheep and goats, and SIT 439m (EUR 1.83m) for other crops (seeds, hops, almonds, walnuts, olive oil and pumpkin seed oil).
For the first time this year, farmers will be entitled to payments for suckler cows. Slovenia has been awarded 86,384 credits that it must distribute among farmers by 1 May, with a reserve of 2 percent of all credits. Each farmer must use at least 90 percent of the allocated credits to remain eligible next year.
As of 1 April, Slovenia will also introduce the entire milk quota system, which should remain in place at least until 2015 in line with the EU's common agriculture policy reform. The national quota amounts to 467,063 tonnes of milk, with 93,361 tonnes for milk that is sold directly at farms. The national reserve is 3 percent and will be used for the elimination of potential mistakes in quota distribution.
Milk producers will be free to trade in quotas. According to Lukacic, the state will not interfere in the quota market. Producers who exceed their quota will only have to pay a duty if the national quota is exceeded as well, and only for the amount of milk in excess of the national quota. The duty has been set at EUR 30.91 per 100 kilo of milk for 2005 and 2006.
This year milk producers are also entitled to a special milk premium of SIT 3,513 (EUR 15) per tonne. Only producers who obtain their milk quotas until 31 May are eligible for the premium, and only for the amount of milk specified in their respective quotas.
Slovenia is a much smaller producer of olive oil than Spain or Greece, but it must still adhere to the EU regulation on olive oil market. Oil producers can receive a subsidy of SIT 189,250 (EUR 789) per tonne of oil, but oil factories must report on a monthly basis on the amount of oil received from each individual olive producers.
The government earmarked SIT 28.4bn (EUR 118.5m) for rural development this year in line with the 2004-2006 rural development programme. The money will be used for countervailing measures for areas with limited farming potential, agri-environmental measures, early retirement, support for introduction of EU standards at farms and technical assistance.
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