Agro Perspectiva

Commission mobilises ˆ50 million in emergency support to farmers in Bulgaria, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Romania

23.10.2025 23:47 "Agro Perspectiva" (Kyiv) — The Commission today adopted a proposal to provide nearly ˆ50 million from the agricultural reserve to support fruit, nuts and vegetable farmers in Bulgaria, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Romania. Farmers in these Member States have recently suffered significant damages from adverse climatic events.

Following approval by Member States, the Commission’s proposal allocates ˆ7.4 million to Bulgaria, ˆ10.8 million to Hungary, ˆ4.2 million to Latvia, ˆ1.1 million to Lithuania, ˆ14.8 million to Poland and ˆ11.5 million to Romania. These countries may complement this EU support by up to 200% with national funds.

Across all six Member States, late frosts, which were in many cases followed by hail or heavy rain, destroyed large parts of the fruit, vegetable, nut and seed harvests

In the spring of 2025, Bulgaria saw unusual weather that started with warm temperatures in February, causing fruit trees to flower too early. Cold and frost which followed in March and April damaged many crops, especially almonds, apples, apricots, cherries, peaches, pears, prunes and walnuts. In Latvia, warm April weather was followed by frost and heavy rain, which ruined fruit trees, berries and vegetables and seed crops such as peas, pumpkins and flax. Lithuania had a similar problem: early warmth made crops grow faster, but later frost in April and May badly damaged apples, currants, berries, cherries, pears and plums. In Hungary, frost in April and May hit nearly the whole country, damaging apples, apricots, cherries, peaches, pears and quinces. Poland faced long frost spells in April and May and then strong hailstorms, which hurt berries, currants, sour cherries and cucumbers. Romania was also affected by late frosts that froze buds and flowers, causing major losses in fruit production.

To ensure this exceptional measure is effective, it is important that beneficiaries rapidly receive the emergency financial support. Payments to farmers for the emergency financial support to Bulgaria, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Poland and Romania must be carried out before 30 April 2026.

Background

Under the agricultural reserve as part of the current Common Agricultural Policy (2023–2027), at least ˆ450 million per year is available to help farmers cope with market disruptions or exceptional events affecting production or distribution. Given the increasing frequency of adverse climatic events, the Commission has stressed the importance of strengthening risk management tools and promoting their wider use across the EU, alongside proactive measures to address root causes and improve farm resilience in the medium term. With the Commission’s latest simplification proposals, new crisis payments under CAP Strategic Plans will be possible for farmers facing natural disasters. In its proposal for the next CAP (2028–2034), the Commission intends to double the crisis reserve to support the resilience of European farmers and the agri-food sector against market disturbances.

Sourse EK