Poland to pay farmers nearly half-billion dollars in subsidies
Poland will pay 2.1 billion zlotys ($516.49 million) in subsidies to farmers who are at risk of losing liquidity due to the war in Ukraine, according to a draft regulation published on a government website.
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The subsidies will be funded by Poland’s Aid Fund, whose main purpose is to support Ukrainian refugees, the Reuters news agency reported. In turn, Aid Fund funds will be „drawn from other public sector savings and possibly from bonds issued by the state-run bank BGK”, according to the regulation.
„This financial support is intended to compensate farmers for losses incurred in connection with the market situation caused by Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and to increase grain turnover, thus accelerating the emptying of warehouses before the upcoming harvest,” the regulation said.
Farmers in Poland and other European Union countries have been protesting „over low prices, which they attribute to imports from Ukraine as well as constraints placed on them by European Union environmental regulations,” Reuters reported.
(aj)
SOURCE: Reuters
