Livestock Breeders blocked Sofia - Varna road
Bulgarian livestock breeders staged a protest on 13th of July and blocked the the traffic on Sofia-Varna road, demanding urgent changes in the sector. They insist that the state aid “de minimis” be increased from BGN 7 to BGN 20 per animal, and a EUR 40 compensation for every sheep and goat killed by the plague in the affected municipalities.
The protesters also complainted about the low purchase prices of milk. If their demands cannot be met they threaten with big protests outside the Council of Ministers on Wednesday.
According to sheep breeders and goat farmers in the last few years, the industry is literally on its knees. In their words, the state aid “de minimis”, which so far was 5 BGN per animal, can only buy hay and cannot cover any expenses or losses.
About 12 o'clock, the protesters literally spilled pounds of milk on the road surface, and set fire to wool of their sheep.
The farmers requested the resignations of the Deputy Minister of Agriculture Tsvetan Dimitrov and the directors of the “Livestock” and “Direct Payments” Directorates.
Minister of Agriculture Rumen Porozhanov said that the protestors' demands were unfounded and he already had a meeting with them. Farmers, however, warned that next Wednesday they will continue with the protests, but this time outside the building of the the Council of Ministers in Sofia.
