Първите национални срещи за бъдещето на ОСП ще бъдат проведени на 18 май

On 18 May, the agricultural community in Bulgaria will have the opportunity to attend two national meetings on the future of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in the next programming period. The first forum is organized in Plovdiv by the Institute for Agrostrategies and Innovation and InteliAgro with the participation of the largest European agricultural organization – Copa-Cogeca. In parallel, on the same date, but in Stara Zagora, at the initiative and under the organization of the Association of Agricultural Producers in Bulgaria (AAPB), an identical forum will be held with the participation of 26 branch organizations from various sectors in agriculture.

In view of the changes expected in the Common Agricultural Policy after 2020 and Bulgaria’s preparation for its Presidency of the Council of the EU in 2018, the two non-profit organizations in the agri-sector – the Institute for Agrostrategies and Innovation and InteliAgro – are launching a series of debates. These meetings will be held in different regions of Bulgaria in 2017 and 2018 and will take place under the motto “CAP after 2020 – Bulgaria’s Choice”.

At the invitation of the Institute for Agrostrategies and Innovation, on 18 May at the Grand Hotel Plovdiv, representatives of the European Commission, of the European agricultural organization – Copa-Cogeca, as well as other international guests from the Netherlands, Estonia, Croatia, Italy, Austria and Romania will take part in the meeting. Branch organizations from the agri-sector in Bulgaria, as well as all interested stakeholders, are invited to express their position at the forum.

On the same date, 18 May, but at the Calista Hotel at the Stara Zagora Mineral Baths, the Association of Agricultural Producers in Bulgaria (AAPB) will open a forum entitled “National Agricultural Forum – CAP after 2020”. The main task of the meeting is for the branch organizations to draw up a unified Bulgarian position on the future Common Agricultural Policy and to launch a series of discussions on the main priorities of agriculture in the country. The participants will also present their answers and proposals to the European Commission’s questionnaire regarding the objectives and principles of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) after 2020 and the modernization of the current CAP 2014–2020.

The leadership of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food (MAF) and the new Minister, Rumen Porozhanov, are expected to participate actively in the meeting.

The debate on the national priorities for the new Common Agricultural Policy, as well as the Bulgarian Presidency of the Council of Europe, are a priority for the Ministry. This was stated by Rumen Porozhanov, who assumed the post of Minister of Agriculture, Food and Forestry from Prof. Dr. Hristo Bozukov at an official meeting at the MAF on 4 May 2017.