Economy

SPPK: Farm Subsidies Make Foodstuffs Affordable

Bratislava, April 10 (TASR) – Farm subsidies aren’t provided solely in Slovakia, but also in other countries around the world, said Slovak Agricultural and Food Chamber (SPPK) chair Milan Semancik during his meeting with media on Tuesday.

“Subsidies are provided in order to stabilise the incomes of farmers as such and to make foodstuffs affordable. If there were no subsidies, our foodstuffs would be much more expensive than they are now,” stressed Semancik.

The digitisation of the Agricultural Payment Agency (PPA) would definitely help to increase the transparency, efficiency and speed of farm subsidy payouts. “The acquisition of modern equipment to be used for field inspections, such as drones, would be instrumental as well,” stated Semancik, stressing the need to strengthen staff involved in inspection activities.

If speculation with farm subsidies is to be limited, those who intentionally damage other farm subsidy recipients who cultivate their land properly and create added value should be punished, said Semancik.

According to Semancik, new farm subsidy applicants should submit comprehensive documentation related to their land. “Those who have been in the farm subsidy system for 10 or 15 years, have the required documentation and have already been checked. However, if somebody enters PPA’s scheme as a new applicant, they should submit their applications including appendices proving that they possess the land. I mean a letter of property ownership or rental contracts. This should be verified as soon as an application for a farm subsidy is submitted and not only afterwards when a dispute arises,” underlined Semancik, adding that a land users registry should be created in Slovakia as well.

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