Crisis Management Council supports measures to mitigate losses suffered by farms due to frosts and droughts

RIGA - The Crisis Management Council has endorsed a set of measures to compensate farmers for losses caused by frosts and droughts, as the Agriculture Ministry informed LETA.

Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins (New Unity) convened a meeting of the Crisis Management Council on Thursday, where the Agriculture Ministry asked the council to support a number of urgent measures to stabilize the situation and compensate Latvian farmers and forest owners for losses caused by droughts and frosts.

The Crisis Management Council did not support a proposal from several farmers' organizations to declare a state of emergency in agriculture, stating that problems in agriculture could be resolved without declaring a state of emergency. However, the council also agreed that the consequences of the spring frosts and prolonged droughts for agriculture and reforestation may be defined as a national natural disaster, the consequences of which require a series of measures to be taken to minimize losses to farmers and forest owners.

According to the Crisis Management Council's decision, the Agriculture Ministry will have to ask the Rural Support Service, the State Plant Protection Service and institutions certifying organic farms to maintain aid to farms affected by frosts and droughts. Similarly, the Rural Support Service and the State Forest Service will not impose penalties for plantations degraded by frosts and droughts. The State Revenue Service and credit institutions will be recommended not to impose penalties on farmers and forest owners unable to honor their contractual obligations due to the spring frosts and prolonged drought.

Spring frosts and prolonged droughts have had serious consequences for all agricultural sectors this year. The Agriculture Ministry is concerned that the adverse weather conditions in 2023 will have serious and negative consequences for farms in Latvia, whose total revenues are expected to decrease by EUR 301 million in 2023.