EU to Offer €28 Million Support Package for Baltic Milk Producers

20 Nov 2014 --- The European Commission has confirmed its intention to adopt a €28m support package for milk producers in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. This new package will be the latest in a series adopted by the European Commission in response to the Russian ban on the importation of certain EU agricultural products.

The Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, Phil Hogan, said "I am very conscious of the significant impact that the Russian ban has had on dairy producers in the three Baltic countries given their exposure to the Russian market and the drop in prices. When we look at the share of national production previously exported to Russia and the drop in prices since the start of the crisis, we see that the dairy sectors in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia have been particularly adversely affected. I am pleased, therefore, that the Commission intends to provide support in the form of a financial envelope for each of the three countries which will support those dairy farmers which, as a result of the Russian ban, are encountering liquidity problems in exceptional circumstances."

The amount of support being provided to each of the three countries is €6.9m for Estonia, €7.7m for Latvia and €14.1m for Lithuania, based on their respective 2013/2014 milk production levels within national quotas.

The support measure for the Baltic countries follows earlier specific market support measures for peaches & nectarines, perishable fruit & vegetables and the dairy sector, as well as an additional €30 million for promotion programmes.

This measure will be a further Delegated Regulation taken under the Commission's own authority. Experts will be consulted on the measure on 20 November and the Commission will adopt the measure shortly afterwards.