Swedish livestock farmer receives government support

The government in Sweden has decided to pay almost €39 million to sheep, cattle and dairy farms. It is doing this in response to last summer's drought. Various proposals have also been made for further support in 2019.

The government says the aid is intended for sheep, cattle and dairy farms affected by the drought. This has resulted in, among other things, that next winter insufficient fodder is available.

The support comes under the 'de-minimus scheme', which allows a maximum of €3 to be spent on 15.000 company in a period of 1 years. A farmer is eligible if he/she owns at least 10 animal units. To illustrate: 1 cattle counts as 1 animal unit, while 1 sheep counts as 0,15 animal units. €40 will be paid for each animal unit. The aid will be paid in December 2018.

Small part of the costs
However, a report by Sveriges Television, the public broadcaster in Sweden, shows that the aid only covers a small part of the costs. "The support should be related to the size of the company," Swedish farmer Axel Olov Karlsson told the broadcaster.

The farmer says that the extra expenses for animal feed cost him about €145.000 to €200.000 this year. "We realized at the beginning of July that it wouldn't work out and didn't dare to trust that a second crop would give us back the loss of the first crop. So we decided to buy feed."

Mirja Hers, head of department at the agency that provides the support, says she is aware of the tense situation in the sector. "That's why we decided to pay out the money before the turn of the year."

Plans for 2019
The government has announced that plans have already been made for 2019. This concerns the second part of the crisis package (€73,5 million). Based on various discussions with livestock farms, interest groups and relevant authorities, 2 proposals have been made for the distribution of the aid. 

In the first proposal, the amount is distributed on the basis of diesel consumption in 2018. "We believe this reflects the rising costs at the company well," the agency said. The companies that had a lower income (due to a reduced harvest) also receive part of the support through this proposal.

In the second proposal, the aid is distributed on the basis of the number of animals on the holding. This proposal is not preferred, the party said. We now have to wait for the government to make a decision on these 2 proposals, after which it can be paid out in June 2019 at the earliest.

Kimberly Baker

Kimberly Bakker is an all-round editor at Boerenbusiness. She also has an eye for the social media channels of Boerenbusiness.

k.baker @boerenbusiness. Nl

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