Takac: 2025 Very Challenging Year Due to Ending EU Funds and Foot-and-Mouth

Bratislava, 31 December (TASR) - The outgoing year 2025 has been very challenging for the agricultural sector, especially due to the ending of the EU's Rural Development Programme and the occurrence of foot-and-mouth disease in the first half of the year, Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Richard Takac (Smer-SD) has said in an interview with TASR. According to him, the Slovak Land Fund had the most legal acts approved in 20 years this year. "Because our predecessors [in the government] didn't draw on European resources in the second pillar, we've reached a stage where we'll have to pay out around €600 million this year. Our predecessors left us with most of the money to be used up over the last two years," stated the minister. Takac emphasised that direct payments are currently being made in the agricultural sector, with farmers receiving advance payments before 1 December. "In addition to the Rural Development Programme, the other major topic this year was foot-and-mouth disease. This was something that shook the whole society. We had this disease here again after 50 years," he noted, adding that the disease was successfully stopped. "We managed it, for which we received praise from the European Commission," he added. The minister pointed out that "some money" will be lost in the ending Rural Development Programme. "It won't be a lot of money in the €1.6 billion package, but it will be money that we can't realistically use up for some reason," added Takac. According to him, the opposition's claims from the summer that €500 million will be lost at the end of the year are "a total lie and misleading." am/mcs