Tobacco producers insist that 73 million euro be allocated for the sector under the national budget. They also want that a national strategy on tobacco growing be developed and are ready to cooperate to this effect to the relevant institutions and organizations.

"Our demands are fully economic and social and have nothing to do with political parties, least, with ethnic grounds, as sometimes alleged, the National Association of Tobacco Producers (NATP) said at a news conference in BTA on Sunday.

Owing to the efforts of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food, funds were notified in 2010 and the European Commission approved a scheme of complementary payments to the single payments to the amount of 73,198,000 euro, the Association recalls.

The producers will voice their demands at a peaceful protest on November 26 by municipalities. If they are not heard, tobacco growers are ready to stage mass protests, hunger strikes and civil disobedience initiatives.

It is more beneficial for the state to ensure funding for the sector. The annual revenues from excise revenue stamps in the area of tobacco equal 2,500 million leva. If 325,000 tobacco producers register at the employment offices, this would cost about 1,000 million leva to the Social Ministry, NATP said.

Taking a question, they said that 7-8 per cent of tobacco growers in Southwestern Bulgarian have abandoned their business in Bulgaria and have departed for Greece, where they are involved in tobacco production.

NATP quoted figures showing that Bulgaria produces 37,500 tonnes of tobacco annually, which accounts for 15 per cent of the total EU production.

These involved in the tobacco growing business insist that actions be undertaken to re-negotiate with the European Commission the conditions for assisting producers upon the restructuring of production by 2013.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Food, however, has repeatedly stressed that the three-year transitional period expires this year and state aid to producers is to be terminated.

Source: BTA