The measures, with retroactive effect from February 1, after going through the relevant community procedures, will be formally adopted on April 18 and will have retroactive effect from February 1.
Planas has valued measures to support the extractive sector. Aid for temporary stops is aimed at the fleet forced to stop its activity due to the effects of the health crisis (lack of crew or inability to comply with the safety requirements on board to avoid contagion).
He stressed that "every job that is lost in the fishing sector is a job that is very difficult to recover." The articulation of these grants will allow the business fabric to be preserved so that it can be reactivated immediately after the end of the crisis.
These aids will be exempt from the maximum limit of 6 months per vessel established by the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (FEMP) for temporary stoppage aid and the percentage of co-financing by the EC is increased from 50 to 75%.
As regards the aquaculture sector, the Commission introduces the possibility of compensating the loss of income that these companies already suffer due to the significant reduction in demand. Also in this case it is co-financed at 75% and allows aquaculture companies to be compensated for a decrease in income.
Aquaculture is a "strategic segment in the productive fabric of our country, and therefore requires these urgent and extraordinary actions that allow us to preserve its activity that contributes to guaranteeing food supplies," according to Planas.
The Commission also plans measures to support the functioning of Producer Organizations and their associations. Among them, it will be allowed to dedicate up to 12% of the value of the production marketed by the PPOs or their associations to finance production and marketing plans. This figure represents a notable increase compared to the current 3%. This measure will be 90% co-financed.
Given the market situation, they may be used to launch specific actions to promote fish consumption among the population.
Storage is recovered, a measure that had been eliminated since 2017. In this way, both the OPP and the aquaculture sector will be able to benefit from it, which is fully financed through community funds. It will allow to store up to 20% of the production value and 25% of its volume.
This measure, the minister has assured, will allow the continuity of the fishing activity. It is a safety net for the sector, since when prices fall below a reference price, product is stored that can be put on the market progressively.
In addition, decisions will be simplified and made more flexible, which will result in an improvement in the execution of the FEMP at a time, such as the current one, when the sector needs agility in the collection of funds.
