BULGARIA’S STATE FUND AGRICULTURE PAID 3,24 M BGN UNDER SCHOOL FRUIT AND SCHOOL MILK SCHEMES

Bulgaria’s State Fund Agriculture (SFA) transferred 3,24 million BGN under the “School Fruit” and “School Milk” for the 2016/2017 campaign, SFA said on 9th of March.

1,595,600 BGN have been paid under the "School Milk" scheme and more than 1.642,000 BGN under "School Fruit." Deliveries for the two schemes started in November, 2016 and will continue until end of May, 2017. The quality and weights of the products supplied are checked by SFA and the Bulgarian Agency for Food Safety.

The implementation of the schemes is funded by the European Agriculture Guarantee Fund (EAGF) and the state budget in the form of national aid.

According to recent changes in the relevant ordinance, the fruits and vegetables, except citrus and bananas, should be obtained from local markets, and the yogurts, cheese and yellow cheese must comply with the Bulgarian State Standard requirements.

The children who receive fresh fruit and vegetables under the"School Fruit" scheme in 2016/2017 are 472,269 in nearly 3,519 schools, and the children receiving products under the "School Milk" scheme are 438,747 in 3,147 schools. Over 9.767,000 BGN is envisaged for the "School Fruit" scheme and over 9,875,000 BGN for the "School Milk" scheme under the current campaign.