Compensation for up to 70 percent of the losses. Winegrowers and pig farmers particularly hard hit.
The corona crisis hit agriculture differently hard. The supermarkets were not affected by the lockdown, but the catering and hotel industries have largely ceased to be buyers of agricultural products. The amount of farm losses therefore depends on what product was made and to whom it was subsequently sold.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture, 60 million euros will be made available as “compensation for losses for those indirectly affected in agriculture”. The following key applies to the division of this sum: The loss is calculated individually on a flat-rate basis for the branches of business. In the case of particularly high losses, up to 70 percent of the deficit is compensated for by subsidies. The grants do not have to be repaid. The loss must amount to at least 30 percent of the contribution margin.
The farmers can submit their applications for loss compensation to Agrarmarkt Austria (AMA) from February 15. The calculation period begins in October 2020 and ends in March 2021. According to EU law, grants of up to 100,000 euros are possible.
Wine economy
There is a separate calculation model for wine growers. Here, too, the losses are different. Those winemakers who have mainly supplied to the catering industry have a problem.
“Pig farmers and the wine industry are very badly affected, but there are also major losses in other agricultural areas,” says Agriculture Minister Elisabeth Köstinger. “Aid should reach the affected companies as quickly, easily and directly as possible.”
Upper Austria is particularly badly affected. 40 percent of pig production comes from there.
