The agri-food sector will receive €1.9 million for digitalization and scientific investigation

The Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism has given green light to the criterion that will regulate the first pack of aids meant for the agri-food sector in the framework of the Plan of Recovery, Transformation and Resilience (agri-food Strategic Project for Economic Recovery and Transformation, i.e., PERTE). More specifically, the Official State Gazette (BOE) published on August 1 the terms that will regulate the set of measures of specific support to actions of industrial reinforcement of the agri-food chain, bestowed with 500 million euro for the 2022-2023 period.

In the field of promotion of sector modernization and of the administration of the New Generation Funds coming from the European Union, the Government has approved the agri-food Strategic Project for Economic Recovery and Transformation (PERTE) to support the sustainable economic growth and its digitalization and to promote territorial cohesion.

Bestowed with a total budget of 1.8 million euro, the agri-food PERTE is based on three priority axes that cover actions that transform the industrial value chain, measures to support the digitalization of the agri-food sector and scientific investigation.

These lines come along complementary measures or facilitators that will function in an integrated manner to increase the impact of the actions and, thus, promote the transformation towards a more sustainable and digital agri-food system.

Along with the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), the Plan of Recovery, Transformation and Resilience and the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMFAF), the agri-food sector is going to get a financial injection of around 55,000 million euro until 2027.

The Spanish strategic plan has as main objectives to enhance the profitability of the agricultural and livestock operations; to encourage the necessary generational relay and the incorporation of the woman; to seek a more sustainable food production that consumes less natural resources and preserves biodiversity; and to boost innovation and digitalization at agricultural activity.

Industry publishes the terms that will regulate the PERTE aids for the agri-food sector

The regulatory bases establish the requirements for the concession of aids with a budget of 500 million euro for the 2022-2023 period.

Members of the mercantile companies society aggrupation, cooperative societies and agricultural societies of transformation (SAT) with their own legal personality, legally formed in Spain and duly registered in the corresponding register, regardless of their legal form and their size will be eligible as recipients.

The entities interested in presenting a request will have to be constituted as a group of companies, formed by a minimum of 6 enterprises, one of them at least being a big company, and also with a minimum of four SMEs. Alternatively, also groups of formed only by SMEs, with at least two medium companies will be accepted. Finally, they will need to have implementation in a geographical area that involves at least two autonomous communities.

The aids, which will be presented as subsidies, loans or a combination of both, will be meant for tractor projects and the minimum eligible budget will be 15 million euro for every project.

The aid granting will be awarded on a competitive concurrence basis, and it is a requirement that it is proven accredited that the projects cause no significant harm to the environment.

The Agri PERTE, which is expected to generate an impact in the economy of 3,000 million euro and a net creation of 16,000 jobs, is bestowed with an aiding line of 1,100 million euro and is structured in three axes for which three calls will be established.

The first one, which corresponds to the regulation approved very recently, is a pack of specific aids for the sector (bestowed with 500 million and executed by the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism). The second one is a pack of specific measures to support the process of digital adaptation of the whole value chain (bestowed with 454,35 million which correspond to the Ministry of Agriculture). The third one is a set of specific actions of support towards innovation and research, the endowment of which reaches the amount of 148,56 million euro and the execution of which also corresponds to the Ministry of Agriculture.

On February, the cabinet approved the agri-food PERTE, the objectives of which are to increase competitiveness and sustainability in the sector before the challenges that are about to come, such as climate change, the conservation of the environment, soil, water, air and biodiversity, as well as topics, such as traceability and food security in a country that already has the highest food security standards in the world. 

Translated by Andrea Expósito Santana