The Rural Development and Food Ministry announced Wednesday it was scrapping all aid programs for organic beekeeping and livestock farming, amid a rash of bogus applications by farmers to receive EU subsidies.
The announcement by Minister Margaritis Schinas put an end to speculation that they could restart after they were suspended in October 2025, when audits revealed the extent of the scandal. The program, budgeted at €134 million, would allocate €19 million to organic beekeeping and €115 million to organic livestock farming.
“We are obliged to cancel the problematic actions,” Minister Margaritis Schinas said at a press conference, adding that “there will be no future funding until we establish the appropriate framework. We need a fresh start.”
The decision does not include organic agriculture. He added that the funds from the canceled programs “will be redirected to other priorities, which we will announce soon.” He also noted that “we are in full coordination with Brussels, and they are fully informed about the situation.”
The Secretary General of Rural Development and Food, Spyros Protopsaltis, explained the extent of the problem, saying the inspections carried out “highlighted problems that we cannot ignore.There were cases where 300 hives were declared and during the inspection only three were found, while in other cases we found nothing.”
