The government on Thursday approved emergency support for fruit growers affected by extreme climatic phenomena in the spring of 2025, with the total budget allocated standing at EUR 11.5 million, and the amount of financial support at EUR 2,000 /hectare, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MADR).
At the government meeting of February 5, 2026, a decision on providing emergency financial support in agriculture for the fruit sector affected by the late frost in the spring of 2025 was approved. The new piece of legislation provides for the establishment of an emergency financial support scheme for agricultural producers in the fruit sector whose crops have been significantly affected by destructive climatic phenomena - the late spring frost between April and May 2025.
The financial aid is extended in the form of a grant, with the aim of compensating for the production losses for fruit plantations between 30% and 100% damaged.
Qualifying for the scheme are agricultural producers, regardless of the form of organisation, who have submitted to the Agency for Payments and Intervention for Agriculture (APIA) requests for payment per area for 2025, for fruit plantations.
The fruit species eligible for financial support are plum, apple, pear, peach and nectarine, sweet and sour cherry, apricot, walnut, hazelnut and almond.
"After we officially requested this support in the AgriFish Council in June last year, the European Commission confirmed the importance of Romania's approach, allocating EUR 11.5 million to us - the second largest amount in the emergency package for the six affected member states. Under the government decision adopted today, we transform this approach into direct support for fruit growers, offering grants of up to EUR 2,000 per hectare. It is our duty to make sure that farmers are not alone against climate whims and have the necessary resources to continue producing for Romania," according to Agriculture Minister Florin-Ionut Barbu.
The financial support is capped at RON 10,180.6 lei/ha (about EUR 2,000 /ha), granted proportionally to the degree of affectation.
The application for support is submitted to the county or local APIA centres, including the APIA centre in Bucharest, within 20 business days of the entry into force of the legislation.
Payments to beneficiaries will be made until April 30, 2026.
The scheme operates on a budget of RON 58,538,450 lei (about EUR 11,500,000), provided from the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund, in the form of non-repayable external financing.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development continues to support Romanian farmers and to adopt concrete measures to reduce the impact of extreme weather events on agricultural production.
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