Bulgarian Minister Tries to Quench Grain Shortage Fears

Bulgarian Agriculture Minister Naydenov (middle) says there won't be any grain shortage. Photo by BGNES

Bulgaria has plenty of wheat and there is no reason for bread prices to go up, Agriculture Minister Miroslav Naydenov has declared amidst recent reports of grain shortage.

He has estimated Bulgaria’s 2010 wheat yield at about 3.5 million tonnes even though not all of that has been harvested yet.

“We are safe to say that we have twice more grain than we need, and that it is of good quality. There is no danger of Bulgaria experiencing a bread shortage any time soon,” Naydenov declared during a visit to the central Bulgarian city of Gabrovo.

He explicitly sought to disprove recent reports of rising bread prices, saying there was no reason for that, and pointing out that there were attempts by speculators to up the prices artificially.

The recent grain shortage reports have been fueled by allegations that Bulgarian producers are exporting too much of their newly-harvested grain, and by the fact that the torrential rains in the north and northeast of the country in July substantially impeded the wheat harvesting and worsened the quality of the wheat.

“Bulgaria cannot ban the exports of grain because such a decision has to be made by the European Union,” Naydenov said explicitly stating that his Ministry was monitoring the situation actively.

He also announced that there will be meeting of the Consultative Council on Grain Production on Monday to discuss the present situation.

The Minister further informed that his institution must make redundant 1 700 employees and urged the local agriculture directorates to find the best way to optimize their staff.

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