Ricambio generazionale e innovazione, nuove risorse all’agricoltura

The Friuli Venezia Giulia region has allocated 12 million euros to support the transition of young farmers into agricultural production through low-interest loans. These funds come from the Regional Rotation Fund in agriculture, with a contribution of over 4 million euros from the Feasr. The initiative aims to promote generational renewal in agriculture, establish new agricultural businesses led by young people, and increase their average land area.

Stefano Zannier, the assessor for agri-food, forest, and fish resources, announced the decision after the regional government approved the call for tenders for the "SRD16 - Financial Instrument FVG - Agricultural Productive Investments for Company Competitiveness" under the Complement for Rural Development (Csr) of the Friuli Venezia Giulia Autonomous Region's Strategic Plan (Pac) 2023-2027.

Eligible recipients must be registered businesses, cooperative enterprises should also be registered in the regional cooperative register, operate as micro, small, or medium enterprises, have at least one active operational unit located in the region for agricultural production, and be in full compliance with their legal rights, not in voluntary liquidation or facing bankruptcy procedures. They must also not be in financial distress.

The maximum assistance grant is 65% of eligible expenses, with a single enterprise receiving a maximum of 300,000 euros per investment project. The loan duration ranges from five to twenty years. The assistance for the final recipient consists of a reduced interest rate as per regional law 80 of 1982 and agreements between the Rotation Fund and banks, in accordance with the regional law.

The provincial government, led by Giulia Zanotelli, the assessor for agriculture, also approved the integration of resources due to a remodulation among the different interventions of the Pac 2023-2027 strategic plan, totaling around 11.2 million euros from the last rounds of the 2023-27 programming for Trentino agricultural support interventions. Zanotelli emphasized that investing in agriculture strengthens the competitiveness of the sector and contributes to the attractiveness of the region's territories.