Mohamed Seddiki, the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries of Morocco, announced that the Government will, for the first time ever, subsidize the production of tomatoes, onions, and potatoes, by 50 to 70% of their value, due to the "high price" of the seeds.
In the House of Representatives, he stated that tomato production would be subsidized with 40,000 to 70,000 dirhams (between 3,600 and 6,300 euro) per hectare, potato production with 8,000 to 15,000 dirhams (between 720 and 1,300 euro) per hectare, and onion production with 4,000 to 5,000 dirhams (between 360 and 450 euro) per hectare.
The government will also provide 600,000 tons of phosphate fertilizers for the coming season and subsidize the import of nitrogen fertilizers with 2.2 billion dirhams (€200 million).
Seddiki recalled four consecutive years of drought, rising cultivation costs, and the earthquake that struck several provinces last month. On a positive note, according to the latest forecasts from the Ministry of Agriculture, citrus yields will increase by 5% to 1.69 million tons.
Source: infobae.com