Because of the prolonged rainfall, the situation in some areas is steadily worsening and agricultural work has become impossible. In view of the challenges farmers are currently facing, Minister for Agriculture Armands Krauze believes that an emergency situation must be declared in the areas affected by the rains.

“Having visited farms and discussed the situation with representatives of local governments, the conclusion has to be that this year will be a very hard one in some regions. Because of the prolonged rainfall the ground is waterlogged or completely under water, crops are rotting, disease is spreading and in places tending the fields is impossible. This is not a problem for Latgale or Vidzeme alone – in Selija, Kurzeme and Zemgale too the sowings are standing in water. The harvest season has begun, but tractors are sinking into the fields, making both threshing and mowing difficult. The situation on farms has already become critical,” notes Minister for Agriculture Armands Krauze.

The prolonged rain has also affected the quality of the roads – the regional roads along which heavy machinery has to travel have been washed out and are unsafe. Even where it is possible to drive onto the fields, farmers have to consider carefully how to get to them.

“Declaring an emergency situation will improve the position of farms and help them get through this crisis more easily. Given the weather of recent months and the forecasts ahead, it is important that the Rural Support Service, the State Revenue Service, AS “Attīstības finanšu institūcija Altum”, credit institutions and other bodies defer payments for affected farmers and do not impose penalties for failure to meet contractual obligations or statutory requirements,” stresses Minister for Agriculture Armands Krauze.

At the same time, farmers are urged to continue submitting information to the Rural Support Service about the areas affected by the adverse conditions, indicating the extent of the affected land and the crops concerned. The Ministry of Agriculture has already drawn the European Commission's attention to the difficult situation in Latvian agriculture and has called for the losses incurred by the affected Latvian farmers to be compensated from the EU budget once the damage has been assessed.