We are living through an unprecedented disaster. It has never happened before what is being done with the fires in many parts of the country that destroyed crop production, it is a blow to the environment. Look here, look at Evia, look at Rhodes, look at Magnesia, where Thessaly immediately after the fires was hit and with the floods in the same place I would say, right now it smells of death. In Thessaly, especially in Thessaly, all of Thessaly smells of deathits president told ERT Greek Livestock Association Panagiotis Peverettos.

Thessaly produces 200,000 tons of sheep and goats milk in principle and correspondingly less cow’s milk. It produces 160,000 sheep and around 40,000 tons of goat milk. Not all Thessaly has been struck, all this wealth of 1,800,000 sheep and goats.

From the data to date, we estimate that the damage will exceed 100,000 goats and sheep, 20,000 pigs, 6,000 cattle and 50,000 chickens.

But keep in mind that we have not been able to enter villages where the houses are flooded. The houses of the colleagues have been lost, because mainly farmers and breeders were in them, and we do not know how many stables have completely collapsed and how many need very extensive repairs.

We cannot say from now that you know with a billion or with a half or with five. We estimate a total of more than 10 billion that will be the final damage.
There are sheep and goat farms that have collapsed and were structured very well. We have a big problem, after recording we will see the final picture.

Housing the rescued animals is also a big problem. Around 25,000 to 30,000 sheep and goats that were saved have been moved to a dry place but they have nowhere to house them. We went to some old abandoned barns.

In the context of solidarity, we opened an account in cooperation with the Tyrnavou Cooperative and those who can put money.

There are also the young breeders, whose stables were demolished, who had invested a lot of money in the last five years, and lost it all, now they have to pay the loans.
We ask that the government legislate the non-repossession of the first residence and for the stable and for a longer period not six months no they say, what will change in 6 months, he wondered.

Avgenakis: Until mid-October the advance payments to those affected with livestock

At the same time, the Minister of Rural Development and Food, Lefteris Avgenakis also speaking to ERT he emphasized that the picture in Thessaly is manageable and that it takes time, while he reiterated that in October the advance payment of compensations will be given to the affected farmers and breeders.

“Until yesterday afternoon, the declarations regarding the livestock had reached about 1400 and about the plant capital about 300. That is, a very small number of declarations. So all this has to go ahead in order to talk about a year of payment of compensations. On the other hand, the process of demarcating the area that has suffered all this damage is progressing, so this must be completed as well. Tuesday to Wednesday we will have the demarcation of the affected area. As the livestock is very less in number compared to the crop, our estimate is that by mid-October, subject to one caveat, we will be able to give advances to those affected who have livestock. For plant capital, the volume is much larger, but the applications are very slow. So we ask our producing farmers to carry out this procedure which is absolutely necessary”.

“We compensate the production, but those farmers who have lost their tractors, their equipment, their accessories, should make the declarations. Compensation for these will come from state aid, but we don’t want to entangle them in different places. One application, one declaration, is enough. We have consolidated the platform, so there is no confusion, no problem,” explained the minister. We are already looking at some programs that could motivate the next day and give a strength, a boost to all these suffering people. The most important is the infrastructure. Because by all means we must do a proper, unified study and treatment of this phenomenon. Are we going to allow the world to live with the anxiety of whether it will happen again?’ he added.