The water crisis, foot-and-mouth disease, fisheries, and the primary sector in general, and halloumi were the focus of today’s meeting of the Parliamentary Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources with the Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development, and the Environment, Maria Panayiotou. The Committee Chair, AKEL MP Giannakis Gabriel, and members of the Committee expressed particular concern regarding water resources.

The Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development, and the Environment, Maria Panayiotou, emphasized that the primary sector has historically been a key pillar of the economy and is now called upon to respond to the challenges of climate change, water scarcity, rising production costs, and international developments—which are essentially the greatest challenges it has ever faced.

“The goal is to support professional farmers,” he said, adding that this is the focus of the programs and plans they are developing, while also supporting rural areas.

He also noted that the previous phase of the Rural Development Program has been completed.

“It was a program that, by 2025, had essentially fully absorbed the funds allocated—a total of €338,4 million under the Rural Development Program. Today marks the final day of the largest investment program ever announced in the Republic of Cyprus, €67.5 million, of which €7.5 million is exclusively for young farmers, with enhanced scoring criteria and increased financial support,” he added.

He also noted that the small-scale investment program has already been completed.

He added that there is a €5.2 million program currently open to bring abandoned land back into production, meaning that those with abandoned vineyards can take advantage of this €5.2 million fund to return to planting their abandoned vineyards, with a subsidy of up to €1,400 per decare, for both grapevines and other crops.

Ms. Panagiotou noted that the Ministry of Agriculture already provides an 80% subsidy for renewable energy sources—always for personal use—along with an 80% subsidy for the battery as well, if the applicant so desires.

He explained that the goal is not a subsidy-based policy, but to provide farmers with the tools to protect their crops themselves; that is why they are subsidizing renewable energy sources and hail protection systems. He noted that the primary sector needs support due to the prolonged lack of rain and drought. In 2025, €13.5 million was allocated for the lack of rain, €55 million in compensation through the Insurance Protection Fund, and 1 million last year as a subsidy for increased energy costs, she said.

Referring to the changes they are planning, the Minister said that they have upgraded the Farmers’ Registry and thanked the Committee for passing the synchronized Farmers’ Registry, which she described as a tool through which they provide subsidies and support programs.

“In 2023, when we took it over, there were around 2,500 registered farmers, including 497 professionals. Today, thanks to the use of the Farmers’ Registry, we have 7,600 registered farmers and 2,000 professional farmers,” he added.

He noted that, in total for the period up to 2025, 244 million has been allocated to the agricultural sector through subsidies, support programs, and investments—the major investment measure, which is currently open and “has been increased compared to previous programs we had. “It was around 600 in previous rounds; right now we’re reaching 800,000.” All of this, she said, is based on the strategy for the primary sector, which was developed in collaboration with the agricultural community through an extensive consultation process.

The Minister said that support for the primary sector includes 11 actions totaling approximately 109.3 million euros.

Of the 11 measures, 2 have been completed, 7 are already underway, and the remaining 2 are proceeding according to our plan to be completed by 2029, she noted. “Our goal is a modern agricultural sector—one that has the tools to respond to the challenges of the climate crisis, rising production costs, and so on,” he said, adding that all plans have been formulated based on what was included in the strategy.

Regarding the strategy’s economic impact, the Minister said that the Center for Economic Research at the University of Cyprus has costed and assessed the strategy’s economic impact.

The strategy “provides 138.6 million in additional economic support and adds 70.8 million to GDP, upon full implementation; of the 11 actions, 9 are already well underway, and the remaining 2 will be announced subsequently. “And full implementation will also create 1,370 new jobs,” he said. This, he noted, shows that the strategy has a positive economic impact, and the goal is for the new Common Agricultural Policy—the CAP after 2027— and the new programming framework we will have to have an even greater economic impact.

Halloumi

Regarding halloumi, the Minister reiterated that the goal is to maintain it as the main export product, “ensuring the sustainability of all stakeholders and, of course, safeguarding the PDO, which drives our exports.”

She noted that more quantities of goat and sheep milk are needed.

 “One of the key tools we’ve used is changing the subsidy structure. Until recently, the subsidy was per head… now it is based on what each animal produces and how productive the farm is,” he added.

He noted the new licensing framework for farms with more than 800 animals, the allocation of 27 state-owned plots, €29.5 million for investments and €1.5 million annually (2026–2027) for improved reproductive management, as well as enhanced traceability through digital recording of milk quantities and a research program to detect milk powder in PDO halloumi.

Foot-and-Mouth Disease

Regarding foot-and-mouth disease, Ms. Panagiotou said that it is a veterinary crisis and added that the Veterinary Services took charge of managing it from the very beginning.

“We,” she said, “have provided the Veterinary Services with all the resources they requested and all the resources they needed to respond more effectively”; they appointed a scientific team, “which provides ongoing guidance to the Veterinary Services on how to proceed.”

He referred to the decrees that impose certain restrictions to limit the spread of the virus. “We have had no new positive cases recently; daily testing and vaccination are proceeding throughout Cyprus. We are completing the second dose of the vaccination program, according to the information I have received from the Veterinary Services, by early fall,” she added.

The Minister also noted that the Veterinary Services are currently reviewing requests from livestock farmers for certain relaxations and are awaiting their decisions to be announced.

She referred to financial support, noting that “the budget stands at around 28 million so far. The compensation is significantly higher than the European average.” He added that what is considered the strongest indicator of protection is vaccination and adherence to biosafety measures. “At the moment, we have an outstanding issue regarding financial compensation for those whose facilities had certain discrepancies. We have taken legal action, and payments will be finalized early next week,” he added.

Fisheries

Regarding fisheries, the Minister said that 78 fishing vessels have been modernized since April 2024 and that grants covering 100% of the cost are being provided, with no private contribution required for coastal fishing.

She referred to the program for rabbitfish and the program addressing the damage caused to fishermen by dolphins.

He emphasized that the goal is to boost the income of fishermen—a difficult profession with very limited catches in Mediterranean waters— as well as to maintain sustainable and vibrant coastal communities.

He mentioned the increase in compensation for rabbitfish from €3.00 to €4.73 per kilogram and the implementation of a compensation plan for damages caused by dolphins and other protected marine mammals, which covers approximately 300 fishermen annually.

Regarding investments in fisheries, the Minister referred to projects totaling €2.76 million in aquaculture, processing, and the marketing of fishery products, with an emphasis on modernization and innovation.

Water

 Regarding water resources, the Minister referred to the campaign titled “Water for Tomorrow” and recalled that in 2017 reserves were low, in 2019 there was sufficient water, in 2022 there were floods, and in 2023 there was a drought.

She also noted that they have changed their strategy.

“We are continuously operating all desalination plants without any interruptions,” and unlike before, “the desalination plants are running continuously, and the water in the reservoirs is being distributed to our irrigators.”

Challenges, he added, include the prolonged drought, the increase in tourism and population, and changing weather conditions that cause an annual increase of 4% to 6%. “We have the old network infrastructure, which is under the responsibility of the EOAs. In our own network, losses are below 1%, but in the EOA networks, we have an average of 30% losses,” he added.

All of this, he said, is part of the challenges they face, which is why their policy is based on three pillars.

“First is increasing water supply from unconventional sources, namely desalination. We took over five permanent desalination plants that had been built over the course of about 25 years. Within two years, we have brought four desalination plants into full operation. We inherited capacity that covered just under 70% of our needs. Today we’re at around 80%, and by 2027, with the additional plants we’re adding to the system, we’ll be approaching 100%. We currently have nine desalination plants in operation. By fall, we’ll have 10, and we’ll continue to expand to a double-digit number by 2027,” he added.

The second pillar, he continued, is infrastructure improvement.

He reiterated that there is a problem with the infrastructure under the responsibility of local authorities, the Regional Development Agencies (EOA), and said that they had allocated 11.5 million to the EOAs to help them repair the networks and reduce losses. “The projects they have undertaken are underway and will be completed in 2027, and this year we provided them with additional support of 300,000 per EOA so they can carry out smaller and more targeted projects, again with the goal of reducing or identifying water losses, because we had received many complaints that some Water Supply and Sewerage Authorities were unable to identify the faults,” she noted.

The third pillar, the Minister continued, is water conservation awareness.

“Conservation is essential whether it rains or not; water is a precious natural resource. To ensure prudent use, we’re utilizing the ‘dropper’ platform, which allows us to see how much each of us is consuming and verify that it stays within the limits,” she said. Free home delivery of sprinkler heads to all households began in early June, starting in Paphos, and by the end of August, they will have reached every household.

He also noted that dam maintenance is one of the biggest challenges they have had to face.

He noted that Cyprus currently utilizes approximately 90% of its reclaimed water—one of the highest rates in the EU— while reclaimed water covers 37% of the country’s irrigation needs, and the goal is to increase that percentage even further. During the 2023–2025 period, €72 million was spent on irrigation projects, she said, adding that the average daily water consumption is 125 liters per person.

The Minister noted that reservoir levels rose from about 11% at the beginning of the year to about 44%, though they remain close to the minimum acceptable safety threshold, while the volume of water available for irrigation increased from 15.3 to 18.7 million cubic meters, based on improved hydrological data.

After the presentation ended, the Committee Chair said they were expecting a more detailed presentation regarding water resources because, as he noted, over the three-year planning period, there would be no primary sector, especially for seasonal crops.

“It is not feasible today to provide zero water to seasonal crops while at the same time supplying water to golf courses. According to a letter from the Water Department, four of the five golf courses will be drawing water from the dams until September, while the primary sector— seasonal crops have been discontinued; unless they have their own wells, potato farming across Cyprus will not proceed if they do not have their own water,” he added, noting that they should be concerned about how to proceed with regard to seasonal crops.

He also said that while the Ministry is right to focus on professional farmers, there are also permanent crops that must be kept alive.

“We need to make more rational use of water to support the primary sector,” he said, adding that “unfortunately, we fell behind from the very beginning.”

Based on the data available to us to date, he stated after the session, there is evidence of a serious delay in the implementation of the plan, particularly regarding the integration of new desalination plants into the water balance, addressing the massive losses from the distribution network, and the optimal use of reclaimed water in agriculture.

He noted, that the issue of foot-and-mouth disease will be the Committee’s sole focus next Tuesday and requested that they be provided with the amounts by which livestock farmers have been compensated. The government, Mr. Gabriel said, must expedite the process of compensating and helping affected livestock farmers resume their operations.

Furthermore, regarding halloumi, he said, “We also consider the government’s decision to reduce halloumi quotas—citing a decline in milk production due to the culls—to be unjustified. The transition period expires in 2029, and the constant backtracking makes it highly doubtful that we will be able to meet the obligations of the designation. “The consequences of such a development for Cyprus’s most marketable product and our livestock sector will be painful,” he added.

DISY MP Giorgos Karaiskakis stated that “we acknowledge that measures have been taken, particularly to combat foot-and-mouth disease. However, farmers and livestock breeders are not just waiting for presentations and announcements; they are waiting for immediate solutions.”

He added that “we emphasized that in the event of animal culling due to foot-and-mouth disease, compensation must cover not only the livestock but also the loss of production and income for livestock farmers.”

Responding to a series of questions from Members of Parliament, members of the Agriculture Committee—most of which focused on water issues— the Minister said that the four desalination plants that had been planned are already supplying water, and that the plant in Kouklia—which had burned down—has been brought back online in record time.

In early fall 2026, Ms. Panagiotou continued, another desalination plant will be added to the system, while two more are planned for 2027.

As for irrigation, the Minister said that, unfortunately, it is the poor relation.

“From 2004 to the present, our farmers have received all the water they needed only twice, and we were the first to say that this must finally come to an end,” she added.

Regarding the golf courses, Ms. Panayiotou said that they will stop receiving water.

“It is the government of Nikos Christodoulides that has stated it will stop. They have received their final allocations; they are below 1.5%, and they are not receiving any additional allocations.” “They are also carrying out their own infrastructure projects,” he added, “and are awaiting their own desalination plants; they have requested an extension until September without us increasing the quantities.” “So, our commitment is being fulfilled with a slight extension of the deadline they requested,” he concluded.

Source: CNA