Bulgaria is facing strong opposition from the food industry over the planned steep rise in fees collected by the Bulgarian Food Safety Agency (BFSA), which experts warn could trigger a sharp increase in food and beverage prices and put local businesses at a significant disadvantage compared to regional competitors.

Representatives from key sectors expressed their concerns in a joint appearance on Nova TV. Dilyana Popova, executive director of the Association of Meat Processors in Bulgaria, Ivaylo Galabov, chairman of the Union of Poultry Breeders, and Todor Stoykov, head of the Bulgarian Association of Grain and Feed Traders, all stressed that the proposed increases would affect the entire food production chain.

Under the new BFSA tariff, fees for official inspections and certifications are set to rise dramatically. In the meat sector, the fee for ante-mortem inspection of pigs over 25 kg is set to double from 2 BGN (approximately €1) to 4 BGN (€2). Similarly, veterinary certificates for live animals, previously charged at 0.60 BGN (€0.31) for cattle and 0.25 BGN (€0.13) for pigs, will be replaced by a one-time fee of 10 BGN (€5.12) per document plus 1 BGN (€0.51) per animal.

The increases are also expected to heavily impact exports. Galabov noted that the veterinary fee for a truckload of hatching eggs to Romania could equal the transport costs themselves. Producers warn that, in a competitive European market, they cannot simply pass these additional expenses to consumers without losing market share. “The market does not care about our costs, the price of energy, fees, or taxes in Bulgaria,” Galabov emphasized, pointing out that markets like Germany, with tens of millions of hens, have far greater influence than Bulgaria’s relatively small sector.

Industry leaders stressed that while the fees will primarily reduce profits for producers, the pressure will inevitably trickle down to end consumers. They criticized the BFSA’s approach, saying the tariff increases were prepared without consultation or clear economic reasoning. The central issue, they argue, lies in the underfunding of the agency itself. Forcing businesses to pay rising fees that go into the state budget rather than directly supporting the agency’s operations is not seen as a sustainable or justified solution.