On 17.03.2023 an administrative contract was signed for the provision of grant-in-aid for the implementation of the "Eco-basket, please!" project under sub-measure 19.3 "Preparation and implementation of activities for the cooperation of local initiatives. groups'. The project is about joint actions for transnational cooperation and will be realized in partnership of three Bulgarian and five Slovenian local initiative groups. Partners from the Bulgarian side are LAG “Tundzha” ( leading organization), LAG “Elhovo-Bolyarovo” and LAG “Balchik-General Toshevo”. Slovenian partners are LAG Gorna Savinja and the Šalek valley , LAG From Pohorie to Bohor , LAG Obstolie in Kozjansko , LAG Diversity of the Podjela , LAG Spodnie Savinskie valley .
The project aims to bring together producers and processors who grow, process and use healthy, local and organic food, as well as other stakeholders , to the objectives of the EU Farm to Fork strategy, supporting the development of a fair, healthy and ecological clean food chain. Within the framework of the project, joint initiatives are implemented to support and promote local, incl. bioproducts.
The activities of the project have a strictly defined target impact for the deployment of the potential for production and promotion of local and organic products. Acting on this basis, the partnering LAGs create a new joint product for the territories: Joint edition - Catalog "Eco, basket, please!" and created on its basis an Internet-based virtual Agrobio-center in Bulgarian, English and Slovenian (with QR code ).
It starts functioning in Balchik and a real one - a permanent exhibition of local products from the territories of the partnering LAGs. On the territory of the “Balchik-General Toshevo” LAG, a real functioning Agrobio-center has been created , which will functionally complement the virtual one. In the Agrobio-center, in addition to providing information, consulting and training services, local and organic products from the territories of the partner LAGs from Slovenia and Bulgaria will be promoted, forming the partnership "Eco-Basket". The joint product of the project will also be available at the Agrobio-center . The place was selected based on an assessment of the marketing exposure on the territory of the LAG “Balchik- General Toshevo” in view of its geographical location and the large number of visitors/tourists.
In the center, volunteers will consult local producers. With the development and distribution of the joint product, an opportunity is provided for a new form of use of territorial resources for the areas of operation of the partnering LAGs to support the production and promotion of local, incl. bioproducts. Information on good European practices in the field of production, distribution and marketing of local and organic products will be provided and disseminated.
The duration of the project is 24 months, with the organization of festivals of local and organic products, training of local producers and one more transnational meeting and two intra-territorial ones. The meetings and festivals will also be visited by teams from Slovenia. For the implementation of the project for joint actions, funding was approved by the Bulgarian governing body for the activities performed by the Bulgarian LAGs in the amount of BGN 464,696.40, and for the activities of the Slovenian LAGs, the funding approved by the Slovenian governing body is EUR 492,198.
