Costas Tsiaras: The country’s agricultural balance is positive. It is up to us to keep the primary sector alive and well

The Minister of Rural Development and Food with distinguished interlocutors at the Thermopylae Forum 2025 for the Rural Economy & Sustainable Development…

The 3rd ^Session of the Thermopylae Forum 2025 focused on the primary sector, with guests including the Minister of Rural Development and Food, Costas Tsiaras , the Members of Parliament of Phthiotis, Yiannis Economou, Giorgos Kotronias and Yiannis Sarakiotis , as well as the President of the Break Even Consulting Group, Dr. Markos Margaritis.

Title of the Unit “Rural Economy & Sustainable Development – The new Development Model for Greece”.

Mr. Tsiaras, in his initial statement and in response to the question of the moderator of the discussion, Alexandros Giannelos (President of the IEA), regarding the primary sector and demographics, starting from Fthiotida, described the region as a microcosm and a representative example of Greece. “ Attracting young people to the primary sector is a goal ” for the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Tourism so that they can remain and invest in their place, helping with demographics as well.

” Challenges are daily and it is of great importance to keep the primary sector alive and well ,” the Minister emphasized.

At another point in his statement, he referred to the need for targeted policies that will directly bring added value to boost the national and local economy, strengthening innovation in the primary sector, referring to greenhouse cultivation, which is attracting enormous interest.

He also did not fail to mention the fact that compared to 2019, when the country’s agricultural balance was strongly negative, it is now positive. Mr. Tsiaras referred in particular to the management of irrigation water, announcing a new call for major projects in the Regions, but also to the aid given after the disasters of Daniel without any previous experience, not even at the European level.

For his part, the New Democracy MP for Fthiotida, Mr. Economou, as a man who has been particularly concerned with demographics and has served as Minister of Rural Development and Food, reiterated that the Primary Sector needs to be a key pillar of changing the country’s production model in order to correct a series of pathologies, including the desertification of the countryside.

” At the level of the Greek state, the agricultural sector is not at the center of attention in order to mobilize huge resources and attract other horizontal policies ,” the MP noted and mentioned a series of issues that should receive the corresponding priority. He also proposed a radical transformation of agriculture and livestock farming according to the model of the Netherlands, which is the second largest exporter of primary sector products, behind only the USA!

Mr. Kotronias, sharing his own experience with the panel, said that when the primary sector was doing well, the whole country was doing well. So for him, it plays a role not only in the issue of our nutrition but also in the development of the country in general, which is why he insisted on the importance of supporting it. At the same time, supporting farmers and young people to stay in the countryside will play a role in preventing the desertification of the countryside and in demographics.

He focused on two topics, smart agriculture and greenhouse cultivation, citing examples of such businesses.

Mr. Sarakiotis began with questions about the lack of support for olive and wine grape producers in Fthiotida. He also referred to the reduction in the volume of agricultural production in 2023 by 16% without being linked to any pan-European phenomenon, as many countries recorded an increase. The increase in production costs has led, according to Mr. Sarakiotis, to 17 leaving for every new person entering the primary sector, insisting on extremely worrying figures for the Greek farmer.

Mr. Sarakiotis also referred to examples where primary production pays little to intermediaries who overprice them, making them inaccessible on the shelf. However, it is not only the accuracy but also for the producer, as he observed, little is left.

Finally, the President of the Break Even Consulting Group, Mr. Margaritis, pointed out that the existence of financial tools is not sufficient if the appropriate technical preparation and maturation of the projects is not preceded. He referred in particular to the issue of collaborations, describing three worlds: Public and private sectors and Universities, which, as he argued, do not communicate with each other. ” The innovation and research that Greek universities produce and could help municipalities and individuals does not reach the other two worlds. Universities produce work that is not visible anywhere. They provide solutions throughout the Western world because universities talk to the other two worlds about the projects ,” he concluded.