Commission supports Halloumi production by Turkish Cypriot community with €1m

The European Commission has announced it will be mobilising 1 million euro to test cattle, sheep and goats and improve animal health and food safety in the Turkish Cypriot community, in order to help the community meet EU standards and thus be able to trade Halloumi through the Green Line before the end of 2024.

The project will help to fully eradicate animal diseases that affect milk-producing livestock in the areas not under the effective control of the Government of the Republic of Cyprus, and is funded by the Aid Programme for the Turkish Cypriot Community.

Once it is confirmed that animal health and food safety standards are being met, the Turkish Cypriot Community will be able to trade their Halloumi/Hellim across the Green Line for placement on the EU market as a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO).

Turkish Cypriot producers are expected to be able to trade PDO-compliant Halloumi/Hellim from the across the Green Line for placement on the EU market before the end of 2024.

Under the project, 50,000 cattle and 325,000 sheep and goats will be tested for the last remaining relevant animal disease, brucellosis.

Spot checks will be conducted to make sure that already eliminated diseases have not reappeared and Turkish Cypriot veterinarians will be trained to improve their capacity to test and monitor animal health. Finally, farmers will receive compensation for the culling of infected animals.

The first PDO certificate for Turkish Cypriot Halloumi/Hellim was issued in March.

An amount of 40 million euro has been earmarked for the period 2021-2024 under the Aid Programme to implement the Halloumi/Hellim PDO scheme in the Turkish Cypriot community.

(Source: CNA)