Cantabria approves de minimis aid for beef cattle

The Ministry of Rural Development, Livestock, Fisheries and Food of the Government of Cantabria has launched a new aid programme aimed at livestock farms in the region. The Governing Council approved on 13 August Decree 59/2026, published today in the Official Gazette of Cantabria (BOC No. 158), which regulates the direct granting of subsidies within the framework of the Regional Meat Development Plan.

The regulation, with official reference CVE-2026-6562, entered into force on the same day of its publication and responds to the need to strengthen the profitability of the livestock sector in the face of rising production costs —feed, energy and animal health— and market instability.

Amount of aid and eligible animals

The Decree establishes a premium of 100 euros per eligible animal slaughtered in 2025. In addition, animals slaughtered under the quality seal of the Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) “Carne de Cantabria” will receive an additional subsidy of 60%, raising the amount to 160 euros per head with differentiated label. The maximum amount that each beneficiary may receive is 9,000 euros.

To qualify for the aid, farm owners must have slaughtered a minimum of 5 eligible animals during 2025. Bovines and equines count jointly towards reaching this threshold. Eligible animals are classified into three categories:

• Males and females of beef breeds and their crosses, born in Cantabria and transported to the slaughterhouse at an age between 8 and 16 months. Males of the Tudanca, Monchina and Pasiega breeds are excluded.
• Females of dairy breeds, born in Cantabria, at least 4 years of age, whose carcasses have obtained a classification of at least DO 3-, DO3, DO3+ or higher.
• Equines of beef breeds or their crosses, born in Cantabria, aged between 12 and 20 months. Males of the Hispano Bretón breed are excluded.

Beneficiaries and requirements

Natural or legal persons —including agricultural transformation companies and joint ownership communities— who are owners of livestock farms registered in the Official Register of Livestock Farms of Cantabria (REGA) with the zootechnical classification type “Production-Breeding Farms” may benefit from these aids.

Applicants must comply with the regulations on animal welfare, animal health, identification and registration, and must not have been sanctioned for serious or very serious infringements in the previous year. Likewise, they must be up to date with their tax obligations and with the Social Security system.

The granting of these aids is framed within Commission Regulation (EU) No. 1408/2013 of 18 December 2013 on de minimis aid in the agricultural sector. The individual de minimis limit may not exceed EUR 50,000 over a period of three years, in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2024/3118.

Application deadline and processing

Applications must be submitted to the Directorate General for Livestock Farming within 10 business days from the publication of the Decree in the BOC, i.e., until early September 2026. The official form is included as Annex I to the decree.

The documentation may be delivered to the registry of the Department of Rural Development, Livestock Farming, Fisheries and Food (street Albert Einstein, No. 2, Santander), at the Regional Offices, or through the electronic means established by regional regulations. In the case of dairy females aged at least 4 years, the slaughterhouse certificate must be attached, including the ear tag code, the slaughter date and the carcass classification.

The competent body for resolving the applications is the head of the Department responsible for Livestock Farming, with a maximum period of three months from publication. The resolution will be published in the BOC with the list of beneficiaries and amounts granted.

Context and justification of the measure

The Government of Cantabria justifies the direct granting —without a competitive public call— due to the objective and verifiable nature of the subsidised event and the impossibility of competition between applications, under Article 22.2(c) of Law 38/2003, General Subsidies Law, and Article 22.3(c) of Law 10/2006, on Subsidies of Cantabria.

The regulation responds to a threefold objective: ensuring the economic viability of livestock farms, stabilising the meat market, and maintaining employment and economic activity in rural areas. Since 2018, the autonomous community had promoted a support plan for the fattening of male calves of native breeds which, according to the preamble of the decree, succeeded in increasing the profitability of a high percentage of farms and favoured their continuity.

Source: Official Gazette of Cantabria, No. 158, 18 August 2026, Section 6. Subsidies and Aids, p. 37927 (official reference: CVE-2026-6562).