The Basque Government has announced the Lehiatu Inbertsio 2026 grants for the food industries.

The Department of Food, Rural Development, Agriculture and Fisheries of the Basque Government has approved the regulatory bases of the Lehiatu Inbertsio programme and published the 2026 call in the Official Gazette of the Basque Country (EHAA), issue 154, on 14 August 2026. The order allocates €14,674,990.39 to investments for the transformation, marketing and industrial development of agricultural, food and forestry products, as well as investments to improve culinary quality. Interested parties have a 30-day period to submit applications, starting from the day after publication, i.e., until 13 September.

The order was signed by the minister Amaya Barredo Martin in Vitoria-Gasteiz on 9 June 2026, and published with official reference 2026/3612 in the “other provisions” section of the journal, on 77 pages. The call is aligned with the “Food Industry Support” axis of the 2024-2028 Government Programme and has legal support under Decree 66/2024 (of 28 May), which implements the CAP 2023-2027 in the Basque Country.

Part of the aid is co-financed by the European fund EAFRD, in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 and Spain’s PEPAC 2023-2027 strategic plan; this plan was approved by the European Commission by decision C(2022) 6017 on 31 August 2022. Chapters II and III are co-financed with EAFRD (€2,574,990.39), while Chapters IV, V and VI are financed solely from the Basque Country’s own budgets (€12,100,000).

Five aid lines

The order establishes five aid lines, each in one chapter, with the budget distributed as follows:

• Lehiatu Nekazari (Chapter II): investments to transform, market or develop agricultural products listed in Annex I of the Treaty; €7,500,000 from the Basque Country and €2,413,888.04 from EAFRD.
• Lehiatu Egurra (Chapter III): investments in the first transformation of wood; €2,000,000 from the Basque Country and €161,102.35 from EAFRD.
• Lehiatu Ekologikoa (Chapter IV): investments in the transformation and marketing of organic food; €1,000,000.
• Lehiatu Ekoizpen (Chapter V): food products not covered by the other chapters and valorisation of agricultural by-products; €1,000,000.
• Lehiatu Gastrobikain (Chapter VI): projects to improve culinary quality, under the de minimis regime; €600,000.

Applicants may be private companies with a productive establishment in the Basque Country: farmers and agricultural cooperatives, food companies, first wood transformation companies and hospitality establishments, depending on the chapter in question.

Aid rates and assessment

Aid is granted through public competition, assessed by an evaluation committee. The percentages depend on the chapter and the type of company:

• Chapter II: micro-enterprises up to 65%, SMEs up to 50% and the rest up to 25%.
• Chapter III: up to 40% of the subsidizable investment.
• Chapters IV and V: micro-enterprises up to 65% (if they have fish or aquaculture raw materials, 50%) and SMEs up to 50%.
• Chapter VI: up to 40% for innovation and vertical integration lines (maximum €50,000) and up to 30% for the excellence line (maximum €80,000).

Among the evaluation criteria are operating in strategic and driving sectors (25 points), projects promoted by women (15), promoted by young people under 41 (10), job creation, use of Basque Country raw materials and quality labels, and territorial balance (ZEA and ZAP areas).

How to apply

Applications must be submitted at the electronic office of the Basque Country Public Administration (https://www.euskadi.eus/servicios/0034216), one for each establishment and activity. Investments cannot begin before the application is submitted, and establishments must be registered in the Register of Agricultural and Food Industries (RIAA) before the final payment is made. Annual projects must be executed by 31 October 2026 (extendable until 2027), and multi-year projects by 31 October 2027 (extendable until 2028); the resolution must be notified within six months.

The call has a significant impact on the food industry and forestry sector in the Basque Country: a budget of more than €14.7 million, for first-transformation companies, cooperatives and farm and food businesses, to promote added value, employment and territorial balance. Within the 2023-2027 CAP period, it is one of the main tools to drive the transformation of the agricultural and food chain.

Source: Boletín Oficial del País Vasco, No. 154, 14 August 2026, miscellaneous provisions, pp. 2026/3612 (1/77)-(77/77) (official reference: 2026/3612).