Budget Committee Green-Lights Creation of State-Owned Store Chain That Would Offer Bulgarian Goods Only

Yoana Vodenicharova, Anelia Tsvetkova, Martin Lekov

A snapshot of the meeting of the Budget and Finance Committee held in Sofia on March 13, 2025 (BTA Photo/Vladimir Shokov)

Sofia,

13.03.2025 21:00

(BTA)

The National Assembly’s Budget and Finance Committee Thursday approved a proposal for the creation of a state-owned commercial company that would operate a chain of stores selling goods only from Bulgarian producers.

The proposal was submitted by MRF-New Beginning MPs between the first and second readings of the 2025 state budget bill.

Under the proposal, the company would have a capital of BGN 10 million, with the Agriculture and Food Ministry holding ownership of the capital.

The company would operate a chain of stores offering food and other essential products, primarily from Bulgarian producers, with a mark-up of up to 10%.

Jordan Tzonev MP of MRF-New Beginning said that the initiative "would shorten the supply chain for food products in this country and help lower prices, which are sometimes unfairly inflated." He pointed out that similar stores exist in countries like Germany and France.

/RY/