It's the big fat Greek farming scandal devised by the political elite and paid for by ordinary people | Alexander Clapp

"Something strange has been happening in Greece: animals are appearing out of nowhere. Between 2016 and 2022, the sheep population on the island of Crete more than doubled. Or so claim Greek state records, which, over a similar period, reveal other curious trends across the country. The slopes of Mount Olympus are said to be swaddled with banana plantations, high-security military airports have been turned over to olive trees,"

"A third of the EU budget, more than is allocated to education and welfare and renewable energy combined, goes to subsidising the agriculture of member states. The more animals there are, the more land is allotted to them to graze and the more cash gets distributed. In Greece, farming subsidies are dispersed from Brussels to the tune of 2bn a year, equivalent to about a quarter of the country's wildly bloated annual military budget."

Animals have appeared out of nowhere in Greece, with Crete's sheep population more than doubling between 2016 and 2022 according to state records. Records also show improbable developments such as banana plantations on Mount Olympus, military airports converted to olive groves, and grazing extending into surrounding seas. These claims enabled a scheme in which enormous sums of EU agricultural funds were claimed for non-existent work. Agriculture receives a third of the EU budget, and Greece receives about €2bn a year in farming subsidies. The scandal is tied to OPEKEPE and has prompted a European investigation.

Read at www.theguardian.com