Farmers, the opposition says, are once again at the bottom of the bill - with less money, lower purchase prices, and promises that have evaporated. SDSM accused Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski and the government of betraying the people of the agricultural sector after two years in power.

The numbers the opposition presents are concrete: subsidies cut by 40 million euros and constantly delayed, the purchase of agricultural products down 46 percent, and the milk purchase price reduced by over 30 percent - to a level that barely covers the basic costs of production. Even two dairies in the Delchevo region have announced they're halting milk purchases.

„After two years in power, agriculture is on its knees," SDSM says, recalling that the same Mickoski, while in opposition, promised greater support and guaranteed purchase. Now, they claim, the premiums for livestock and for milk are late, while in the shops the prices of dairy products are rising - which means that somewhere in the middle someone is making money, just not the farmer.

Like any party criticism, this one too should be read with reservation - SDSM was in power for a long time and farmers weren't swimming in money back then either. But numbers are numbers, and if the purchase really fell by almost half, that's not politics, it's survival for thousands of families. The question isn't which party loves farmers more on paper - but why, no matter who governs, they always end up as the first item to be cut when the budget tightens.