Cucumber

At first glance, this creature appears to be a grotesque blob of matter with a disturbing, slimy proboscis.

But, it is actually one of nature’s most cunning survival tactics at work.

It is generally acknowledged that some types of foods are more addictive than others. The findings of a study conducted on 504 volunteers by the University of Michigan indicated that Pizza topped the list. The participants were asked to try 35 foods and rank them from least to most addictive.

Bulgaria's Agriculture Ministry has announced it is receiving applications for aid to compensate the damage caused by the Russian import ban.

The total budget of the aid scheme for all EU Member States amounts to EUR 125 M, and an additional EUR 30 M for peaches and nectarines.

The European Commission has announced it will provide aid of up to EUR 125M to agricultural producers affected by the Russian food embargo.

The European Commission on Aug. 18 announced a series of exceptional measures to help growers hit by a Russian ban on fruit and vegetable imports.
      
The products in question are in full harvesting season, with little hope of finding alternative markets to replace demand from Russia in time, the Commission said.
      

The price of fruits in Bulgaria could go up by 40% in July, as a result of the torrential rains and floods that hit much of the country, experts warn.

“It is natural for me to compensate my low yields with higher prices”, one fruit grower commented.

There is also lingering danger of crop diseases from the high moisture and floods.