The Statistical Office of Serbia held a press conference to present the first results of the agricultural census conducted in the country last year. The Director of the Statistical Office, Miladin Kovacevic, together with Martin Klaucke, Head of Operations Section II, EUD (which financed the project), and representatives of Ministry of Agriculture Dragana Markovic, Head of Statistics and Petar Korovic, Assistant Director, presented the first results of the census.
On average, agricultural households in Serbia cultivated 6.4 hectares of land last year, raising one cattle, five pigs, three sheep, and 43 poultry and maintaining three beehives. These figures stem from last year's agriculture census, which shows that 508,365 agricultural households were registered in Serbia, a decrease of 10% compared to the 2018 survey.
Last year, 313,495 households were engaged in animal husbandry, indicating that six out of every ten households were involved in livestock farming, compared to eight households in 2018. The census disclosed a decline in livestock numbers compared to 2018, with 725,408 cattle, a 17.7% decrease, 2,263,705 pigs, a 30.7% decrease, 1,702,682 sheep, a 5.4% decrease, and 149,558 goats, a 31.5% decrease. Poultry numbers also decreased by 5%, totaling 22,022,439.
The total available land area is 4,073,703 hectares, a 21.3% decrease from 2018, and utilized agricultural land is 3,257,100 hectares, a 6.3% decrease from the previous survey. Forested land covered 504,104 hectares, a 48.2% decrease from 2018.
The agricultural workforce comprised 1,150,653 individuals, a 14% decrease from 2018, with 77.2% men and 22.8% women household heads. The average age of the head of a family of an agricultural household is 60 years, and every 11th household head is younger than 40 years. Commenting on the results of last year's census, agro economist Milan Prostran stated for Beta news agency that the census revealed that cattle breeding and land farming had been devastated in Serbia. "The results of the census of agriculture from last year paint a picture of the devastation of cattle breeding as a pillar of the agriculture sector, as well as the ruination of the people involved in this business," stated Prostran for Beta news agency.
Fruit and vegetable growers seek additional funding for seasonal interventions
Representatives of associations of fruit and vegetable growers met with Marjan Risticevic, the President of the Committee for Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management in the Serbian Parliament, and requested to allocate a portion of funds for incentives in the agriculture budget for seasonal interventions when the prices of agro products fall.
In a press release issued after the meeting, attended by representatives of the Associations of Serbian Raspberry Producers and association "Vilamet" from Arilje, "Ekovoce" from Kraljevo, and "Zlatni Breg" from Nova Varosi, it was stated that fruit and vegetable growers believe that subsidies would preserve the stability and continuity of production. "Fruit and vegetable growers are dissatisfied with the announcement that will not be included in the increase of incentives per hectare of €145, they said. It was added that, during the registration of parcels in the e-agrar system, agricultural advisory services did not alert them to exclude uncultivated and occupied areas from cultivated parcels, leading to some registered agricultural households being penalized and placed in passive status, making them ineligible for per-hectare subsidies.
The associations proposed that, instead of passive status, farms should be allowed to correct provided data.
The majority of Serbian apples were exported to the Middle East
"Since the beginning of the season, from August 2023 until the end of December, for the first time ever, the highest concentration of Serbian apples, both in quantities and in value, have been exported to the Middle East, where 22,500 tons of apples were sold for 22 million euros" explained Mr. Gojko Zagorac, President of the Association "Serbia does apples". The leading export market was Saudi Arabia, where Serbia exported apples amounting €11.3 million, as well as the United Arab Emirates, where the export value was €7 million, stated Zagorac for a daily "Dnevnik". The second export market for Serbian apples was Europe, where 30.000 metric tons of apples were sold for €15 million by the end of December last year. The Russian market, once the most important export market for Serbian apples, dropped to third position with the export of 10,500 tons for €8 million, explained Zagorac.
EU funds for Serbia's green transition
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has selected 23 innovations for the green transition of the Serbian economy and society. These innovations will be implemented with financial support from the EU and Switzerland, totaling €1.6 million under the EU Green Agenda project in Serbia. The regional landfill in Subotica, in collaboration with the Institute of Field and Vegetable Crops, Novi Sad, will conduct research on composting using waste sludge to utilize large quantities of this material generated from wastewater.
The company Greendecor, in partnership with the Institute for Biological Research Sinisa Stankovic, is developing innovative green cassette roofs with plants resistant to climate change and suitable for easy maintenance. These roofs can significantly improve the energy efficiency of buildings and reduce air pollution in cities. ArTech Engineering will create new construction materials from textile waste that are suitable for use in road construction, building construction, and interior design. Among the selected projects is the solution from the Public Utility Company Kruševac, which will establish a green area in the industrial zone of Kruševac, near the Morava Corridor, to enhance air quality in the region.
All 23 chosen innovations will be implemented in 2024. As part of the EU Green Agenda projects in Serbia, 29 innovative green solutions have already received support from the EU and Switzerland, totaling €1.3 million.
Source: agroberichtenbuitenland.nl