The state will consider models of assistance for damaged farmers and cooperators of ‘Đakovštine’, but before that, claims and quantities of the summer harvest and commodity stocks missing from the silos of the company that has recently entered bankruptcy must be accurately determined, said today the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Development Petar Čobanković.
"It is important to determine the quantities and then we will see što we can do. The state and the tenant must find a solution to assist farmers," said Čobanković during the opening of the event "Agricultural Entrepreneurial Ideas" in Nova Gradiška. When asked if he personally feels responsible since he called on farmers last summer to store wheat until a better price, the minister replied that it is completely normal to store wheat and wait for the moment it will be marketed.
"I did not expect that there are some who are willing to alienate a product for which they regularly sent invoices for storage costs. Thus, someone has been deceived twice – they paid for storage and ultimately ended up without their product. I was convinced that this time is behind us," said Čobanković. He announced the establishment of a guarantee fund that would guarantee producers for stored goods, after the warehouse law comes into effect this year. Regarding the Law on Agricultural Land, the minister apologized to farmers for the problems they have faced recently, and emphasized that its implementation is postponed until July. Control of alcohol production on family farms will be even stricter, asserted Čobanković, promising that the quotas for the minimum production of pure alcohol per household will be increased. At the traditional winter gathering of farmers from Brod-Posavina County in Nova Gradiška, about eighty producers showcased their products. Over two days, they will learn from experts and representatives of institutions related to agriculture about current issues in domestic agriculture and become familiar with the process of preparing programs for applying for funds from the pre-accession EU fund IPARD. (H)
