Did Podravka with Belje buy ‘the whole Baranja’,’half of Baranja’ or…

Since Fortenova announced that it is selling its agricultural business in Slavonia, the thesis has been circulating in public that ‘the whole Baranja’ or ‘half of Baranja’ is being sold, especially when it was revealed that the buyer who preliminarily offered the highest price comes from Hungary. In addition, Mészáros Group has already acquired the Croatian apple producer Rabo from Kneževi Vinogradi, and investor Lőrinc Mészáros has estates in the Hungarian part of Baranja, which gave the whole story sharp political outlines. In the end, Mészáros lost, as did the ‘neighboring’ Žito Marka Pipunića. Fortenova opted for Podravka, which is the only company with which negotiations will continue.

So, what exactly is Podravka buying in the context of Baranja? The share of Belje plus in the economy of the region located in the triangle between the Drava, Danube, and the Hungarian border is extremely significant. It is no secret that Belje (plus), especially since it has been part of Agrokor (now Fortenova), has uplifted Baranja. However, intensive agricultural production and state-of-the-art wineries have not stopped the demographic exodus. In Baranja, there were 54,265 inhabitants in 1991, and according to the 2021 census, only 30,782 remain. In just the last decade, that is a decrease of 8,638 inhabitants.

However, those who remain are largely dependent on Belje. So, how much does Belje actually influence life in Baranja? At Belje (together with its sister company Belje Agro-Vet plus), 1,365 people are employed, which is 30 percent of all employed in Baranja, that is, in the area of the city of Beli Manastir and the municipalities of Bilje, Čeminac, Darda, Draž, Jagodnjak, Kneževi Vinogradi, Petlovac, and Popovac. Belje (with Agro-Vet) achieved 251 million euros in revenue last year – more than 42 percent of the revenue of all Baranja entrepreneurs. And that’s not all. For Belje, especially in pig farming and cattle fattening, a number of cooperatives work, primarily in Baranja, but also in other parts of Croatia. In addition, Belje is a partner to a large number of companies in the Baranja area, and its employees are certainly the largest consumers, which further elevates the significance of Belje and its share in total Baranja revenues and the number of employees.

Regarding direct agricultural production, Belje primarily grows wheat, barley, corn, and sugar beets on 20,000 hectares of arable land, which is 40 percent of the arable land in Baranja that is in the support system of the Agency for Payments in Agriculture, Fisheries, and Rural Development recorded through the ARKOD system, which is about 99 percent of all agricultural areas. The largest part of Belje’s arable land is in the Baranja area, but there are some in other parts of Croatia as well. Also, all the arable land that Belje cultivates is not company-owned. Belje has eight state parcels leased in the areas of Petlovac, Darda, Bilje, Kneževi Vinogradi, Popovac, and Čeminac. The 30-year concessions expire in 2034, 2036, and 2038, and the annual lease amounts to a total of about 10.8 million euros.

Nevertheless, Baranja is most dependent on Belje in viticulture. On the southern slopes of Banovo brdo, the highest elevation in Baranja, Belje’s vineyards stretch over a total of 564 hectares, which is as much as 98 percent of Baranja’s grapevine plantations.

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This inventory provides part of the answer to the dilemma of whether by acquiring Belje, Podravka bought ‘half of Baranja’,’the whole Baranja’, or just what the data shows.