Customs on Meat Will Be Paid by BiH Citizens

Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations Staša Košarac is not giving up on introducing customs and levies on beef and pork from the EU. The Council of Ministers has already rejected the introduction of such a measure for 200 days, and now Košarac will request that such a measure be adopted for a period of two years.

Košarac pointed out that this decision followed the submission of a conclusion from the Government of Republika Srpska to his ministry, requesting the Council of Ministers of BiH to introduce the aforementioned protection measures for a period of two years, the ministry announced.

- I fully support the introduction of levies and customs rates for a period of two years. I appeal again to my colleagues in the Council of Ministers to support this decision, which I will personally vote for - Košarac stated.

Importers and meat processors are most opposed to such a decision, claiming that domestic production cannot meet all market needs. They warned that beef would very quickly become three marks more expensive per kilogram, while pork would be two marks more expensive. On the other hand, meat producers believe that the price increase will not be permanent and that customs duties will help the recovery of domestic production.

Košarac stated that, in parallel, consultations with the European Commission on the proposed measures, which is an obligation under the Stabilization and Association Agreement, are continuing.

- I have not been discouraged by the fact that the introduction of levies and customs rates for a period of 200 days was not previously supported by all ministers in the Council of Ministers of BiH. My position is that we must protect domestic production with concrete activities, not declarative commitment, which is why I decided to propose the introduction of protection measures for a period of two years, Košarac emphasized.