Number of cattle decreased, tobacco product manufacturing significantly down

(Patria) - The Federal Government adopted the Report of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Water Management and Forestry on the state of agriculture ("Green Report") in the Federation of BiH for 2018, with a proposal for recommendations. This report contains an assessment of the state and economic position of agriculture, as well as a proposal and method for implementing agricultural policy measures in the coming period.

It was stated that in the Federation of BiH, during the 2017/2018 period, total sown arable land in autumn and spring sowing decreased by 7.5 percent compared to the previous period (2016/2017). By crop groups in spring and autumn sowing, grain sown areas decreased by 1.6 percent, fodder crops by 6.6 percent, vegetable crops by 7.5 percent, while industrial crops saw an increase of 10.1 percent.

Total fruit production and yields in 2018, compared to the previous year, increased for almost all types, except for apricots, where a decrease of 42.7 percent in yields was recorded. The increase in total production is a result of increased average yields per unit of measurement, contributed to by favorable climatic conditions in certain phenophases of development compared to 2017.
Regarding berries and small fruits, in 2018, compared to the previous year, areas under raspberries increased by 10.5 percent, blueberries by 26 percent, while other types remained at last year's levels.

Seed production in the Federation of BiH is also showing growth after a longer unfavorable period. The production of cereal seeds increased to 3,979.7 tons compared to the previous year when it was 2,499.8 tons.

In animal production last year, the number of cattle decreased from 211,875 in 2017 to 207,194. The number of dairy cows and fattening calves increased, although milk production slightly decreased.
The number of sheep slightly increased from 458,444 in 2017 to 459,619 last year, and the number of goats decreased from 30,084 to 28,844. The total number of pigs also decreased from 91,400 in 2017 to 86,427 last year. The number of bee colonies, honey production per colony, and total honey quantity increased. Last year, there were a total of 232,975 bee colonies, and 2,138 tons of honey were produced, which is a significant increase compared to 2017 when there were 225,983 colonies and 1,351 tons of honey were produced.

The number of poultry in the Federation of BiH increased last year compared to 2017, as did the number of laying hens, and in the aquaculture sector, a production increase of about 10 percent was achieved.
Food product manufacturing remained almost at the same level, except for fruit and vegetable products where production was 3.5 times higher. This increase was mainly due to the production of fruit and vegetable juices by the company Stanić Beverages d.o.o. Kreševo, which experienced an enormous increase in production.

The production of tobacco products (cigarettes, smoking tobacco, etc.) decreased by more than 30 percent, and cigarette production by as much as 45 percent. As of December 7, 2018, a total of 78,261 agricultural holdings were registered in the Register of Agricultural Holdings (RPG) and Client Register (RK) of the Federation of BiH, of which 74,545 were family holdings and 3,716 were legal entities and crafts. A total of 144,221 members were recorded in family agricultural holdings and 20,545 employees in legal entities and crafts.

The Recommendations, which are an integral part of the report, state, among other things, that greater budget funds should be provided for agriculture and the food industry in accordance with the Law on Financial Support in Agriculture and Rural Development, in the amount of three to six percent of the total revenues and receipts of the Budget of the Federation of BiH, as well as in accordance with the Medium-Term Strategy for the Development of the Agricultural Sector in FBiH for the period 2015-2019. Cantonal ministries responsible for agriculture are tasked with initiating, within their jurisdiction, the adoption of land use maps and management programs for state agricultural land for those municipalities that have not yet done so. The "Green Report" for 2018, with a proposal for recommendations, will be submitted to the Parliament of the Federation of BiH.