Farmers in Vojvodina face serious problems due to the unprofitability of leasing and producing basic crops such as wheat, corn, soybeans, sunflowers and sugar beets. It used to be almost impossible to find an acre of land for lease, today more and more producers are withdrawing because the current situation brings them losses. In the last three years, drought, low purchase prices of cereals and oilseeds, as well as high production costs, threatened the survival of many farms, both large and small.
Miroslav Kiš from the Association of Limuzin Cattle Breeders of Serbia states that farmers cannot cover the basic costs of production, let alone make a profit. Rod does not cover obligations for rent and raw materials, which forces many to sell machinery and land to pay back debts. Others decide to take out new loans, despite the high interest rates that further complicate the situation.
Can the land situation be resolved?
Similar problems are also present in the Middle Banat. Dragan Kleut from the Union of Farmers’ Associations of Banat addressed the public about this problem. He points out that land rental prices have fallen by about 30%. But, as he adds, even that does not motivate tenants because production on leased plots has become economically unsustainable. The rental price per chain, which reached 300 euros, is no longer justified. After all, the current purchase prices of products do not reflect the expensive production costs. Fifteen years ago, he says, the purchase prices were higher. On the other hand, fuel and raw materials were significantly cheaper, which further emphasizes the gravity of today’s situation.
Although the lease of state land is less often questioned, because tenants pay their obligations in advance, there is also a slowdown in interest in that segment. In Zrenjanin, thousands of hectares of state land are leased every year, but unfavorable economic conditions also affect the decline in activity here.
Kleut warns that citizens pay high food prices, while farmers do not make any profit from it. He concludes that in the current situation, everyone, except the producer, is making a profit.
The situation in agriculture is becoming alarming, and high costs, low purchase prices and unfavorable climatic conditions further threaten the sustainability of farms. Without adequate support from the state and the market, many farmers could be forced to abandon production, leaving behind empty plots and serious consequences for the entire agricultural industry.
Source: Farmer
Source: boljazemlja.com
