ZAGREB, 19 May 2022 - The 56th edition of the Floraart flower show was formally opened by Mayor Tomislav Tomašević at Zagreb's Bundek Lake on Thursday.

This year, there are 160 exhibitors with over 100,000 plants.

Mayor Tomašević particularly thanked guests from the Republic of Korea and Korean Ambassador Sung-Wook Hong, for attending the opening ceremony.

Also in attendance was Agriculture Minister Marija Vučković,  who hailed cooperation with Korea.

The minister said that local flower growers, particularly young entrepreneurs in this sector, had been supported under various schemes totalling HRK 15 million (€2 million).

For more, check out our lifestyle section.

ZAGREB, 30 March 2022 - Croatian Agriculture Minister Marija Vučković met with Albanian Ambassador Riza Poda on Wednesday to discuss common trade issues and ways of expanding bilateral cooperation in agriculture, the Agriculture Ministry said in a statement.

It was agreed that Vučković would soon visit Albania as part of efforts by both countries to expand bilateral cooperation in agriculture, and further strengthen trade.

The two countries have excellent relations and work together to achieve their common interests through mutual political and technical support.

The Croatian Paying Agency for Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Development and the Albanian Agency for Rural Development have already signed a cooperation agreement, and next week the Croatian Agency is organising a workshop on improving the quality of internal audits for a delegation from the Albanian Agency.

In 2020, the two countries' agriculture ministries agreed veterinary conditions for exports of egg products and designed a veterinary certificate, given the considerable potential of the Albanian market for exports of animal products from Croatia.

Croatia has a surplus in trade in agricultural and food products with Albania and a high coverage of imports by exports of as much as 974%, the ministry said.

Albania is a considerable export market for small pelagic fish from Croatia, notably anchovy.

For more, check out our dedicated politics section.

ZAGREB, 16 March 2022- Agriculture Minister Marija Vučković on Wednesday presented a new land consolidation bill aimed at facilitating the integration of small and irregular parcels into bigger and more regular ones as prerequisites for increasing production, cultivating land, and upgrading local infrastructure.

The money set aside to apply the law will help to consolidate 18,000 hectares, but there is interest in consolidating more, the minister said in parliament.

Twenty-three local units interested in the consolidation of 46,600 hectares replied to the ministry's call for applications last October, she told independent MP Marijana Petir, who asked if consolidation funds could be increased given the interest.

HRK 313 million has been set aside for farmland consolidation until 2026, of which HRK 263 million from the EU Recovery and Resilience Facility and HRK 50 million in national funds.

Under the bill, consolidated land cannot be divided for 99 years, the minister told Luka Brčić of the ruling HDZ, who asked if Croatia was considering preventing further division of inherited land.

Land consolidation is of strategic interest to Croatia, the minister said, dismissing claims from Bridge MPs that the new law would be unfeasible and that everything was being shifted onto local government units.

Vučković dismissed as incorrect Bridge MP Miro Bulj's claims that 700,000 hectares of land was uncultivated.

Defending the minister, Stipan Šašlin of the HDZ asked Bulj why he did not do in Sinjsko Polje what Draž Municipality in Baranja did by consolidating over 800 hectares of land and building a HRK 25 million irrigation system.

Selling land to foreigners will mean "game over", says Beljak

Krešo Beljak of the opposition Croatian Peasant Party said that allowing foreigners to buy land would mean "game over" for Croatian farmers and agriculture.

The law will be unfeasible due to many obstacles, from unsolved property rights relations to the cadastre, the opposition said.

Processes should be made simpler and faster, said Ružica Vukovac of For a Just Croatia, adding that land has not been consolidated for 30 years.

Anja Šimpraga of the ruling coalition's SDSS said the bill provided a new approach and represented a huge step forward.

Ljubomir Kolarek (HDZ) said the new law would put to use farmland which was used little or not at all because it was not consolidated.

Politics: For more, check out our politics section.

ZAGREB, 9 March 2022 - Agriculture Minister Marija Vučković said on Wednesday the government would do all that was necessary to contribute to citizens' food security and that Croatia would have enough food, despite disrupted international commodity trends due to the war in Ukraine.

Responding to questions from the press after a cabinet session, she said the government was considering various models to ensure the necessary supplies.

"Croatia will also do everything that is necessary to enable farmers and fishermen to work", she said, adding that today the government adopted decisions to aid farmers and fishermen and to procure HRK 594.6 million worth of strategic commodities.

Asked what those commodities were, she said it was necessary to procure corn, wheat, pork and turkey meat, oil and milk.

Farmers did a good autumn sowing despite the difficulties they ae exposed to, she said, adding that preparations for the spring sowing are going well and that preparations are being made for the autumn sowing. "That's a guarantee that Croatia will have enough food."

However, it is necessary to take this seriously given that Ukraine and Russia export more than 25% of the world's wheat, almost 20% of corn and 50% of sunflower oil, the minister said.

Reporters asked her how much of that Croatia produced, how much it would need, and guarantees that what was produced would not be bought by others.

Vučković said last year's wheat balance was 930,000 tonnes, where more than 500,000 tonnes was exported and 210,000 spent.

"We need 150,000 tonnes until the next sowing, a smaller part is available on the market, but commodity stockpiles are being ensured", she said, adding that trade has been affected by supply disruptions.

Croatia is very active internationally, proposing many measures to the European Commission, she said, confident that some of them will be adopted.

At the closing of today's session, the government adopted a decision to replenish strategic wheat, corn and rye supplies.

For more on Croatia's food security, check out our lifestyle section.

7 March 2022 - The Croatian Chamber of Agriculture (HPK) on Monday reported about a request from the European associations of farmers and agri-cooperatives Copa and Cogeca for the EU to protect its agriculture from the possible consequences of two major crises - the war in Ukraine and climate change.

The HPK recalls in a statement that Copa and Cogeca have asked the EU to do its best for all available land to be sown in 2022 so as to compensate for the blockade of Russian and Ukrainian agricultural production due to the ongoing war in Ukraine.

Maximum effort needs to be invested to prevent supply chain disruptions that will inevitably lead to food shortages in certain parts of the world. That is an important question of food sovereignty and democratic stability, the two associations said at a coordination meeting focusing on the humanitarian situation in the wake of the Ukraine war.

"The strong solidarity of the farmers' community with the Ukrainian people is real and evident in all member-countries. Farmers have already started welcoming refugees on their farms, they have already organised the first convoys and in addition to food, they are also sending other supplies as well as financial donations," HPK president Mladen Jakopović said.

He noted that Copa-Cogeca would soon publish on its website more information for farmers, cooperatives and all citizens wishing to support actions by the EU's farm community, and that Croatian famers and the HPK would join in as well.

In the coming days the Ukrainian farmers' organisation UNAF will join the European farm community and become a partner to Copa-Cogeca.

Copa-Cogeca expects the European Commission to adopt on 8 March comprehensive measures for a strong European response to the current humanitarian and economic crisis, the HPK said.

The people of Croatia have spoken in a survey evaluating their government and it's ministers.