Agribusiness 2021

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COMMENT

Pandemic Shows Agriculture's Strategic Importance The COVID-19 pandemic, which the whole world has been fighting courageously for more than a year, has resulted in consequences of unprecedented proportions in all segments of everyday life, business and the economy, but also reminded us, once again, that food is our most important resource

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uring the first days and weeks after the declaring of the pandemic, we witnessed similar scenes in all countries, regardless of their level of economic development and the habits of consumers - customers rushed en masse to shops to procure basic foodstuffs and secure for themselves supplies of flour, oil, yeast, rice, sugar, eggs, meat, pasta, frozen pastries, canned food etc.

And even at the global level, to this day, demand has increased on the international market for all goods from the agricultural sector, as countries are striving to ensure their own food security and create significant stockpiles, while we are also seeing record-breaking prices of agricultural products being reached.

Agriculture has been confirmed as the most important area of economic activity, and has shown stability, robustness and adaptability under these circumstances, continuing to produce at full speed and to distribute food to consumers on the domestic market and conduct export activities.

One such example is also represented by Serbian agriculture, which last year provided full food security to the population, gave a significant contribution to the country’s total GDP and managed to break records in terms of foreign trade exchanges.

Serbia realised exports of agricultural and food products in 2020 with a record high value of 4.2 billion dollars, as well as a foreign trade surplus of 1.85 billion dollars.

Serbian agricultural exports have grown by as much as 50 per cent over the last two years.

And export prospects are expanding even fur-

ther - the Chinese market is now open to corn from Serbia, while exports of Serbian products to Bahrain - which is interested in forest fruits and berries, beef and lamb, but also all vegetable crops - are expected to be able to commence soon. A readiness to deepen cooperation with Serbia in agriculture has also been expressed

by Iran, Vietnam and Indonesia.

Thus, producers from Serbia will have an opportunity to achieve even higher exports and better profits, given the continuing trend of increased demand for food around the world, as well as the constant growth of food prices that has been recorded for months.

According to the latest report of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the prices of food products on global markets continued to rise in March, for the tenth

Serbia realised exports of agricultural and food products in 2020 with a record high value of 4.2 billion dollars, as well as a foreign trade surplus of 1.85 billion dollars consecutive month, with prices of dairy products, meat and vegetable oils rising the most.

The FAO Food Price Index, which tracks monthly changes in the international prices of five basic foodstuffs - vegetable oils, dairy products, meat, cereals and sugar - averaged 118.5 points in March this year, which was 2.1% higher than in February and the highest level since June 2014.

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BRANISLAV NEDIMOVIĆ, MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE

Fruits of Considered Policies A strong turnaround in subsidies and their manifold increase is now yielding tangible results in terms of excellent exports, opening new markets and returning to rural areas young people who have access to knowledge and use new technologies

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erbia achieved record exports of agricultural products in 2020, worth 4.1 billion dollars. That is a significantly better result than previous years, when that figure fluctuated at a level of approximately 2.8 billion dollars. Although major leaps like this are very often a product of specific opportunities, Agriculture Minister Branislav Nedimović believes that this is a result that came as a product of public policies changes in this sector, primarily in the domain of subsidies, encouraging procurements of modern machinery and returning to rural areas young people who have access to knowledge and enthusiasm to start producing more added value. This is also the result of the policy of entering new markets, primarily those of China, India and the Middle East, which are highly solvent markets that are interested in both agricultural products and the products of our food industry.

You’ve said that agriculture was the “golden boy” of Serbian exports in 2020. What do the initial estimates of the state of crop yields and market demand for 2021 tell you?

Absolutely. Agriculture was one of the main pillars of Serbian GDP in 2020. Although it is too early to give a forecast for the entire year, at this moment everything is within the framework of good expectations, whether that relates to wheat or other crops. Snow and frost have had perhaps minor consequences for some early fruit varieties, but absolutely everything else is in good condition.

How much did the fall in demand for tourism influence results in agriculture, considering that the tourism industry is a large buyer of goods from the agriculture sector?

This is perhaps the biggest problem for Serbian food, for which tourism represents an important platform, whether we’re talking about tomatoes, potatoes or meat and the dairy sector, cheeses... The state has responded to this with different aid packages several times. We last year paid more than two billion dinars directly onto the accounts of farmers, after which we embarked on the interventive purchasing of beef, with about two million euros set aside for that purpose. And intervention on the pork market is also currently underway, which is why we are withdrawing 15,000 fatteners that indirectly led to a leap in the price of pork and thus provided essential support to pig breeders. I think this sends a clear message that the state has not

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March

DIGITALISATION

MARKETS

EURO INTEGRATION

Today, when the workforce in the rural areas is dwindling, digitalisation is perhaps one of the magic wands that you can use to solve all the consequences of the lack of people, but also knowhow.

We’ve opened new markets, such as those of China and Egypt, thereby bringing buyers to the Serbian farmer.

We are very satisfied with the process of harmonisation with the EU acquis. Everything happening on this front in this area tells us that good steps forward are being taken.

and will not abandon anybody to fend for themselves in the most difficult times.

Thanks to this and the conditions that we secured in order for production to run smoothly, we even succeeded in breaking records for exports last year, which we didn’t achieve even under normal conditions.

Are you satisfied with the state aid measures in this sector; where were those measures essential?

I know only that we invested every atom of our strength and the resources we had to help farmers. When it comes to the sectors that were hit the hardest, they were certainly those that depend on tourism and hospitality. Crises of gargantuan proportions, such as the current one caused by the pandemic, have flooded much stronger economies than ours. We are still doing excellently for now, and I believe that’s why we have strong reasons for optimism in the period ahead. I would therefore repeat that vaccination, where we are recording incredible results and slowly stabilising the situation, is the only way to accelerate our departure from the crisis and return to the economy the kind of strong impulse it had just a year and a half ago.

Serbia exported agricultural and food products worth a total of 4.2 billion dollars in 2020, which is double the total achieved five years ago. What has contributed to that when it comes to government policies?

Definitely investment support. It was four years ago that we made a strong turnaround in terms of subsidies, providing manifold increases in the total amount of subsidies for investments in agriculture.

This has resulted in the start of the renewing of machinery, tractors and everything that significantly reduces production costs and increases capacity through renewal. A fact that’s no less important is that we’ve opened new markets, thus

The state has not and will not abandon anybody to fend for themselves in the most difficult times. Thanks to this and the conditions that we secured in order for production to run smoothly, we even succeeded in breaking records for exports that we didn't achieve even under normal conditions bringing new customers to the Serbian farmer. Only everything mentioned in a package makes sense and represents the only correct route to the growth of exports and agriculture generally.

To what extent can digitalisation help in your part of the job, and where are the Ministry’s efforts directed in this segment?

Digitalisation is increasingly entering agriculture. Its significance can be seen at every stage. From sowing to harvest, from rearing to milking. Today, when the workforce in

rural areas is dwindling, digitalisation is perhaps one of the magic wands that you can use to solve all the consequences of the lack of people, but also knowhow. It was a few years ago that we recognised it as being a very present and an increasingly important model of production, which is why our measures also encompassed support for the procurement of equipment that changes the rural workforce and uses the most accurate data to ensure the most efficient production possible. Whether this relates to irrigating and fertilising plants through applications and special sensors or,

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for example, procuring robots for milking cows and milk vending machines that have proven to be an excellent substitute for street sales of milk, as a far more secure and profitable form for farmers.

Our traditional markets are those of CEFTA and EU member states. How much have we managed to open up to other markets in the meantime, and what is sold on those markets most successfully?

We certainly have. New markets are exactly what I’ve insisted on since entering the ministry. We have opened the market of the People’s Republic of China for beef and lamb, milk and wine, Egypt for cereals, which is the country that’s the largest importer of them while the market of the Middle East, which is currently one of the highest paying markets in the world, now imports our meat, apples etc. As I repeat persistently, even if we had yields equivalent to all the countries of the world combined, that would mean nothing to us if we didn’t have a place to sell them at a good price... Quite simply, that is the condition of all conditions.

One of the issues to which we often return is harmonisation with EU regulations when it comes to the acknowledging of laboratory results from the EU, the declaration of the country of origin and similar challenges in the regulating of

If there's anything that provides hope, then it is the growing receptiveness of young people for new investments in agriculture, in the countryside and life there... This represents a clear signal that we've made good moves that we are already elaborating on with new measures trade in food products. How is the removal of obstacles to EU integration in this domain progressing?

We are very satisfied with the process of harmonisation with the EU acquis. It could of course be better, but if you take into consideration all the circumstances and challenges imposed on us, whether that means the pandemic or some other factors, I think that good steps forward

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are still being taken. We have rounded off the complete system of laboratories for testing the quality of food with the most modern equipment, and regulations have also been seriously harmonised in that area. We will soon also receive the Law on the Market of Agricultural Products, which is completely aligned with European practises, so there is certainly no reason for greater dissatisfaction.

The inventory has been postponed, so we don’t have the latest data on our farmers. Do you nonetheless see progress in connection with some problems noticed previously, such as tiny holdings, the age of heads of households and similar problems? In short, to what extent are young farmers finding a place for themselves in Serbia, particularly those interested in applying for European funds, deploying modern working methods and utilising the findings of science?

The story of the “ageing” of rural areas is relevant all over the world. And it is also a serious challenge for highly developed countries. Unfortunately, this hasn’t bypassed Serbia either, but if there’s anything that provides hope, then it is the growing receptiveness of young people for new investments in agriculture, in the countryside and life there. It was only three years ago that we announced the first start-up call for young people, worth 1.5 million dinars, which around 600 interested people responded to, and now we will provide payments to approximately 3,000 young farmers from just the most recent competition. So, a fivefold increase. This is a serious advance, and although it won’t solve all problems related to the survival of villages, it represents a clear signal that we’ve made good moves that we are already elaborating on with new measures. A fact that’s perhaps even more important is that they exclusively use modern technologies and apply the most modern knowhow, which provides much greater certainty for their survival in agriculture.

How much is BioSense, along with the start-ups gathered around it, engaged in the modernisation of our agriculture; and how do you collaborate with them?

We have been partners with BioSense from the very beginning. This is an institution with exceptional potential that the Ministry and the Government have provided with significant supported in every sense, and which has shown that it can stand side by side with world platforms of that type. Although it is already recording top results, this is certainly a story that has yet to achieve serious momentum in Serbia.

“IT’S NOT THAT I’M SO SMART, IT’S JUST THAT I STAY WITH PROBLEMS LONGER” ~ ALBERT EINSTEIN

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ILAN LEVANON, CEO, ADAMA SERBIA

ADAMA Serbia Becomes Regional Hub BUSINESS EXPANSION IN THE FORMER YUGOSLAVIA, ALBANIA AND BULGARIA

In the previous year, despite the challenges brought by the global COVID-19 pandemic, ADAMA managed to accelerate its digital platform, launch nine new products, strengthen cooperation and develop business with partners throughout the region. budgets to support digital channels. This allows us to maintain communication, even if only remotely, and keep our customers informed and updated about any condition. Not only do we find those channels very effective, allowing us to address even larger number of farmers and provide them with a higher quality content

In 2021 alone, we have a record nine new products at launch, among which is a highly efficient new fungicide against sugar beet leaf-spot disease and a new corn herbicide to control a wide array of weeds

As a company, ADAMA is known for its individual approach to farmers and for striving to connect with them directly on the ground. Have any new ideas and innovative solutions in this regard been brought by the previous year, which was full of challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic?

“Farmer Proximity” remains a key pillar in ADAMA’s approach to the market. The global COVID-19 pandemic and the social restrictions pose an obvious challenge for us. Apart from meeting farmers face-to-face within the framework of national restrictions, we have significantly accelerated our digital platform and have shifted

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in an interactive fashion, we have also noticed a shift of users profile towards young and more technologically advanced farmers.

You’ve announced the implementation of a major development plan over the coming years, but also that your agenda includes new solutions for farmers in Serbia and the region.

Could you tell us what the main objectives are? Can you present to us some of those products that are current at this moment?

We have launched our long-term product development plan in Serbia and other former Yugoslav countries. We are excited to launch our bio-stimulant “Excelgrow”, a unique, all-natural alga extract that improves plant physiology, growth and resilience to stress,

which leads to higher yields of vegetables and higher quality even under sub-optimal growing conditions. We are re-launching our high-end “Brevis”, a fruit-thinning solution, after years of testing, to allow apple growers to thin their fruits in a cost-effective, safe and simple way.

In addition, we have introduced “Brevis Smart”, our in-house software that assists the apple grower in determining the best timing for his “Brevis” application, based on a complex matrix of morphological and environmental inputs made simple. Those are just few examples. Our R&D teams, headed in Israel, are working on ADAMA’s next generation of crop-protection technologies.

Given that Serbia represents an important market for the operations of your company and that it has the potential to become a regional hub, have any concrete steps towards realising that potential already been taken? Considering that you’ve already expanded your operations to all countries of the former Yugoslavia, could you tell us how your experiences have been so far?

ADAMA Serbia is now a regional hub for all ADAMA operations in the former Yugoslavia and Albania. Our Serbian team recently established ADAMA Bulgaria, which operates under our management and support. Operating as a regional hub, we have strengthened our cooperation and grown our business with our partners across the territory by sharing knowhow, providing expertise and serving as a one-stop regional centre.

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BY ALINE ROBERT | EURACTIV

‘Agri-tech’ spreading like wildfire across French farms Technology can already be found everywhere on French farms, but the so-called “agritech” trend wants to push innovation even further. Two hundred fifty of France’s startups are already specialising in agriculture and working towards developing software, drones, robots, artificial intelligence and satellites marketplaces to avoid Amazon, as well as creating decision-support software or even the participative financing platform, known as Miimosa.

EU AGRI-FOOD OPERATORS SIGN MILESTONE DATA SHARING DEAL In a bid to speed up the exploitation of new technologies in EU farming, a coalition of associations from the EU agri-food chain signed on 23rd April a joint EU Code of Conduct

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ince the time of draft horses, which were still being used in the 1960s, high-tech has been making its way into European agriculture at a rapid pace. Yet, if horses are making a big comeback for certain farming activities, such as organic viticulture, it is still at a very small scale.

“Today we have almost autonomous tractors, which hardly need drivers anymore,” said Stéphane Marcel, head of digital technology at InVivo. Guidance technologies, the use of satellites to geo-locate operations, but also smartphones, software and even drones are now an integral part of the daily lives of farmers.

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In France, agronomic research, which has always been widely supported by public authorities, has now shifted towards what is known as “agri-tech”.

Does it mean producing more with less?

Better and closer to the customer? At a distance but without labour? Or even sustainably? But while the keyword is innovation, the motivations leading to ‘agri-tech’ are multiple.

The association ‘Ferme Digitale’, paradoxically located in the Paris suburbs, includes 45 projects which are attempting to establish digital technology on farms. Its objectives include the development of organic fertilisers, setting up

“Today we have almost autonomous tractors, which hardly need drivers anymore,” said Stéphane Marcel, head of digital technology at InVivo.

Guidance technologies, the use of satellites to geolocate operations, but also smartphones, software and even drones are now an integral part of the daily lives of farmers on sharing of agricultural data.

In total, nearly 250 start-ups in France are focusing on the agricultural sector. On the cooperative side, the InVivo group, which brings together 3,000 companies, is also developing a more expansive range of tech products and services.

For example, the group’s Smag software covers 10 million hectares of France’s agri-

cultural territory. The software gives farmers access to cross-referenced information on their smartphone, including about the weather, optimum spraying dates, seeds, fertilisation plans (addition of nitrogen) and regulatory compliance.

And the consumer who buys his/her baguette every day is unaware of the tech involved, though it is so omnipresent in his diet.

“In France, it is often complicated regulatory constraints that drive the use of software, whereas elsewhere, technologies are developed to optimise productivity,” said Stéphane Marcel.

Between respecting grassed strips or watercourses, farmers must keep records that can be computerised. Software is also very present in animal husbandry, mainly because of the complexity of veterinary management The new wave of “AgTech” is also producing more specific innovations, particularly when it comes to precision farming. This involves mapping and monitoring geological and then plant data for a field so that inputs can be adapted to suit ultra-localised needs.

The Be Api company thus proposes to map land very precisely and to propose, according to the levels of fertility and exposure within the same plot, different treatments: increasing or decreasing the number of seeds, water, nitrogen, herbicide, etc. Precision farming is thus seen as a solution to pesticides: the technology allows for the adjustment and reduction of pesticide application.

ALGORITHMS AND SATELLITES TO MONITOR WHAT IS HAPPENING IN THE FIELDS High-tech is not only present at the developmental stage of the agricultural sector since the control of the entire Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is also evolving thanks to the reinforcement of the algorithms. The €59 billion allocated to farmers is often subject to fraud, something the paying agencies are trying to reduce.

Aid is allocated according to specific criteria, which are also costs for the farmer, who has a potential interest in preserving certain information from the paying agency, as analysed by the OECD in its report on

In partnership with the European Space Agency, two satellites, Sentinels 1 and 2, provide permanent and precise images of agricultural plots, with ultra-precise information which includes the type of crop and the exact size of the plots of land “Digital Opportunities in Agricultural Policies“.

Satellite imagery may now offer an answer to this problem.

In partnership with the European Space Agency, two satellites, Sentinels 1 and 2, provide permanent and precise images of

agricultural plots, with ultra-precise information which includes the type of crop and the exact size of the plots of land.

The technology is also able to analyse whether the land is fallow or not. The data is distributed in open source, which makes developers happy for the data-driven part of agriculture.

In terms of monitoring agricultural activity subject to the CAP, Italy, Spain and Belgium, in particular, are already using them to determine whether or not to grant area aid, which accounts for nearly 80% of the funding.

But this is an insufficient number of countries according to the European Court of Auditors, which deplores the fact that the Commission has not yet validated the methodologies of other EU member states wishing to use satellite data.

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NEWS Serbia, which is among the world’s ten largest exporters of corn, is now able to sell corn on the market of China, which is the world’s largest purchaser of this product.

It was in February of this year that Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management Branislav Nedimović signed two protocols with the General Administration of Customs of China on phyto-sanitary conditions for the export of Serbian corn and dried sugar beet noodles to China.

The protocols with Minister Nedimović were co-signed on behalf of the General Administration of Customs of China by the Ambassador of that country in Belgrade, H.E. Chen Bo. Nedimović expressed satisfaction that, following the start of exports of beef and lamb, and the resolving of issues related to the export of dairy products from Serbia to China, it was now the turn of exports of corn and beet noodles.

Ambassador Chen Bo stated that Serbia has strong agriculture and high-quality products, as well as that she considers that great opportunities and potential exist for cooperation in the field of agriculture. She stressed that the Chinese embassy is ready to work with Serbian friends and the ministry on ways to export ever more and better quality products from Serbia to China.

Serbia Receives Permission to Export Corn and Beet Noodles to China

Grant Support Arriving for Small Agricultural Homesteads and Enterprises

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The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management has launched a project with the World Bank to allocate grants to small farmsteads and enterprises, but also for the ministry to modernise its own system for granting subsidies.

The new form of support will be paid in advance to farmers who satisfy the criteria. The maximum grant amount that one farmstead can receive is 25,000 euros, while companies will be able to count on 200,000 euros.

The Ministry will payout 20 million euros for these purposes by year’s end 2021, through three public calls. Representing an additional quality of this project is that, in addition to grants, farmsteads will also receive credit support with minimal participation.

Funds will be allocated through the format 50-40-10, i.e. beneficiaries will be able to receive grants in the amount of up to 50% of the total value of the investment, while 40% will be financed through loans from banks participating in the project, with producers providing just 10% of their own funds at the start, as their personal participation.

Among the priority grant recipients are women, young farmers and those working in less developed or impoverished municipalities. Alongside these groups, preference will also be given to those producers who have commercial potential but a capacity that is still too small to compete for financial support measures for the development of agriculture, such as IPARD. The Competitive Agriculture in Serbia Project will run for three years and will have a total value of around 38 million dollars.

First Online Review of Serbian Agriculture Held The International Agricultural Fair in Novi Sad was organised virtually for the first time in its long history in 2020, via an online platform that enabled the Novi Sad Fair to maintain the continuity of its events dedicated to agribusiness.

The fair took place from 14th to 18th December last year.

With the Czech Republic as the partner country, the fair saw the presenting, in a virtual format, of the products and services of about 200 exhibitors from eight countries: Czechia, the Netherlands, Croatia, Italy, Hungary, Turkey, Spain and Serbia.

The event was officially opened by Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabić, who congratulated the Novi Sad Fair for persisting in the decision to maintain the continuity of its event despite the pandemic, and for organising the fair in a digital format.

As Novi Sad Fair General Director Slobodan Cvetković stated at the time, this is the first event in the Balkans to be held in a digital format and it has all the elements ordinarily included in the real fair and to which visitors are accustomed.

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