Summary of newsmakers from the previous day – 21.11. 2005

Agrarian export has grown faster then import till September, deficit has decreased

The Czech Republic exported agricultural and food products for 55,8 milliard crowns in nine month this year which meant an increase by a quarter in comparison with the last year. The import grew by 14 percent to 75,6 milliard crowns and the deficit was 19,8 milliards, i.e. by 7,5 percent less than last year. Also a significant increase of cereal export shared in the improvement of the balance. It results from data of the Ministry of Agriculture. The Czech Republic exported cereals for 5,3 milliard crowns in nine month which was four times more than in the same period last year. The surplus in trade with that commodity was more than four milliards.

Farmers owe the state three milliard crowns

The state can loss milliards crowns due to a bad accountancy in Ministries of Agriculture and Finances. It is dealt with loans which the state budget provided to agricultural entrepreneurs in the first half of 90´s and which have not been paid back yet. It was found out by the Supreme Audit Office in a database of the Ministry of Agriculture (MZe). Meanwhile, from more than seven milliard crowns, which the state provided for the start to farmers only, 1,9 milliard CZK was returned to the state budget till the half of last year, whereas the debt was decreased by compensations by other two milliards.

Veterinarians found too much mercury in meat of fish caught in Elbe

Workers of the State Veterinary Office Prague found amount of mercury over limit in fish caught in Elbe. “The lowest average values were found in Děčín, the highest absolute values in Obříství in Mělník region and near Dvůr Králové nad Labem”, said a worker of the Office Jan Rosmus.

In the Czech Republic animals are bred in ecological way; growers of crops are missing

Majority of ecologic farms in the Czech Republic breed farm animals. Growers of crops work on only five percent from more than 230 000 hectares of ecologically managed land. A demand for ecological vegetable, fruit and milk products increases first of all in large cities. Supermarkets offer people crops imported from the European Union´s countries, said Tomáš Zídek from the Research Institute of Agricultural Economics today.