Summary of newsmakers from the previous day – 10.1.2006

Some mistakes of PGRLF last for many years, NKU states

The NKU found many obscurities and discrepancy in its evaluation of PGRLF control. “Without an existence of legal regulations which would adjust a procedure of state agencies in foundation of trading companies, the Ministry of Agriculture (MZe) established in 1993 according to a government resolution a joint-stock company the Subsidiary and Guarantee Agricultural and Forestry Fund (PGRLF). The only stock holder is the state and stock-holders right are practiced by the Ministry”, the NKU writes immediately in an introduction of it evaluation.

Loans or dotations? Ministries did not matter

The state collects unjustly money from farmers by means of payments of so called returnable financial aid granted to farmers in 1991 – 1995. The NKU states it in its report which the government will discuss in tomorrow’s negotiation. The money, which farmers pay off to this day, should be originally dotations for investment expenditures for starting of new agricultural subjects arisen after the agricultural transformation after the November 1989. However, according to a director of the District Agrarian Chamber Havlíčkův Brod Marie Brodinová, on these subsidies were paid interest by two percents in the end from the whole sum and entrepreneurs still return them to the state budget.

Young farmers are in threat of loss of support

The Ministry of Agricultural plans to end a program supporting a coming of younger generation of farmers. The state also considers that it will cancel the dotation program “Preterm termination of agricultural activity”. The Association of Private Agriculture marked it as an attack against private farming at yesterday’s negotiation of the presidium. “The ministerial proposal to cancel this support in a height of about 60 million yearly does not corresponds to priorities of the program of rural development and is in strong conflict with agricultural policy of the European Union”, farmers reported in a letter which they addressed to the Minister of Agriculture Jan Mládek.

Small breweries want to succeed abroad this year

Most of breweries passed a successful year; many report success on foreign markets. Also smaller breweries start to orientate on these markets, among them e.g. the Brewery Malý Rohovec and Hols from Vratislavice. It let to know about itself recently by a special beer devoted to a famous automobile designer. “We started to send beer supplies in Poland. We believe that they will be regular”, said Jan Maurer from the Brewery Malý Rohozec. Just Polish market is supposed by experts to be one of the most perspective ones; beer consumption does not reach now as big level as in the Czech Republic.

Source: Agris, 11.1.2006