Summary of newsmakers of the previous day – 13.4.2006

Insurance companies welcome increase of subsidies for farmers´ insurance

The Ministry of Agriculture of the Czech Republic (MZe) and the Subsidiary and Guarantee Rural and Forestry Fund (PGRLF) decided at the end of March on increase in provided financial means for subsidies of agricultural insurance for 2006. Agricultural enterprises and entrepreneurs who protect their property by means of insurance will so obtain a state subsidy in height of 20 % from covered premium insurance for insurance of field crops. Growers of some special crops, for example fruit, vegetable, vine grape and hops, will save this year on the premium even a half.

ODS election program for countryside

With participation of the party chairman Mirek Topolánek at a press conference today in Prague the shadow minister of agriculture for ODS Jiří Papež introduced a program for agriculture and countryside: Election program theses of policy for countryside. Role of Czech countryside will change: Agriculture is no more the main employer of inhabitants in the countryside. The rural policy has to include not only economic point of view but also balanced ecological and social ones. The current agricultural policy has to pass large changes and change to a policy for all inhabitants and visitors of countryside. An important role will be played there by other partial policies as e.g. forestry policy, water and land management policies. By the change of view of the countryside it is necessary to end a period of economical rural stagnation. Dynamics, a horse sense and zest of people living in the countryside to take their life in their hands is what has to return to the countryside.

Small breweries turned to ÚOHS due to bottles

According to today’s Hospodářské noviny (HN) small breweries asked the antimonopoly office to investigate how large breweries introduce new beer bottles. They are afraid that they will have to buy out for their own money even hundred of millions old bottles of NRW type of the strongest competition. “The stimulus has been registered by two breweries”, said the spokesman of the Office for the Protection of Competition CR Kristián Chalupa to HN. Above all Brewery Černá Hora complains about the stronger competition. “Our fourteen-page complain aims to Prague, concretely against Pilsen Prazdroj, however, it concerns also other three large breweries”, he excerpts the diary of the chief of Brewery in Černá Hora Jiří Fuska. The second brewery is, according to information of HN, Měšťanský pivovar in Polička. However, its chief Witz refused to comment it.

Growth stimulators in the USA

A preparation containing growth stimulators and antibiotics got a permission in the United States. Completely opposite views of feeding antibiotic growth stimulators in animal production are expressed by representatives of the USA and Europe. While in the European Union use of the last 4 kinds of antibiotic growth stimulators in nutrition of farm animals were forbidden at the end of last year, the American Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted permission recently to one of combined preparation compound of two “growth stimulators” and one hormone for use in cattle fattening. The combined preparation HeifermaX 500/Rumensin/Tylan contains the hormone melengestrol, coccidiasthetic monensin-natrium and antibiotics tylosin.

Source: Agris, 14.4.2006