Summary of newspapers of the previous day - 3.6.2010

MZe: Share of bio-foods in consumption will have grown to five pct by 5 years

The Ministry of Agriculture (MZe) expects that the share of bio-foods in the total consumption by the 2015 will have grown from the present roughly one percent to five percents. At the same time, according to MZe, a ratio between domestic bio-products and imported products will have turn in favour of Czech products. At the same time the absolute majority of bio-foods in the market comes from abroad. An intention of the Ministry of Agriculture was introduced by Martin Leibl from a department of organic agriculture today. Also agricultural land, on which farmers manage according to principles of organic farming, should enlarge from ten to 15 percents in the following five years.

Farmers will not get along without subsidies

Dependence of Czech farmers on subsidies permanently grows. Of the whole European twenty seven, only Finns are more dependent on incomes of endowment programmes. It results from an Analysis of agriculture on base of general agricultural account published by the Czech Statistic Office. The share of subsidies in farmers´ yields reached twenty percents in 2008, in production even quaretr of all resources originates from endowment. “Since 2004, subsidies have increased annually which projects in growing yields per hectare. At the same time the value of Czech farmers´ product decrease and the dependence on subsidies grows”, Jiří Hrbek from the Czech Statistic Office says.

Farmers look up to the sky with fear

It´s raining. And the sun peeps out really only sometimes. Such is the reality of recent days. With growing amount of drops also the number of wrinkles of farmers´ forefront increases. Also farmers from Zemědělské obchodní družstvo in Úmoníně look up to the sky with fear. Rains do not do good to preparation of feed for cattle. It is just the time of first cutting the grass for haylage. “Currently the most actual problem is haylage which needs at least one sunny day for fading. We would also need to cut the grass on meadows and to dray hay which is impossible now”.

Who can be minister of agriculture?

Evidently, not a quite good signal for agricultural public is the present negotiations about priorities and possible personnel appearance of the future Czech government. Speculations mention all possible departments and persons - but no notice about agriculture. Perhaps besides that agriculture should perspectivelly merge with the department of the environment. It is certainly a good idea but the fusion will hardly happen this year and very unlikely during next year.