Superhik and Shopping

By: Bozidar Pankretic

The Government is Greasing the Neck of a Fat Goose

When I was a young man, I read popular novels „Alan Ford“ in which the TNT gang, led by Number One waged battles against Superhik who took from the poor to give to the rich.

At the time we laughed to those adventures and fictional characters who did impossible things because taking from the poor is not appropriate. One of the poorest parts of the government budget, considering the needs, is that of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management, so some illogical things are happening to the peasant and the poor budget. The mechanisms, however, are much more sophisticated and things are happening in several steps.

Superhik at the Ministry of Agriculture

The first phase is a great increase of the import of agricultural products in the HDZ mandate,which grew by 50% in the past three years, particularly the import of meat and meat products. In the first 11 months of 2006, calculated in 100 kilogramme pigs, a total of 618,343 were imported, absolutely disregarding home buyoff. Of course, there is an excess of pigs on the domestic market, for which farmers are requesting that the minister reacts and organise an intervention buyoff. The organisation of an intervention buyoff is conducted in a way so that the minister determines the price of co-financing of the buyoff and that 2.5 kuna per kilogramme go to those buying off the pigs, with the peasants getting a maximum of six kuna, while the avegare being surely around five kuna. All this would not be a problem if citizens would get cheaper pork, that is, if they would pay 0 kuna per kilogramme, because then the peasants would know what they have made sacrifices for.

Taking from the poor to give to companies

Unfortunately, with such a buyoff, the money from their pockets and their budget is directed into companies that amassed their riches by importing and selling meat and meat products.  

Help for poor dairies

I remind readers that during minister Cobankovic’s mandate, we have had for the first time a surplus in dairy production, so help was provided to poor dairies that make extra profit to buy off the excess milk from peasants.

In conclusion, the people in my region say this for such a government move: 

„You grease the neck of a fat goose “ .

 By: Petar Cobankovic 

Shopping in Croatia

Year to year, Croatia is registering an increasing amount of exported food, but one should be realistic and say that imports are also on the rise. However, it is a happy fact that in the past two years, exports are growing faster than imports. The numbers are relentless, but anybody can interpret them in their way, which is what mostly happens. Those who want to take a negativist attitude, only cite numbers relating to the increase of imports. Those speaking about exports have a positivist attitude..

The best analysis of the foreign trade balance of the agricultural and food sector was recently made by our renowned economist.

Imports are growing because of shopping centres

At the beginning of the nineties, the balance was equalised and then imports started rising faster than exports. The main reason for the increased imports is the fact that Croatians have stopped shopping in neighbouring countries. Today, all those shopping centres in neighbouring countries that have been built just for Croatians are mostly empty or closed. In Hungary, Slovenia, Bosnia, Croatians were present daily on the border, and during the weekend, half of Croatia was there. This is why imports were not significantly higher than exports, because such shopping was not registered. Imports did not grow and the money of Croatian towns poured abroad. It was cheaper there and many products were not present in Croatia at the time

We have all we need

Today, the tables have turned, there is no more shopping in those countries, everything we need we have and all is being registered through a balance. In those years, imports was probably similar to today’s with the fact that we had left our money abroad..

Even those in whose countries we went shopping are now coming here to shop..

Coverage of imports by exports is 64%

What encourages are numbers on exports. Last year exports were in excess of a billion dollars and we are becoming increasingly self-adequate. The coverage of imports by exports is 64%, which is above our average. This tells us that agriculture, as well as the food industry, are adjusting very well to global conditions and were restructuring well. The increase of exports also has its component through tourism.

We feed ten million tourists

Last year, we fed more than ten million tourists, which is the cheapest export and is not difficult to calculate it in the balance..

This all gives us optimism when it comes to agriculture and the food industry and the positive trends will certainly continue this year.