Straty i marnotrawstwo żywności w łańcuchu dostaw – perspektywa międzynarodowa

Food loss and waste represents a global problem which is characteristic for all food supply chain sectors and all groups of countries. On average, every year one third of the total amount of food produced is lost or wasted, which indicates an extremely high level of inefficiency in the food supply chain. One of the key characteristics of food loss and waste is a wide range of ecological, economic and social implications, which is why this problem has become the subject of many national and global agendas. Although there is still no unique definition of the term food loss and waste and unique data collection methodology, many authors have researched this topic so far. Therefore, this paper's aim was to research the existing literature on the phenomenon of food loss and waste, as well as to observe trends of the amount of food loss and waste in the world and the EU. The results indicated that the differences between developed and developing countries have changed, and the amount of food waste in both groups of countries at the household level is now quite uniform. At the level of the EU, the household sector is also the largest generator of food waste.  Straty i marnotrawstwo żywności stanowią problem globalny, charakterystyczny dla wszystkich sektorów łańcucha dostaw żywności i wszystkich grup krajów. Średnio co roku jedna trzecia całkowitej wyprodukowanej żywności jest tracona lub marnowana, co wskazuje na niezwykle wysoki poziom nieefektywności w łańcuchu dostaw żywności. Jedną z kluczowych cech utraty i marnotrawienia żywności jest szeroki zakres implikacji ekologicznych, ekonomicznych i społecznych, dlatego problem ten stał się przedmiotem wielu agend krajowych i globalnych. Choć nadal nie ma jednoznacznej definicji pojęcia straty i marnotrawstwa żywności oraz unikalnej metodologii gromadzenia danych, wielu autorów zajmowało się już tym tematem. Dlatego też celem niniejszej pracy było zbadanie istniejącej literatury dotyczącej zjawiska strat i marnotrawienia żywności, a także obserwacja trendów wielkości strat i marnotrawienia żywności na świecie i w UE. Wyniki wykazały, że różnice pomiędzy krajami rozwiniętymi i rozwijającymi się uległy zmianie, a ilość marnowanej żywności w obu grupach krajów na poziomie gospodarstw domowych jest obecnie w miarę jednolita. Na poziomie UE sektor gospodarstw domowych jest także największym generatorem marnowania żywności

Serbian pork market analysis

Pig farming is the second most important branch of livestock production according to value of agricultural production, while pork meat is the most widely eaten meat in Serbia. As the one of the characteristics of pig market is cyclicality in the movement of production volumes and prices which can influence on the imbalance in supply and demand and in price fluctuations, the main aim of this paper was to analyse pork market in Serbia. Namely, in order to identify factors that influenced pork supply and demand, and to determine the presence of cyclical oscillations on pork market, pork market in Serbia was analyzed with supply and demand functions and with Cobweb model. The results indicated that factors which influenced on demand for pork were: personal consumption, retail price of pork and beef. On the other hand, on the supply side the most important factor was the price of pork. The results also indicated that in analyzed period in Serbia existed convergent type of Cobweb model

Economic performances of agriculture of CEFTA and former CEFTA countries

All CEFTA countries had very similar stages of economic development after World War II. Many of them were centrally-planned socialist economies and the political changes that have occurred in these countries in the late 20th century caused changes in the whole economic system, as well as in the agricultural sector. Aim of this paper is to compare economic performances of agriculture of these countries with former CEFTA countries (Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Romania and Croatia) which joined EU after 2004. The development performances of agriculture are considered according to the production and export performances of this economic sector, using a comparative approach. The results showed that there is a gap in development of agriculture between CEFTA countries and selected EU countries, so performances of agricultural sector are far from EU

Is a Food Shortage Coming to the Western Balkans?

In the wake of the international food crisis, many countries are paying more attention to food self-sufficiency to protect themselves from instability in the global food markets. Western Balkan region and the rest of the world are facing an array of challenges, including inflation and rising food prices. Recognizing the importance of producing sufficient food to cover a country’s needs in circumstances of increasing risk of trade disruptions due to war or political tensions, this article aims to find the level of food self-sufficiency in the Western Balkan countries. The self-sufficiency ratio is calculated for different food groups and individual products over a 14-year period (2006–2019) based on the FAO data and calculation method. Also, using panel data, the impact of different factors—arable land, rural population, fertilizers efficiency, temperature change, precipitation, and GDP per capita change—on cereals self-sufficiency is estimated. Results showed that in the covered pre-crisis period, the Western Balkans achieved a satisfactory level of food self-sufficiency, suggesting that the region is ready to respond to future challenges. Four indicators positively and significantly affect cereal self-sufficiency: arable land, rural population, fertilizers efficiency and GDP per capita change, while one indicator—temperature change—had a negative and significant effect. This article can serve as a basis for post-crisis research on the topic

Inovacije i rast ukupne faktorske produktivnosti u srpskoj poljoprivredi

The analysis of the total factor productivity (TFP) of Serbian agriculture is the main goal of this paper. To achieve it, data envelopment analysis (DEA) is used to calculate Malmquist productivity indices. Results showed that there was a significant TFP decline from 1999 to 2008 (annual mean TFP change was -4.6%) probably caused by transitional disturbances and agricultural reforms. On other hand, in the period after 2008 annual mean TFP change was 5%. This TFP growth is explained by technical change associated with the European integration process and better implementation of innovation. Therefore, it can be concluded that if technological change is generated by innovation, it could be a clear sign to agricultural policymakers to encourage investment in research and development, especially those research that has a positive impact on agricultural productivity growth and environmental performance such as organizational and information technology innovations. In addition, adequate investments in technology development can increase the competitiveness of the agricultural sector of Serbia, which is especially important in the case of full integration with the EU market.Analiza ukupne faktorske produktivnosti (TFP) srpske poljoprivrede glavni je cilj ovog rada. Da bi se to postiglo, za izračunavanje Malmquistovih indeksa produktivnosti koristi se analiza omeđivanja podataka (DEA). Rezultati su pokazali da je došlo do značajnog pada TFP-a u razdoblju 1999. - 2008. (godišnja srednja promjena TFP-a bila je -4,6%), što je vjerojatno uzrokovano tranzicijskim poremećajima i poljoprivrednim reformama. S druge strane, u razdoblju nakon 2008. godišnja srednja promjena TFP-a iznosila je 5%. Ovaj rast TFP-a objašnjava se tehničkom promjenom povezanom s procesom europskih integracija i boljom implementacijom inovacija. Stoga se može zaključiti da ako se tehnološka promjena generira inovacijama, to bi mogao biti jasan znak kreatorima poljoprivredne politike da potaknu ulaganja u istraživanje i razvoj, posebno ona istraživanja koja imaju pozitivan utjecaj na rast poljoprivredne produktivnosti i ekološke performanse kao što su inovacije u organizacijske i informacijske tehnologije. Osim toga, adekvatna ulaganja u razvoj tehnologije mogu povećati konkurentnost poljoprivrednog sektora Srbije, što je posebno važno u slučaju pune integracije s tržištem EU

IPARD funds in the function of the development of the rural areas of The Republic of Serbia

By acquiring the conditions for the usage of the pre-accession funds of the European Union, concretely the instrument for rural development (Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance in Rural Development - IPARD), The Republic of Serbia (RS) will have a chance to improve the position of its agricultural farms and the conditions of its rural areas. Agriculture is specifically important for the economy in RS, and the rural population makes up almost one-half of the population, which additionally enlarges an interest in these funds. In addition, the objective of the research is to identify the effects of the usage of the IPARD funds on the development of the rural areas, respectively the socio-economic progress of the rural population. A qualitative descriptive analysis on the basis of the empirical data was used. The basic conclusions are that, thus, structured funds will have a limited impact on the reduction in the development inequalities and the achievement of the parity living conditions between the rural and the urban areas. Namely, the dominant focus of the IPARD funds on the investments in agricultural farms and enterprises, and not in rural households, limits the level of their impact on the rural development in RS

Serbian Agriculture in Regional and European Integration

Agriculture is a relatively important economic activity in Serbia. In addition, the importance of agriculture stems from the upcoming full implementation of the Interim Trade Agreement with the EU, and the expected beginning of the negotiation process for full membership in the organization. In this context, the starting point of the analysis is the consideration of the agricultural resource potential as a prerequisite for the elaboration of its production performance. The analysis of export performances of agribusiness, together with the production performance of agriculture provides an accurate insight into the degree of competitiveness of Serbian agribusiness. The comparative approach to the problem provides the position identification of agriculture in Serbia, compared both with the region and the EU. This also considers the development perspective and determination of the role of agriculture in the integration of Serbian economy in regional and European frameworks. The empirical analysis represents the basis for the formulation of future steps in the creation of agricultural policy measures and appropriate strategies in the pre-accession negotiations with the EU. Above all, these measures should improve the competitiveness of agriculture, which, combined with the provision of food security and food safety and adequate incomes of farmers, has to be the imperative during the negotiation process with the EU in the field of agriculture

An analysis of key indicators of rural development in Serbia: A comparison with EU countries

In accordance with the strategic aim of Serbia regarding European Union accession, harmonization with European Union rural development policy is an important issue for the creators of rural policy. Accordingly, the basic aim of this paper is to analyse the rural development level of Serbia in comparison to European Union countries, using multivariate statistical analysis. Factor analysis and cluster analysis are applied to extract three factors of rural development: the relative economic significance of rural areas, the general level of economic and agricultural development, and rural development. The results clearly show that Serbia has a lower level of rural development than European Union countries. Therefore defining adequate actions and mechanisms to achieve the policy aims of Serbian rural development is imperative