Kazakhs interested in planting material from Serbia – Potential cooperation in fruit, vegetable, grain and oil plant growing technology

There is a great potential for cooperation between Serbia and Kazakhstan in the field of agriculture, especially in seed production, it was said on Tuesday, August 15, 2017, at the meeting with a Kazakh business delegation at the Chamber of Commerce of Serbia.

The Kazakh delegation is interested in the technology of growing fruit, vegetables, grains and oil plants, as well as in procuring seeds of corn, sugar beet, oil plants and planting materials – apples, peaches, apricots, cherries and sour cherries.

The CCIS and the Office of the Embassy of Kazakhstan in Budapest with the seat in Belgrade had organized the meeting, following which the head of the Sector for Foreign Economic Relations at the CCIS, Nenad Djurdjevic, said for Tanjug that Serbia found the cooperation with Kazakhstan very important and reminded that the two countries had had a free trade agreement since 2010.

As he pointed out, there is plenty of potential for cooperation and it should be enhanced.

– Our merchandise trade with Kazakhstan amounted to around USD 77 million in 2016 and we have a deficit there. We are not satisfied and that's why the CCIS recognized agriculture as a field in which the cooperation can be enhanced and organized the meeting. Above all, there's room to develop seed production and sale and cooperation with their institutes on the development of special cultures, the sale of seed and seed products – Djurdjevic said.

Djurdjevic pointed out that there were local companies and institutes looking to make agreements with Kazakh farms.

He added that Kazakhstan was willing to do business with Serbia, but that it was made difficult by the distance and the fact the Kazakh authorities rarely issue transportation permits.

– We believe that we will manage to come to concrete agreements this year and the next one in order to increase the trade on our part – Djurdjevic said.

The head of the agricultural sector at the CCIS, Veljko Jovanovic, said for Tanjug that Kazakhstan was a huge opportunity for Serbian economy and especially pointed out the customs-free regime with Kazakhstan.

– We can export considerable amounts of goods if we have something good to offer. Some of our companies are already successful in Kazakhstan, not just in agriculture, but in the construction industry as well – Jovanovic said.

Privredna komora Srbije

CCIS

Office of the Embassy of Kazakhstan in Budapest

Sector for Foreign Economic Relations at the CCIS

Nenad Djurdjevic

merchandise trade between Serbia and Kazakhstan

seed production

production of seed

seed

planting material

seedlings

export of planting material to Kazakhstan

export to Kazakhstan

corn

sugar beet

apples

peaches

apricots

cherries

sour cherries