Serbia's Drought-Stricken Farmers Face Financial Ruin

Farmers in Serbia are facing a desperate situation as they struggle to make ends meet due to low crop prices. Sunflower is fetching an advance purchase price of 50 dinars per kilogram, which is almost thirty percent less than what growers in neighboring countries are getting. This, combined with yields that are on average 40 percent below normal, leaves farmers wondering how they will cover their production costs.

The picture looks similar for other row crops, such as corn and wheat, where buyers are offering prices of just 19 dinars per kilogram and over 20 dinars respectively. Farmers from several Vojvodina municipalities have warned that prices are at rock bottom, just when drought has cut yields in half.

Dragan Kleut, a farmer from Stajicevo near Zrenjanin, estimates that sunflower yields around Zrenjanin this year range from 500 kilograms to 1.4 tons per hectare, compared with about four tons in a good year.