AGRICULTURE MINISTRY REP. ON EU BENEFITS FOR CRO PRODUCTS' IMPORT

ZAGREB, Sept 20 (Hina) - The European Union's decision to liberalise the trade regime with Croatia makes headway in Croatia's process of coming closer to the EU in the economic field, Croatian Agriculture Minister's assistant, Miroslav Bozic, said on Wednesday. The decision facilitates the access of some kinds of Croatia's agricultural produce and foodstuffs to the EU market. Most of them will be imported in EU member-states duty free. But this does not refer to wine, fish, seafood and baby beef. Bozic forecast that it would be difficult for Croatian farmers to export wheat, corn, or sugar as the EU had more supplies of those goods than it needed. Considering the fact that environment is rather unspoiled and that the country has its recognisable products, Croatian producers, however, have goods which they can offer to the demanding market of the Union with some 370 million consumers, the official added. He said there was now a downward trend in the exchange of agricultural commodities between his country and the EU. The imports from EU which were record high in 1995 (with 472 million dollars) fell to 315 million dollars last year. The same trend has been noticed in Croatia's exports to the EU. In 1995 this country exported agricultural produce worth $131 million to the EU, while in 1999 the exports dropped to $76 million. The agricultural produce and foodstuffs account for very small percent in the entire trade between Croatia and the EU. Less than four percent (3.64) was in the export and 7.17 percent was of the entire import, Bozic said. (hina) jn ms