The import of edible oil from Serbia has decreased, and in the last two months, small quantities have entered from our northern neighbor. From the tour that "Sloboden pechat" made, it can be concluded that on the shelves in domestic markets, there are mainly brands from domestic factories and very little or rarely a bottle of Serbian oil can be found. Macedonian importers of edible oil assess that the market is well supplied, they do not expect a crisis, nor a drastic increase in the price of this product, because the new sunflower harvest is approaching. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) summarized in early August that the benchmark for world food prices was largely unchanged in July.

In contrast, FAO's vegetable oil price index rose 2,4 percent from June and reached its highest level in a year and a half. Increased demand for soybean oil from the biofuel sector has also been recorded and the outlook for sunflower and rapeseed crops in several major producing countries has worsened.

At the beginning of July, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic announced that "there will be a great shortage of food in the world and that there is already a huge demand for sunflower oil on the market.

- At this moment, we have only stopped exporting a little, so we will see how we will behave further, because in Ukraine the costs, the labor force and the price of electricity, which is higher, have increased - Vucic said then.

There is no official decision to ban the export of edible oil on the website of the Government of Serbia, nor in the Official Gazette of that country. The Macedonian Ministry of Economy and Labor has not received such notification either.

- The Ministry of Economy and Labor has not received a notification from the Government of Serbia about the ban on the export of edible oil to our country - it is stated in the official reply received by our newspaper.

Domestic importers confirm for "Sloboden Pechat" that there is no official decision of the Serbian Government, but in practice, the companies themselves cancel the contracts or reduce the quantities for our country. Some of the importers interviewed by "Sloboden Pečat" claim that they have not been importing Serbian edible oil for a month, that there is no official decision, but that the companies they purchase from have stopped the export themselves.

- Imports have been stopped and what is coming in is small quantities. Most of Serbian oil goes to China, where it is sold at much higher prices. That's market logic. In our country, due to free trade, the cooking oil comes with a purchase price of 70 denars, zero customs duty and 5 percent VAT, in retail sales it costs a little more than 80 denars. The Serbs sometimes send a few trucks. But there is no place for panic, I don't believe that there will be an increase in prices, the new sunflower harvest is coming - the importers briefed.

According to the "Money" portal, the data they received from the Customs Administration of Macedonia show that from 376,4 tons of crude oil (from April 10 to May 10 this year), the import from Serbia in the period from June 10 to July 10 this year was reduced to only 49,8 tons.

Otherwise, according to the Intervention Program for Support in Agriculture for 2024, one of the measures is financial support for sunflower delivered to registered facilities for purchase directly or through one buyer, where agricultural holdings will be supported with 5 denars per sunflower delivered to registered buyers. The return of sunflower to the Macedonian fields and the contract production started in 2018.

We import over 50 percent of edible oil from Serbia, Bulgaria announces lower sunflower yields

Macedonia imports sunflower oil mostly from Serbia. Last year, the participation of our northern neighbor in the total import of oil was 51 percent (21 million dollars), followed by Bulgaria with a participation of 25 percent, Ukraine with a participation of 22 percent, Hungary, Albania, Greece and Bosnia and Herzegovina, according to the data of "Trend Economies". ". Meanwhile, according to the Bulgarian media, due to the severe drought, farmers are expecting a poor yield of sunflower and corn almost all over the country.

- The conditions are extremely unfavorable for the production of sunflower and corn. Even when the sunflowers were sown, there was not enough moisture in the soil. Both yields and quality, according to our forecasts, we will harvest about 1,6 million kilograms of sunflower - said the president of the Association of Vegetable Oil and Butter Producers, Yani Janev, in the studio of "Bulgaria Utro". According to him, sunflower has an oil content of about 44 percent, but currently they are receiving samples that are 35 percent. That is why there will be a price correction, Janev added. And Russia, Ukraine and Romania are also affected by the drought. And there will be lower returns. However, the July forecasts, which are general for oils, show that world oil production will be 4 million. "There is no concern about price increases as happened in 2022, when prices were panicky," emphasized President Janev.