The Serbian government has introduced variable levies on milk, cream and yoghurt imports. The import taxes vary from RSD 10 (€0.08) to RSD 30 (€0.25) per liter/kilogram and will be valid until the end of the year.
According to Serbia's Minister of Agriculture, Snežana Bogosavljević Bošković, the state wants to protect, as much as possible, local producers, who are in a much more difficut position compared to their European counterparts.
This measures comes after reports of increased dairy imports, endangering local production. Data from Serbia's Customs Office indicates that, in the first five months of this year, nearly 3.5 times more milk was imported from the EU compared to the same period last year.
Minister Bogosavljević Bošković claims that the introduction of the levy was in accordance with Article 32 of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) with the EU, which stipulates the complete opening of the milk market as of 2015.
© 2015 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Branislav Pekic
