The European Commission is likely to approve the export of poultry from Bosnia and Herzegovina to the European Union (EU) soon, chief of Bosnia's Veterinary Office Ljubomir Kalaba said on Tuesday citing Brussels sources.
“Following the May inspection we got recommendations based on which we created an action plan that was approved in September, and now we're waiting for the European Commission to put us among the countries that are allowed to export poultry and its products,” Kalaba said at a presentation of poultry market analysis drafted by the US Agency for International Development (USAID) in Bosnia.
The Commission's Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety has not issued a single export certificate for Bosnian companies, Kalaba noted, explaining that permits are issued for countries, not for companies alone.
Bosnia's trade bilateral relations with the European Union are regulated through the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) formerly an interim agreement. To be able to export to the EU member states, Bosnia, which is still only a potential candidate, needs to meet a number of standards and requirements.
Bosnia lost a significant export market after Croatia's accession to the EU, as this country left the Central European Free Trade Agreement (CEFTA) – zero tariff area for trade in the region.
Ognjenka Lalovic of Bosnia's Foreign Trade Chamber said Croatian market was the most important for Bosnian producers.
“With the ban of export to Croatia, the market spilt over and farmers from Bosnia and Herzegovina had to turn to the CEFTA market which composes almost 90 percent of our export,” Lalovic stressed.
Returning to an old or going out on a new market requires a lot of effort and preparations, Lalovic stressed. She added that the USAID's analysis will serve as a good ground for farmers to create their plans once Bosnia is allowed to export poultry products to the Union.
In 2015, Bosnia met the criteria to export milk and dairy products to the EU, which Bosnia's foreign trade minister Mirko Sarovic then assessed as one of the best news for the country's dairy and agricultural sectors.
