Agriculture, forestry and water management

 

The Belgrade area has especially favourable conditions for a modern agricultural production (climate, agricultural land, water flows, developed processing industry). This branch of economy has a strategic importance for provision of Belgrade with food products, along with the abundant resources of the wider surroundings (Vojvodina and Šumadija).

Belgrade region has a significant land potential of about 322,292 ha of agricultural land, which makes 70% of the total area of Belgrade. Of the total area of agricultural land, arable land covers 208,989 ha, and ploughable land covers 179,436 ha. Of that land, 81% is privately-owned, and 19% is socially-owned land. The structure of ploughable land is: 60% grain, 4% industrial plants, 14% vegetables and 22% forage plants.

Beside that, the Belgrade area has considerable capacity for primary livestock production: 68,615 heads of cattle, and 273,721 pigs.

Belgrade also has considerable capacity for processing primary agricultural products (wheat, sugar beet, oil crops, meat, milk, fruit, vegetables, etc.) The raw materials are mostly provided by primary agricultural production. The annual production of food industry of Belgrade under optimal conditions reached:

  • 100,000 tons of wheat,
  • 90,000 tons of bread and baked goods,
  • 80,000,000 liters of consumer milk,
  • 45,000 tons of fresh meat,
  • 40-50,000 tons of sugar,
  • 1,200 tons of unrefined soya oil.

The whole agro-industrial production in the area of Belgrade is performed in 49 socially-owned companies: 17 agricultural companies, 25 food industry companies, 5 beverage industry companies and 2 forage industries, with over 25,000 workers. The agricultural production on privately-owned farms is organized in about 60,000 farms, 160 villages and about 40 cooperatives.

Average annual consumption in Belgrade:

  • 130,000 tons of bread,
  • 85 million liters of fresh milk,
  • 16,000 tons of wheat,
  • 18,000 tons of vegetable oil,
  • 24,000 tons of sugar,
  • 26,000 tons of fresh meat,
  • 5,200 tons of fresh fish,
  • 100,000 tons of fresh vegetables,
  • 40,000 tons of fresh fruit.

Belgrade is one of few cities which could, under optimal conditions, meet the most part of its citizens' needs for basic agricultural and food products, by its own agro-industrial production.

The researchers and scientists have made considerable results in production of hybrid corn sorts with which an area of more than 2,500,000 ha is sowed in the world every year. Some of the agricultural companies are qualified to transfer knowledge and complete engineering within the area of agro complex.