1. food and drink

Food export and import
Main exports are sugar,
cigarettes, wheat and tuna,
imports cattle cake, live cattle
and coffee
Željko Jurkin, Eurovoće Group
director
Production below 12,000
tonnes of fruit and vegetables is
insufficient for market survival
Vestibul Palace – the best small
family hotel in Croatia
Many famous celebrities have
visited this hotel with only
seven rooms
FOOD MARKET
PAGE 3
INTERVIEW
PAGE 4
TOURISM
PAGE 8
2010
Croatian Business & Finance Weekly
Established in 1953
Monday / 7th November / 2011
Year V / No 0173
www.privredni.hr
S U P P O R T E D
B Y
T H E
pvinternational
pv
international
C R O A T I A N
C H A M B E R
O F
E C O N O M Y
AGRICULTURE AND FOOD PRODUCTION
A half
decade
of news
Once again it falls to me to write an
introduction to year 5 of PVInternational. The past year has been
tumultuous; as Shakespeare might
well have written “many amongst
us were beset by fardels”.
The remainder of this year is significant for Croatia; in the next few
months we have a general election
taking place as well as a referendum on joining the European Union.
We view the latter as an important
milestone which is exciting as, for
Privredni vjesnik and PVInternational, our voice will gain greater stature.
We look forward with anticipation to
bringing you all the information and
its implications in our weekly dispatches.
Just as we aim to be the voice of
Croatian entrepreneurs internally,
so we aim to be their ‘window to the
external world’ a role we feel we are
well-positioned to accomplish.
Finally, I would confirm our sincere
intention to bring you weekly all
up-to-date information concerning
Croatia.
Thank you for your support in the
past and in the future,
Darko Buković
Editor-in-Chief
Great potential one
must know how to use
The food and beverage industry contributed 21% to gross added value of the
processing industry
Igor Vukić
ifferent types of climate,
relief and soil in Croatia
enable the production of
various agricultural products,
from arable and industrial crops
to vineyards as well as continental and Mediterranean fruit and
vegetables. Croatia has a total
of 1.3 million hectares of cultivated agricultural land, of which
66% relates to ploughed land and
gardens, 27% to permanent grassland, 7% to orchards, vineyards
and olive grooves, 0.4% to vegetable gardens and 0.1% to nurseries. Due to its preserved nature
and environment, Croatia has an
advantage over other developed
countries and can produce a variety
of high-quality food safe for consumer health. Around 14,000 hectares or 1.2% of agricultural land
is under ecological production.
D
There are around 1,200 companies with approximately 15,000
employees working in agriculture.
Benefits from joining EU
According to data provided by
the Sector for Agriculture, Food
Industry and Forestry of the
Croatian Chamber of Economy,
headed by its Director, Božica
Marković, the most profitable
activities in the agricultural sector are the production of cigarettes and tobacco processing,
fish processing, beer production,
milk processing, tea and coffee
processing and the production of
soft drinks. These are also activities that have attracted the bulk
of foreign investment and whose
companies operate successfully.
Croatian agriculture should have
great benefits from joining the
EU and the Common Agricultural Policy. Furthermore, it will
be able to use extensive resources
from European structural funds.
The food and beverage industry
contributes 21% to gross added
value of the Croatian processing industry, and the production
of tobacco products with 2.5%.
There are over 1,200 companies
registered in the industry, with
roughly 47,000 workers and
approximately 20% of the total number of employees in the
processing industry. The production of food, drinks and tobacco
are activities with the highest employment rate and total income
compared with other branches of
the processing industry. A variety of products and brands have
earned a good reputation on local and foreign markets, and the
Croatian Chamber of Economy
has issued the highest number of
labels for quality and originality
to food products.
2
Privredni vjesnik
Year V No 0173
Luka Marelić, director, Agricultural Co-operative Pošip Čara
FOOD SECTOR LEADERS
Optimistic about the
Law on Co-operatives
The share of each member in the co-operative must
be clearly defined
ven though pošip is a type
of grape that matures earlier, the harvest this year
was finished in mid-September.
In terms of quality, this might be
the best harvest of the past decade. However, in terms of quantity it is 40% below the level of
2010. This means that the wine
produced this year will be long
remembered for its quality.
I must point out we are no different from other wine producers,
since the volume of our supreme
wine does not fall below 70% of
the total quantity, and this year
it will exceed 95% due to an extremely good harvest. Regarding
the market, I can say that nothing
has changed as the market is saturated, partly due to higher production levels and partly due to
the fall in purchasing power and
increased imports, all of which
have created a surplus. Moreover,
illiquidity creates a burden for all
those in the wine market, creating to an extent a vicious circle
E
IMPRESSUM:
Privredni vjesnik
Kačićeva 9
10000 Zagreb
+385 1 5600020
[email protected]
www.privredni-vjesnik.hr/
subscription
where everyone owes everyone.
However, we managed to create
a name and a trade mark in demand. For the past ten years we
have been successfully exporting to the American market pošip
Marko Polo and now we export to
the same market our pošip Čara,
our most popular product. This is
very important for our co-operative which is one of the most successful of wine co-operatives. We
owe this reputation to constant investment in new technology and
modernisation of the plant, and
during the past several years we
have invested almost €1.35 million. Furthermore, the Pošip Čara
Cooperative has 140 members.
As a result of the recently adopted
Law on Co-operatives, we expect
all relationships that had been a
burden to the business of co-operatives, to be defined. Primarily,
the share of each member of the
co-operative must be clearly indicated. What is also important is
that such mechanisms have been
created that a co-operative cannot be abandoned or that its assets
should not be divided and then
misplaced. The intention of the
law is to clearly define the share
and contributions of co-operative
members and that common assets
cannot be sold or distributed. This
also means that no-one would be
able to purchase or appropriate
common assets. It is true, however, that the Law does not solve
the problem of trustworthiness of
certain members. In my opinion
it should, since a member could
place poorer quality grapes into
the cooperative or sell them when
the harvest is better. Luckily, our
co-operative does not have such
problems..
FOR PUBLISHER
Nikola Baučić
+385 1 4846661
[email protected]
IMC MANAGER
Dea Olup
+385 1 5600028
[email protected]
EDITOR IN CHIEF
Darko Buković
+385 1 5600003
[email protected]
TRANSLATION
Lučana Banek
[email protected]
Mirjana Cibulka
[email protected]
EXECUTIVE EDITORS
Andrea Marić
[email protected]
Vesna Antonić
[email protected]
INTERNATIONAL OPERATIONS
Ray Fletcher
[email protected]
Quality and
excellence
through
innovation
he 400 largest food
processing
companies
generate nearly 88% of all
revenue from this sector. These
companies booked a total of
€5.8 billion in revenue, whilst
other companies (3,757) generated €0.77 billion. Data show
a similar situation in terms of
profit. These 400 made €0.24 billion in profit against €31 million
from other companies. The largest companies employ a total of
52,846 staff, whilst the remainder have 17,105 employees.
A similar situation exists amongst
the 50 best performing companies. 9 companies employ over
1,000 employees, with 9 companies (Vindija, Podravka, Dukat,
PIK Vrbovec, Belje, Koka, Jamnica, Ledo and Zvijezda having
annual revenue of over €0.14
billion. Zvijezda generated €131
million in revenue during 2010
followed by the Meat Processing Industry Brothers Pivac with
€130 million, the Croatian CocaCola subsidiary with €129.6 million and Kraš with €122.
The Varaždin-based company,
Vindija, is at the top of the list of
individual organisations, with annual revenue of €0.36 billion and
€3.38 million in profits. Company success has been the result
of 50 years of investment into innovation, technology and knowledge. Vindija has received many
valuable international awards as
a result of its healthy and safe
food product range, following
global trends and exporting to the
European Union.
The Koprivnica-based company,
Podravka, has annual revenue of
€0.26 billion and with its 3,639
employees is currently one of the
few successful food processing
T
companies which is not in private ownership. It has succeeded
in operating positively and in
increasing profitability, irrespective of current difficulties due to
ownership and managerial issues.
Anticipating Croatian EU
accession
The Zagreb-based company,
Dukat, with its €0.23 billion
in profits, has continued its development as an element of the
French food processing conglomerate Lactalis. The company is the regional leader within
the group, due to its top quality
and new product development.
It is followed by two companies
from the Agrokor Group: PIK
Vrbovec (€0.20 billion revenue)
and Belje (€0.19 billion), Koka
(€0.16 billion), another company
in the Vindija Group and three
companies in the Agrokor Group
- Jamnica (€0.15billion), Ledo
(€0.15 billion) and Zvijezda.
Agrokor companies follow the
conglomerate tradition: on-going investment appropriate funding, the use of advanced technology and top quality control
systems to promote food safety.
Similar business policies are
also followed by other companies under the ownership of the
50 best performing companies
group, along with continuous
investment in marketing, market
research and analysing market
expansion possibilities. Some
companies rely on foreign owner
assistance, others on their own
potential, anticipating Croatian
EU accession, which will create
new opportunities for exports.
Nevertheless, this will result in
severe competition on the local
market. (I.V.)
www.privredni.hr
Business & Finance Weekly
3
( €0.59 billion ( €1 billion
food and beverages exported
food and beverages imported
FOOD EXPORT AND IMPORT
B&H is the main export
market with Germany the
main import market
Croatia mainly exports sugar, cigarettes, wheat and tuna, importing cattle cake, live cattle, non-roasted coffee,
pigs and bananas
Drago Živković
uring the first nine
months of this year,
Croatian food and beverage companies exported 6.6%
more products than in 2010. Food
and beverage exports totalled
€0.59 billion according to data
provided by the Central Bureau
for Statistics. Imports are still far
higher (€1 billion), but growth
has slowed this year. In the agricultural sector, exports of vegetable and cattle products totalled
€115.3 million (+8.3%), and exports from fisheries totalled €62
million (+58%). During the first
nine months of this year, the food
industry exported 2% more food
products (€0.42 billion). Beverage exports were worth €77.7
million and tobacco products
€38.92 million (-16.4%). Last
year, Croatia exported food and
drinks worth €1.36 billion, approximately €27 million more
compared with 2010.
Exports reached €0.83 billion
(+€35 million), showing that
2010 registered a deficit of €0.52
billion and around €6.76 million
less than 2009. Croatia mainly
exports sugar, cigarettes, wheat
and tuna. It imports cattle cake,
live cattle, non-roasted coffee,
pigs and bananas.
D
Importers also exporters
The list of the largest food exporters is dominated by supermarket chains. Konzum is
the largest, followed by Lidl,
Kaufland and Plodine. Food
processors are also big importers, which obviously lack raw
materials from the local market. PIK Vrbovec, Braća Pivac,
Gavrilović, Podravka, Danica
and Koka fall into this category.
Trade companies should also be
included, particularly those importing food only for the purpose
of selling, such as Stanić and Betoven. The biggest food processors are not only big importers.
They are also the largest food
exporters with Koka, Dukat,
Vindija, PIK Vrbovec, Agrofructus, Podravka, Gavrilović, and
Danica in this section. The most
important export market for the
food industry is B&H (one third
of all exports), followed by Italy
and Slovenia (10%) as well as
Serbia (around 7%). Croatia im-
ports from Germany (14%), Italy
(11%), the Netherlands (8%) and
Brazil (mainly meat). As in many
other industries, the majority of
goods are traded with EU countries ($2 billion).
Deficit remains
All the advantages and problems
of Croatia’s position as a small,
open economy are probably best
reflected in agricultural and food
production. During the past ten
years, Croatia has tripled its import/export figures. However, the
deficit, expressed as a percentage,
remains stubbornly high. This is
a consequence of the insufficient
restructuring of local production which cannot seem to cope
with foreign competition. This
is confirmed by data according
to which total agricultural land
has halved to roughly 1.2 million
hectares, half of which relates to
grain growing. A large proportion
of the problem lies in split holdings. Of 190,000 registered producers, 63% cultivate less then
3 hectares of land, according to
data provided by the Croatian
Chamber of Agriculture. During
the past decade, middle-sized
producers have grown (from 20
to 300 hectares), and they now
own around 32% of agricultural
land and their significance continues to grow. Large systems
should also be added, such as
Agrokor, Podravka, Vindija and
Žito, which not only directly cultivate tens of thousands hectares,
but incorporate thousands of subcontractors.
4
INTERVIEW
Privredni vjesnik
Year V No 0173
( €35 million
value of Croatian processed fruit and vegetable market
ŽELJKO JURKIN, EUROVOĆE GROUP DIRECTOR
Top quality from local
producers
Production below 12,000 tonnes of fruit and vegetables is insufficient for market survival
Boris Odorčić
he total value of the
Croatian processed fruit
and vegetable market is
estimated at about €35 million.
Imports value by the end of September stood at about €8 million
and it is expected to increase by
between €2 and €2.7 million by
the end of the year. Consequently, local production stands at
about €25.7 million.
Eurovoće Group exports about
10% of its production and this
year exports are anticipated to
be €1.67 million. Željko Jurkin,
Eurovoće Group Director, pointed out that Croatian processed
fruit and vegetable production
has significantly impacted on the
trends dominant for the last fifteen years throughout the region.
T
What is the reason for significant changes in the Croatian
processed fruit and vegetable
market?
There was a significant product
range expansion from Hungary
and Bosnia and Herzegovina over
the last decade. Prior to Hungarian EU accession, the Hungarian processing industry had significant export incentives which
were used by local producers for
market expansion, primarily by
dumping rather than focusing on
modernisation and strengthening
competitiveness. Many Hungarian companies went bankrupt
following Hungarian EU accession and as a consequence of the
abolition of the export stimulus
package. They have been taken
over by German and Austrian organisations, producing primarily
for their former markets and sub-
sequently their position on the
Croatian market has significantly
weakened. On the other hand,
large processing companies in
Bosnia and Herzegovina have
significantly reduced production,
most probably due to excess investment in equipment and production plant, enabling local producers to increase production and
local market sales. Significantly,
Croatian consumers are opting
for quality food of controlled origin, regardless of the crisis and
Croatian producers have largely
exceeded their competitors.
Why have you merged Nova
Đakovčanka and Marinada,
two factories in Slavonia?
We analysed the market situation
and concluded that we would remain a small company, unable to
meet market needs for quantity
following Croatian EU accession. Subsequently, we decided
to grow by merging two factories in Slavonia and to specialise
our production. We have come
to the conclusion that an annual
production level of below 12,000
to 15,000 tonnes of fruit and vegetables is insufficient for market
survival due to the low
rate of capital
turnover and
high fixed
costs. The
acquisitions and
the formation
of the
Eurovoće Group will certainly
improve results, as we have processed some 15,000 tonnes of fruit
and vegetables this year.
Which processed fruits and
vegetables have the greatest
potential?
Sour cherries and blueberries
most certainly have the greatest
potential. In addition, we believe
we can sell a considerable quantity of peppers, pears, cherries and
apricots to the European market.
Nevertheless, trends in production and consumption of pasteurised product range are weakening
throughout the world and global
consumption of processed fruit
and vegetables currently stands
at a low 5%. Currently, there is a
growing trend towards fresh and
frozen fruit and vegetables consumption, which requires larger
investment in infrastructure, cold
storage plants, irrigation, high
technology and similar.
What are your plans for the
near future?
An exclusive focus on the market
is imperative in entrepreneurship
in general and, consequently, for
Eurovoće. The continuous following of market trends in our
branch and on a larger scale,
adjusting to customer demands
and investment in development
are the prerequisites for market
survival. Following consumption trends, which usually impact Croatia quite rapidly due
to large market chains, making us constantly reflect on
our production and expand
our product range. Markets
are currently specialised and
demanding. Nevertheless,
one can strive towards development and progress
by
following
trends.
www.privredni.hr
Business & Finance Weekly
5
( 70 years
( €45 million
continuous edible oil production
invested in reconstruction and modernisation in 2003
ČEPIN EDIBLE OIL FACTORY
A good opportunity
The final phase of privatisation for the largest Croatian edible oil factory and the most prominent Croatian
factory for oil refining
Svetozar Sarkanjac
he Čepin edible oil factory
is marking its 70th anniversary of continuous edible
oil production in 2012. The edible oil refinery was founded in
1942 by Špajzer, a large estate
owner from Čepin. The refinery was initially called the Oil
and Alcohol Factory, as it also
produced alcohol and even veal
livestock feed, since there was
considerable demand for it. The
factory owner at the time skilfully opted for a comprehensive
production cycle: producing edible oil from sunflower seeds,
whilst using lower quality sunflower seeds for alcohol production through fermentation. In addition, he used the by-product of
sunflower seed processing (sunflower flat bread) as quality livestock feed for beef and veal fattening. Nevertheless, Špajzer’s
managerial skills were severely
challenged by the war. The edible oil refinery was part of the
state-owned PIK Belje company
for a brief period following the
T
Second World War. Subsequently, the authorities moved the refinery, first to Gospić and then to
Glina for fear of possible Soviet
aggression in 1949. The factory
returned to Čepin in the mid1950’s to become part of IPK
Osijek, a company which nearly
matched Špajzer’s skill in managing comprehensive production
cycles, in 1961 and remained so
until recently. Subsequently there
was another war and some unusual alterations in the ownership
structure. The oil refinery was
reconstructed several times between the two wars and in 2003
it was fully reconstructed and
modernised with an investment
of €45 million.
Privatisation finally
The Čepin edible oil factory has
been the largest Croatian edible
oil factory and the most prominent Croatian factory for raw edible oil refining over a long period
of time, nevertheless, it has not
been privatised thus far. It saw
a plethora of financial and legal
consequences of its operation in
IPK Osijek as. Finally, the edible
oil factory became a state-owned
A future buyer will
purchase the factory in
“turn-key” condition,
including the Čepin
edible oil brand
company in mid-2011, following
many delays and employee protests. By mid-August the Agency
for State-Owned Asset Management (AUDIO) issued a Public
invitation for bids for IPK Čepin
share purchase of 81.5% of stateowned equity capital. The deadline for the submission of the
Letter of Intent expired at the beginning of September and we are
currently expecting the Agency
for State-Owned Asset Management final decision on the initial
price and on the implementation
of the process of legally binding
offers. Four companies are allegedly interested in purchasing the
oil refinery.
“We are the largest Croatian
edible oil refinery with annual
production capacity of 135,000
tonnes of sunflower and rape
seed processing. Total production capacity of raw edible oil
refinery stands between 55,000
and 58,000 tonnes, which is sufficient for one year of consumption in Croatia. The ultimate
consumer is primarily interested
in refined oil production and annual production capacity stands
at 30,000 tonnes of refined oil”,
stated Stjepan Komar, Čepin Director.
Turn-key condition
The buyer will purchase the factory in turn-key condition including the reputable Čepin edible oil
brand.
“We expect to see our primary
identifiable product, refined sunflower oil following the finalisation of the privatisation process
and the solution to the necessary
turnover in capital funding. We
are planning to have a 25% to
30% share of the Croatian refined
oil market”, stated Komar.
6
Privredni vjesnik
Year V No 0173
CROATIAN FOREIGN CURRENCY MARKET
Currency
AUD
CAD
JPY
CHF
GBP
USD
EUR
Source: HNB
EUR
Kuna exchange mid-rate
7.50
5,636721
5,357121
6,945740
6,139538
8,690027
5,418702
7,495148
5.44
1.11.
2.11.
3.11.
CHF
6.17
7.49
5.41
6.15
7.48
5.39
6.13
7.47
5.36
6.11
7.46
5.33
6.09
5.30
7.45
31.10.
WEEK NOVEMBER 5, 2011
::: news
USD
4.11
31.10.
1.11.
2.11.
3.11.
4.11
6.07
31.10.
1.11.
2.11.
3.11.
4.11
MOJ-BANKAR.HR
Petrokemija reverse trend
The Kutina-based company
Petrokemija made €15.47 million profit during the first nine
months, compared with a €17.12
million loss over the same period
in 2010. The planned sales target
of mineral fertilisers was 101.9%
implemented, whilst the production plan target was exceeded by
12.4%. Business revenue stood
at €0.30 billion, and expenditure
was €0.28 billion. EBITDA stood
at €28.57 million.
Wustenrot new insurer
The Croatian Financial Services
Supervisory Agency has granted
an operating permit to Wustenrot life insurance, a new insurer
to the Croatian market. In addition to life insurance approval,
Wustenrot has been granted a permit for accident insurance cover
and health insurance. A new market player, currently ranked 17th
in life insurance market, is not
planning any investment into the
most lucrative market segment,
third party liability insurance for
motor vehicles.
Croatian Postal Bank (HPB)
profits
Croatian Postal Bank made €9.54
million profit during the first nine
months. The bank recorded an
increase in most business areas.
Consequently, total deposits saw
a 9% increase to €1.62 billion,
personal loans were 6.1% up,
corporate loans rose by 5.5% and
housing loans soared 31.8% over
the same period last year.
12% OF LOANS
UNRECOVERABLE
Lending quality to the economy and the strengthening of the Swiss
Franc have had a significant impact on the increase non-performing
loans
he Croatian financer industry had an 11% to 12%
level of non-recoverable
loans in 2011, which is on par
with other comparable economies in the region. Currently,
such loan rates in most countries
throughout the region have doubled compared with the pre-crisis
period in 2007, according to an
analysis carried out by Mojbankar.hr.
T
2012 will not see a
decrease in unrecoverable
loans or a lowering of
interest rates
The crisis, which began three to
four years ago, has resulted in a
decrease in trade and industrial
production and, consequently,
lower employment throughout
almost all countries in the region.
The increase in non-recoverable
loans from banks which had aggressively increased their loan
portfolio during the pre-crisis period was a consequence of such
macroeconomic trends.
According to the analysis, the
Eastern European region has
been severely affected by this
trend, whilst the USA and Eurozone countries, with a higher level of monetary policy autonomy,
have witnessed relatively lower
non-recoverable loan rates.
Higher capitalisation level
than in the West
Bank capitalisation in the region
significantly exceeds that of
Western countries, irrespective
of high non-performing loan
share, mainly generated by real
estate transactions. The regional
average exceeds 13%, whilst
West European countries are
currently standing at about 9%.
In addition, regional banks have
not been exposed to, or have
been minimally exposed to toxic
financial instruments created by
the USA.
The lending quality in the economy and the strengthening of
the Swiss Franc have had a significant impact on the increase in
the level of such loans in Croatia
in 2011, which severely affected
personal lending. According to
banks, a high share of non-performing loans is one of the major
obstacles to any lowering of interest rates in Croatia.
2012 will not see any decrease
in non-performing loans or a reduction in interest rates irrespective of the announcement of the
necessary cuts and analysts’ estimates on minimum GDP growth
over the forthcoming period,
subsequently contributing to insecurity in the labour market, as
stated in conclusion. (V.A.)
www.privredni.hr
Business & Finance Weekly
WE PRESENT 7
PANETA, BJELOVAR
DIM MES, DRNIŠ
Doors to demanding
markets
We produce new types and shapes of panels every
year, irrespective of limited production space
Ample room for
improvement
The company presently produces around 300 tonnes
of dried meat products mostly Drniš prosciutto
n 2001 Iveta, a locally wellknown Bjelovar company
dealing with PVC processing,
identified a market demand for
quality panels for entrance doors.
Subsequently, it created a subsidiary called Paneta, which has
to date developed a wide range of
entrance door panels, basing its
production on top quality materials and modern design, in compliance with the highest British
standards. Britain initiated PVC
panel production in 1960’s. The
I
Paneta is aiming to
maintain top quality level
and is convinced there
will be an increasing
number of clients
company began with the production of aluminium decorative
panels two years ago, using high
quality aluminium steel sheet and
processing it, in accordance with
Qualicoat standards using electrostatic powder coating.
Its focus on top quality has resulted in satisfactory sales results. Paneta has been constantly
increasing its market share in
Slovenian and French
h markets over four years,
following
success
on the Croatian market. Intense negotiations are in progresss
with potential clientss
in Italy and Switzerland and the
sale of products in these markets
is anticipated in the near future.
In 2004 it created a subsidiary in
Banja Luka which has been selling panels in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Market recognition
“We constantly focus on top
quality materials, producing new
types and shapes of panels every
year, irrespective of our limited
space, and presenting them in our
catalogues. We now have considerable market identification for
the designs and the information
presented in our catalogues”, noted Ivan Peček, Paneta Director.
The company assists its clients to
choose the entrance door design,
opting for various types of glass
decoration. Panels are resistant
and stable and in accordance with
sound and thermal insulation
standards, requiring minimum
maintenance.
Paneta is aiming to maintain top
quality level and is convinced
there will be an increasing
number of clients in the Croatian
market opting for quality panel
doors. Its export orientation will
be towards the Western European
Union and Scandinavian
countries.
It is anticipatcount
ing innovation in annual panel production,
in accordance
with the
a
current
technological
curr
standards.
(I.V.)
stan
he Drniš-based company
Dim mes continues the
tradition of the Blažević
family who has been in the business of drying prosciutto and
other semi-durable and durable
dried meat products for many
generations. Even though it has
been operating under this name
since 2001, the company made
a big step forward in 2009 when
the old plant was demolished and
a new one built with state-of-the
art equipment and computerised
monitoring of the production
process. The modernised production premises now fully comply
with all HACCAP standards.
Around €3.38 million was invested in the new plant, partly
from the Development and Employment Fund and partly from
family capital. The company
presently produces around 300
tonnes of dried meat products,
mostly Drniš prosciutto and
other local Drniš products, such
as Dalmatian grilling sausage
(pečenica) and pancetta. Dim
mes employs 26 workers and its
production capacity is approximately 6,000 tonnes of prosciutto
and around 400 tonnes of other
durable products (grilling sausages, pancetta, buđola and other
types of sausages). Its production capacity is now slightly below 40%. The company’s owner,
Ante Blažević, says there is ample room for improvement and
increased capacity, but the main
T
problem is the funding system,
that is, unresolved financing and
lack of resources.
High-quality delicacies
The company achieves an annual income of around €2.7 million, but it could operate much
better with greater financial
support. The consultants that
have drawn up a strategic development plan are convinced
that a better financing system,
organisation, improved sales
system, product packing and
labelling would double income
in a very short period of time,
points out Blažević. Dim mes
imports raw material (whose
procurement is the key problem
of the Dalmatian producers of
prosciutto and other dry meat
products), from the Netherlands.
Our market is disorganised, and
Croatia meets only around one
fifth of its needs. The remainder
relates to import or semi-import,
stimulated by countries that export outside the EU. This means
Italian and Spanish producers
have an advantage since they are
motivated to export outside the
European Union, and they often
sell products below the standards of their countries. On our
market the price of prosciutto
ranges between €6.75 and €20
per kilogram, explains Blažević,
who will not give up on the production of high-quality delicacies despite the battles. (J.V.)
8
::: news
Ina profit rises
Privredni vjesnik
Year V No 0173
Vestibul Palace – the best small family hotel in Croatia
Good marketing is priceless
Famous celebrities who have visited this hotel, with only seven rooms, have been
Formula 1 drivers and ‘Star Trek’ actors
Ina Oil Company increased its
profit during the first nine months
of the year. Nett profits came in
at €0.28 billion, €0.2 billion up
year-on-year. The production of
oil and gas increased, and nett
debt was cut by 18%. This year
Ina’s sales totalled €3.07 billion,
20% more over 2010.
Tolls increase income
Toll income from Croatian motorway concessionaires amounted to €0.22 billion (excluding
VAT) during the first nine months
of this year. This is 4.37% more
year-on-year according to data
provided by the Croatian Association of Toll Motorways Concessionaires. The highest income
(HRK1 billion) was achieved
by Hrvatske autoceste, 2.4% up
in relation to the same period of
2010. It is followed by Autocesta
Rijeka-Zagreb, Autocesta Zagreb-Maribor and Bina Istra.
Varteks deficit reduced
Varteks increased its profitability
during the first nine months. Total income for the company from
Varaždin stood at €31.38 million,
€1.1 million more over 2010.
Sales grew by €2.16 million as
well as sales to export markets
(€13.34 million in total). During
this period the deficit fell to €5
million, down €1.16 million over
2010.
Average salary €745
The August average monthly nett
salary per employee in Croatian
companies was €745, according
to data provided by the Central
Bureau for Statistics. In relation to July, average nett salary
in August was nominally higher
by 2.8%, showing real growth of
2.9%. Year-on-year, average nett
salary in August was 2.3% higher in nominal value and 0.3% in
real value.
Jozo Vrdoljak
fter having been selected
by ‘The Sunday Times’
as one of top 100 small
hotels in the world, Vestibul Hotel in Split has recently received
local recognition at the Croatian
Tourism Day. It won the Adrian
award as the best small family
hotel in Croatia. The Vestibul
Palace Hotel is special in many
ways. It was opened in 2005 and
since then, due to its quality and
efficient marketing, it has been
visited by many famous people,
from Formula 1 drivers (Jarno
Trulli and Kimi Raikkonen), the
CEO of Hugo Boss, world sailing champions, Star Trek actors,
ambassadors, diplomats, managers of global companies, actors
and singers.
A
Unexpected visit
The Sunday Times’ journalists
were announced. We were informed about their appearance
in this article of their daily edition, sold in over one and a half
million copies, by the Director
of the Croatian Tourist Board in
London, Meri Matešić. We later
found they would like to visit us,
that is to perform an inspection,
since we rank high in search engines and Split is a destination
that has been registering a sudden
tourism boom as well as the fact
the hotel is of high architectural
value since it is situated in the
middle of the Diocletian palace.
Their journalist spent two days in
our hotel, closely observing everything, pointed out Nenad Nizić,
owner of Vestibul. The hotel was
founded as the result of a successful merger of three palaces
(Romanic, Gothic and Renaissance) as well as original Roman
niches. It is located between the
imperial Diocletian chambers
and the imperial Peristil Square.
In addition to the restaurant and
kitchen, which was a prerequisite
for categorisation, it has seven
rooms, of which one is an imperial suite which costs €1,000 per
night. It is interesting in that the
kitchen has the remains of old
Roman walls. Investment into
this hotel totalled €1.2 million.
Wherever the visitor wants
to go
Staff of the hotel have an
individual approach to visitors
and will gladly transport them
to the airport, an island or even
Dubrovnik. There is also a tourist
guide. Sustainability is achieved
by non-accommodation services
even though the average price of
a room is €100 per night, points
out Nizić. Furthermore, Vestibul
has 12 permanent employees. In
addition to the hotel, the Nizić
family also owns the Dobrić Villa,
also located in the old centre of
Split. The hotel has been included
in the prestigious group of Small
Luxury Hotels of the World, in
which only two hotels from the
region are included, one from
Dubrovnik and one from Bled.