What kind of healthcare system do we have? Consensus on the direction of development, but the financial issue remains open
Financial Agency HRK20 million - last year’s net profit of small-sized entrepreneurs, big-sized entrepreneurs achieved HRK7.4 billion
Alen Varenina, director of Karolina, Osijek Excellent synergy effect of the Karolina and the Zagreb-based Kraš
HEALTHCARE SYSTEM PAGES 2-3
FINANCE PAGE 6
INDUSTRY PAGE 4 2008 2009 2010 2011
Croatian Business & Finance Weekly Established in 1953 Monday / 16th July / 2012 Year V / No 0208 www.privredni.hr
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pvinternational pv international C R O A T I A N
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TOURIST RESULTS FOR THE FIRST HALF OF 2012
Increased revenue in tourism
According to the number of tourists, the Germans dominate with one fourth in total tourism revenue. They are followed by the Austrians, Slovenians and Czechs Sanja Plješa espite the economic crisis and weaker standard, during the first six months of this year 3.6 million of tourist arrivals was registered in Croatia, which is 5% more in relation to the same period of 2011. At the same time, 14.8 million of bed nights was registered, also 5% more, according to data provided by tourist boards along the coast and the City of Zagreb. In total structure of tourism revenue, foreigners registered 3 mil-
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lion arrivals or 8% more as well as 13 million bed nights or 7% more than in the first six months of 2011. During the presentation of tourism results, Tourism Minister Veljko Ostojić said they anticipate to repeat last year’s number of arrivals and bed nights as well as 3-5% more financial income. Decreased number of Italians According to the number of tourists, the Germans dominate with one fourth in total tourism
revenue. They are followed by the Austrians, Slovenians and Czechs. However, what is worrying is that the arrival of the Italians reduced by 7% and bed nights results reduced by 6% in relation to 2011. Ostojić says this result can be explained by the economic situation in the country, which is why he anticipates 33 million Italians to visit Croatia this year instead of 39 millions, which is almost 20% less than in 2011. This will certainly affect the final tourism results in Croatia since the Italians
are one of our biggest and most loyal visitors, said Ostojić. He also pointed out that during the first six months of this year the number of local tourists dropped by 5.5% which is the result of the weaker standard in the country. Concerning counties, during the first six months of this year growth was registered in the tourist turnover, where the Minister highlighted the increase in the County of Dubrovnik and Neretva, which is the result of excellent preparations for this year’s season.
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Privredni vjesnik Year V No 208
Zlata Božić Pavletić, owner of Minerva Academy
There is space for private academies We must be aware of the fact that education is the only way out of the crisis and private higher educational institutions are an excellent addition to the public ones t the moment most private academies were being founded, it was believed they were only frequented by students who can afford to pay in order to secure their degree. However, this perception has changed since the claims of the distrustful were refuted by diplomats, who in general found jobs in a short period of time and excelled even faster in international corporations. Minerva is the first private academy in the area of Split. As such it went through difficult times and learned from its mistakes. Today we are completely different and find ourselves in a better situation than at the beginning, and when Croatia joins the EU, private academies will become prestigious colleges that generate top quality human resources. After signing the agreement on cooperation with a prestigious Austrian academy, frequented by 3000 students, Minerva will soon approach this goal. It is interesting that the programme of private academies in Austria is 80% subsidised by the Government, which makes them equal to state universities. Actually, the state has the same attitude towards private and public institutions, and in Croatia the academies are financed from tuitions. The €3 million worth equipment of this particular academy was procured by donations, as is the case of other private Austrian schools. If we were to receive donations
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IMPRESSUM: Privredni vjesnik Kačićeva 9 10000 Zagreb +385 1 5600020 uprava@privredni.hr www.privredni-vjesnik.hr/ subscription
( HRK7 billion of debt in the healthcare system
WHAT KIND OF HEALTHCARE SYSTEM DO WE HAV
CONSENSUS ON T BUT THE FINANCIA
Computerisation of healthcare, investment in human resourc healthcare system development during the next 8 years Jasminka Filipas e are too late. We failed to use pre-accession funds because we lacked strategy, said Health Minister Rajko Ostojić during the presentation of the National Healthcare Development Strategy Draft 2020 which should be adopted by the Parliament in September. Amongst other things, the Strategy is a condition for health institutions and the related non-government organisations to be able to apply for structural EU funds. We are not doing this only for the EU, but for the general public primarily, Ostojić pointed out. He added that the computerisation of healthcare, investment in human resources, preventive public health actions and improvement of patient communication will be the key instruments of the healthcare system development during the next 8 years. In his explanation of why it is necessary to invest in human resources, he reminded Croatia lacks doctors, pharmacists and midwives in relation to the EU average. He added the Strategy envisages the reorganisation of the system and work of health institutions. Amongst others, it will include cooperation of health centres, family medicine physicians in concession, day care hospitals and specialist – consultation hospital service. The priority goal is to draft clinical guidelines, intensify preventive actions and preserve financial stability of health through the development of private – additional health insurance.
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for equipment, it would only raise suspicions. For that reason we must change the way we think: we must be aware of the fact that education is the only way out of the crisis and private higher educational institutions are an excellent addition to the public ones. It is a know fact that small companies are the generators of economic development and that we can make progress if we invest in the education of their managers. To put it simply, smallsized companies cannot afford the luxury of specialising their workers in a narrow field since they must be trained in several related professions. They require an interdisciplinary approach which is the basic programme of many private academies, including Minerva. The combination of interdisciplinary economy and information systems is the university of the future.
FOR PUBLISHER Nikola Baučić +385 1 4846661 uprava@privredni.hr
IMC MANAGER Dea Olup +385 1 5600028 olup@privredni.hr
EDITOR IN CHIEF Darko Buković +385 1 5600003 bukovic@privredni.hr
TRANSLATION Lučana Banek lucanab@gmail.com Mirjana Cibulka mirjana.cibulka@gmail.com
EXECUTIVE EDITORS Andrea Marić maric@privredni.hr Vesna Antonić antonic@privredni.hr
INTERNATIONAL OPERATIONS Ray Fletcher fletcher@privredni.hr
Public procurement concentration Ostojić has recently participated at the meeting of the EU Council for Employment, Social Policy and Consumer Affairs (EPSCO) in Luxemburg. The EU health programme 20142010 was discussed during the meeting whose goal is to subsidise innovations in health, increase sustainability of the health system; improve healthcare and the protection against cross-border disease spreading.
www.privredni.hr Business & Finance Weekly
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( 18 organised medical cenntrress in Croatia
VE AND WHAT CAN WE EXPECT BY 2020?
THE DIRECTION OF DEVELOPMENT, AL ISSUE REMAINS OPEN
ces, preventive public health actions and improvement of patient communication – key instruments of the
Big chances for health tourism
There are 222 locations in Croatia with good conditions for the development of health tourism, out of which only 10% is used in a form of 18 organised medical centres. As in the case of other Mediterranean countries, Croatia has also been hit by the wave of wellness centres which offer medical and other treatments. Actually, it is estimated that even 80 Croatian hotels declared as wellness hotels by 2005. However, Croatia still lacks a clear and detailed concept for developing tourism in general as well as health tourism. The specific interdisciplinary nature of this type of tourism definitely complicates the procedures for harmonising legislative solutions. Appropriate normative acts on health services in tourism are lacking, and they should enable performing health and tourist-catering activities under the same roof. It is necessary to invest in hotel and health suprastructures in compliance with the requirements of modern global tourism demand, which implies staff training and increasing competitiveness on the international market.
The European Commission suggested a sum of €446 million to be secured for this programme, and the final figure will depend on the outcome of the negotiations on Multi-Annual Budget Framework for this period. The economic crisis led to a discussion on methods for reducing expenses in the health system, and one of the suggestions was the concentration of the public procurement of vaccines, medicine and other medicine preparations. Ostojić said Croatia has
already started to concentrate the procurement for some generic medicine, food products and energy, which shows Croatia is ahead of some EU member countries at least in this aspect. In many other things, it still lags behind as the Strategy Draft reveals. It actually includes a detailed analysis of the state of all health sectors as well as the Euro consumer health protection index, according to which Croatia ranks 17 with 655 points out of a total of 34 European coun-
tries. The criteria of evaluation include, amongst other things, patient rights and informing, waiting period for health services, treatment results, scope and availability of health services and availability of free and other medicine. The conclusion, also mentioned in the Strategy, is that Croatia still has a lot of work to do on improving the aspects of consumer patient rights, primarily on reducing the average time people have to wait for a health service.
Five crucial problems The experts who worked on the Strategy identified five key areas of strategic problems in the Croatian health system: poor IT and other type of communication, treatment continuity, unequal or unfamiliar care quality, insufficient efficiency and efficacy, poor or unequal availability of healthcare and considerably weak health indicators. It is also mentioned that even though the trend of reducing total rate of mortality and mortality from many illnesses, these rates remain high compared with the European average. Especially concerning is the public’s health attitude and risk factors, such as smoking, obesity and excessive alcohol use. Difficult socioeconomic condition additionally jeopardises the public health state, people do not take personal responsibility for their health nor do they use healthcare responsibly. Besides solving the acute problems, such as the debt of over HRK7 billion, the Ministry of Health set many other goals for the forthcoming period. Of course, the dynamics of implementing concrete measures will depend on the funds the Ministry intends to draw from the European cohesion funds and on the state budget as well as eventual problems that might arise from the EU accession (for example, migration of doctors and other medical staff to the EU, forcing Croatia to import these type of experts). As mentioned in the Strategy, health reform will be implemented gradually, guided by the vision to improve the quality of life through preventive and timely treatment availability.
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Privredni vjesnik Year V No 208
( €5 million ( in 1909 invested last year
Karolina was founded
ALEN VARENINA, DIRECTOR OF KAROLINA, OSIJEK
EXCELLENT SYNERGY EFFECT The Osijek-based Karolina and the Zagreb-based Kraš are excellent examples of capital and production transfer from Zagreb to Osijek in hope similar practices will be followed by other companies Svetozar Sarkanjac arolina, a factory producing biscuits, wafers and salty snacks, was founded in 1909. It was founded by Stjepan Piller, a confectioner, who named it after his daughter. Subsequent owners changed its name to Sloboda following the Second World War. The factory, being one of the leaders of the Osijek-based food processing industry, survived the hardships of war, post-war years and the privatisation. In 2002 Lura became its majority owner and consequently it terminated its long-term production of bread and sweets and sold its retail network and business premises. Its name Sloboda was also changed and the factory itself was almost closed. In 2006 the Austrian company Lorenz became its owner and the factory continued to barely survive. Luckily, its fate was more favourable than the fate of most Osijek-based industry in the 1990’s. Some 10% of the prewar employees (over 2,000 employees) saw factory ownership change hands yet again following its acquisition by Kraš. Privredni vjesnik talked with Alen Varenina, Director of Karolina about the situation in the factory at the time and its current business circumstances.
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Could you compare the situation in Karolina following its acquisition by Kraš with its current business circumstances? Karolina was facing an extremely uncertain future, its development strategy was undefined and it saw absence of investment which consequently had a negative impact on its staff prior to its acquisition by Kraš. An at-
mosphere of fear and insecurity was created, prompted by a wide variety of speculations and catastrophic scenarios presented in Croatian media on a daily basis. The current situation is completely the opposite. Karolina is currently a company with a clearly defined development strategy and its investment value stands at €5 million over the last year. Hence, production and sales increased, as well as the number of employees which is a significant achievement within an extremely arduous business year. We are a member of a successful group which is a market leader and whose expertise and experience are providing us with substantial assistance and support in our development. In addition, our own experience is valued, we feel re-
spected and we believe our role is important. During the contract signing, Nadan Vidošević, Board President of Kraš at the time, stated that: “by integrating the strong brands of Jadro and Moto into Kraš group, we are achieving the pinnacle of the Croatian production excellence of biscuits and wafers“. What has been achieved thus far? The acquisition has fully achieved its goals. Karolina brands became integrated into Kraš which additionally strengthened its role as a regional leader. In 2012 we have seen a significant increase in sales of Karolina brands over the same period last year, after Kraš took over the distribution of our products throughout Croatia.
This is only one of the synergy effects of the acquisition by Kraš. In addition, we have seen significant improvement in business results in purchasing and production compared with our operations prior to the acquisition. The first stage of the announced investment in Karolina has been completed. What has been achieved? The first and the most important stage has been completed and it has noticeably increased Karolina production capacity and significantly extended its product range. In addition, it has tackled several fundamental issues, such as enhancement of production technologies, as well as reconstruction and expansion of warehouse capacity.
www.privredni.hr Business & Finance Weekly
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MONO – ONE OF THE LEADING CROATIAN SOFTWARE EXPORTERS
Stars of the Osijek-based Silicon Valley Its software is used globally in medicine, pharmacology, banking, finance, energy sector, trade, human asset management, education and state administration in over 70 countries Svetozar Sarkanjac he Osijek-based company Mono engaged in IT system design is one of the largest Croatian software exporters, irrespective of the fact that it has been operating for only 9 years and is still in its inception stage. The company has been perceived as a provider of the most complex application solutions with its software used globally in medicine, pharmacology, banking, finance, energy sector, trade, human asset management, education and state administration in over 70 countries. Its 19 staff generated almost HRK5.2 million in revenue, creating a year-end profit of nearly HRK2.5 million. Over 80% of the revenue is generated on the US and the EU markets. Its software solutions are used by Novartis, Pfizer, Aventis Sanofi, Astra Zeneca,
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Zambon and other multinational companies. It is important to highlight the Software SBA Open (software for electronic credit application processing) that Mono developed for the American agency Small Business Administration (SBA), which provides assistance to small businesses and is primarily involved in providing loan guarantees. Mono was one of the promoters of the idea of Osijek becoming the Croatian Silicon Valley
PROJECTS
and the headquarters of a large number of companies engaged in software development. “Mono has been working on the project entitled Osijek Software City in co-operation with companies Adcon, Inchoo, Farmeron and K-Informatika which are all export-oriented”, emphasises Denis Sušac, Director and founder of Mono. The company has developed a wide variety of applications in various areas and it mainly focus-
es on keeping abreast with technology. “We are lucky to be operating in the area which makes it possible for us in Osijek to co-operate with clients globally, as physical presence is superfluous. High quality, educated and motivated staff is fundamental”, pointed out Sušac, whose company has been awarded Zlatna kuna by the Croatian Chamber of Economy – County Chamber Osijek in the Small Business category. The company has been co-operating extensively with the State Inspectorate of the Republic of Croatia and with HEP on important and successful projects, the provider of public electricity services. Nevertheless, there is ample room for improvement in co-operation with local companies. “Quality IT solutions are of fundamental importance for business development”, stressed Sušac.
LOANS IN MAY
For HRK30 million to HRK3 billion HRK1 billion less than in April With agreements on technical aid for 32 development projects, the Ministry of Regional Development and EU Funds will secure a phase acceptable for financing by the EU funds. For this programme the Ministry allocated HRK30 million of nonrepayable funds from their Development Projects Preparation and Implementation Programme. The subsidies are intended for projects for technical aid and co-financing the drafting of project documentation. The value of each accepted project is over €1 million and they refer to public-business or touristcultural infrastructures. Twelve public-business infrastructure projects worth €190 million were accepted in addition to 20 projects in the public-cultural or tourist infrastructure with estimated value of around €300 million.
The recipients are expected to draft by December project assignment and its application, study of feasibility or cost analysis as well as benefits of the project and project elaborate. As Government Vice-President and Minister of Regional Development and EU Funds Branko Grčić says, a large sum of money is offered to Croatian projects and it should be taken. However, this will require good projects. We have them, but not enough, and by co-financing we wish to help local administrations that lack funds to realise their projects. Another opportunity to realise projects worth HRK3 billion for HRK30 million will not arrive any time soon, concludes Grčić. (K.S.)
Loans of the banking system totalled HRK289.7 billion at the end of May, which is HRK1 billion less in relation to April. This was mostly contributed by the decrease lending of the corporative sector whose loans reduced by HRK4.1 billion on a monthly level. In relation to the end of 2011, total loans increased by a minimum of 0.1% to HRK392 million, which is exclusively a consequence of the growing state loans given the fact they increased by HRK6.3 billion or 1.7%. In total loans, state loans participate with a share of around 14%, and they totalled HRK43.3 billion at the end of May. Corporate loans, which participate with a share of 40% in the structure of total loans, reduced by 4.6% in relation to the end of 2011, totalling HRK113.3 billion. Public loans (44% share in total loan structure) stagnate, totalling HRK128.8 billion.
On a year-on-year level, the growth rate of total loans continues to slow down, resulting in annual growth rate of 2.2%, which is the lowest rate since May 2010. By the end of the year, RBA analysts do not anticipate intensification of credit activities since the demand for corporate loans is limited by the difficult business conditions and reduced demand. A slightly more intense crediting could be realised through loan programmes of HBOR. However, there is a problem of finding quality funding projects. (V.A.)
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Privredni vjesnik Year V No 208
CROATIAN FOREIGN CURRENCY MARKET Currency
AUD CAD JPY CHF GBP USD EUR Source: HNB
EUR
Kuna exchange mid-rate
7.52
6,244066 6,040499 7,739233 6,235224 9,482374 6,134557 7,485386
HRK45.9 billion of foreign debt According to data provided by HNB, gross foreign debt increased slightly in March in relation to February. However, on a yearon-year level it is still decreasing. At the end of March, foreign debt totalled €45.9 billion, which is €112.5 million or 0.2% more in relation to the end of February. Since March 2011, foreign debt has increased by €1.6 billion or 3.4%. This was mostly contributed by the decreased external debt of the public sector or corporate sector. At the same time, the external debt of the state continued to grow. Banka Brod became KentBank Banka Brod changed its name into KentBank and expanded its activities. The Bank received a new integral solution according to which it will continue to offer its present services, but it also updated its money transfer system and added factoring services. This Bank is in the majority ownership of Eksen Holding from Istanbul, which owns 81% of the registered basic capital and has the right to 99.7% of votes at the main assembly. Insurance premiums in decline During the first six months of this year, total premium of all insurance companies decreased by 1% in relation to the same period of 2011, and it totalled HRK4.89 billion. From this sum, HRK3.7 billion refers to nonlife insurance, and in this segment the premium decreased by 1.9%. At the same time, the premium of life-insurance increased by 1.9% to HRK1.17 billion. The biggest share in the insurance market is held by Croatia osiguranje with 34.1%, which is 0.9% less in relation to 2011. It is followed by Allianz Zagreb which holds 12.1% of the market, which is 1.3% more in relation to the middle of 2011.
6.14
10.7.
11.7.
12.7.
13.7.
CHF
6.26
7.51
6.12
6.25
7.50
6.10
6.24
7.49
5.08
6.23
7.48
5.06
6.22
7.47 9.7.
WEEK JULY 14, 2012
::: news
USD
5.04 9.7.
10.7.
11.7.
12.7.
13.7.
6.21 9.7.
10.7.
11.7.
12.7.
13.7.
FINANCIAL AGENCY
HRK20 million - last year’s net profit of small-sized entrepreneurs Big-sized entrepreneurs achieved HRK7.4 billion in consolidate financial result, and medium-sized achieved HRK201 million in net loss ast year, big-sized entrepreneurs in Croatia achieved HRK7.4 billion in consolidate financial results – period net profit (difference between total profit and total loss of big-sized entrepreneurs). Medium-sized entrepreneurs registered HRK201 million in net loss, and small-sized entrepreneurs achieved HRK20 millions of profit, according to data provided by the Financial Agency (FINA). These data show that last year was more successful than 2010 in all three sectors. The best results were achieved by small-sized entrepreneurs with HRK20 million of net profit and after HRK3.6 billion of net loss in 2010. Medium-sized entrepreneurs decreased their net loss by 42.9% since they registered HRK201 million of net loss after HRK353 million of net loss in 2010. Big-sized entrepreneurs increased net profit by 17.5%, achieving HRK7.4 billion of net profit after HRK6.3 billion of net profit in 2010. According to the statement of FINA, this is mostly owed to one-time income in the shipbuilding industry due to the expropriation of assets by the decision of the Croatian government.
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Domination of the big-sized For the past few years, the sector of big-sized entrepreneurs has
been playing a dominant role in the business of the entrepreneurs. In 2011, this sector participated with a share of 0.4% in the number of entrepreneurs, 32.6% in the number of employees, 48% in total income, 45% in period profit, 28.9% in period loss, 51.8% in investment in fixed assets and HRK7.4 billion in period net profit (total profit minus total losses). Total result of all entrepreneurs was HRK7.2 billion (period net profit). In 2011, the sector of mediumsized entrepreneurs participated with a 1.3% share in the number
of entrepreneurs, 18.4% in the number of the employed, 18.2% in total income, 12.8% in period profit, 17.2% in period loss (HRK201 million) and 16.2% in investment in new fixed assets. In the same year the sector of small-sized entrepreneurs participated with a share of 98.3% share in the number of entrepreneurs, 49.1% in the number of the employed, 33.8% in total income, 42.2% in period profit, 53.9% in period loss, 32% in investment in new fixed assets, and 0.3% in period net profit (HRK20 million). (V.A.)
www.privredni.hr Business & Finance Weekly
WE PRESENT
KLINČIĆ RAČUNOVODSTVO, ZAPREŠIĆ
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OPG TVOREK, NOVA GRADIŠKA
Audit and consultancy services The company currently employs three full-time staff and it also outsources an approved auditor and an accredited accountant expert witness
Gastronomic experience on the outskirts of Slavonia The farm produces sausage made of minced pork, bacon, smoked pork ribs, bones and lard... linčić Računovodstvo provides a wide range of services such as accounting assistance services for business start-ups, bookkeeping services and advice on addressing problems and misunderstandings with tax authorities, as well as on regulatory compliance to name a few. Stjepan Klinčić, co-owner of the company, stated that the company was incepted in 2000 following the accounting assistance he and his wife provided to an acquaintance who was managing a large foreign trade company at the time. “He expressed his utmost satisfaction at our work and commitment and offered us business premises and IT equipment. Currently, following 12 years of work commitment, we own business premises in Zagreb and 4 types of accounting software, we manage accounting and provide consultancy services for 14 companies and micro-companies”, explained Klinčić, who has a degree in economics.
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Hybrid accountants The company currently employs three full-time staff and it also outsources an approved auditor and an accredited accountant expert witness. “Unfortunately, due to turbulent and uncertain economic conditions, we are not
planning new employment, irrespective of the current requirements”, he stated. We have good relationship with our competitors and other consultancy service providers. “We exchange experiences on providing assistance with regulatory compliance and advice on implementation of laws”, highlighted Klinčić, adding that it is essential to tackle the issue of hybrid accountants. It is important to highlight that accounting licences can currently be obtained rapidly and easily by completing a course. “This usually dramatically affects entrepreneurs, who entrust their business to such accountants at extremely affordable rates. Hence, we often have to address the consequences of such bookkeeping and accounting services”, he explained. In addition, accounting has been focusing solely on providing formal reports and issuing statements. “Accountants mainly deal with the formal aspects of the balance of accounts, without deep insight into their credibility. Hence, stricter control needs to be implemented concerning credibility and ensuring that all regulatory requirements are met. In addition, uncompromising sanctions for non-compliance with laws and regulations are crucial”, concluded Klinčić. (B.O.)
PG Tvorek farm has been founded by Mario Tvorek for whom smokedried meat production was initially just an additional job. Nevertheless, he turned his hobby into a serious family business. Tvorek points out that his farm is located on the outskirts of Slavonia, in Nova Gradiška and it welcomes visitors with the best Slavonian gastronomic delicacies. The farm produces kulen and kulenova seka (types of flavoured sausage made of minced pork that is traditionally produced in the region), panceta (pork belly meat, salt-cured and seasoned with spices), Slavonian slanina (bacon), čvarak (a specialty of West Balkan cuisine, a variant of pork rinds), smoked pork ribs, bones and lard. Tvorek is commencing exports of traditional products in the near term. In addition, he is completing the construction of a new modern facility for processing and production of meat and smoke-dried meat with the investment value of HRK800,000. In addition, he invested in horticulture and the construction of access roads.
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Market expansion Tvorek has been in this business for 15 years. He lived and studied in Zagreb and consequently he established his first sales channels in the Croatian capital.
“In addition to the Zagreb-based market, we have also penetrated the markets in Rijeka and Istria. We also find Dalmatia of particular interest and we are currently working on our market expansion. Our products are already present in some Dalmatian markets and we believe Dalmatian markets have huge potential. We have been selling our products in Omiš for 10 years and we are also extremely satisfied with our sales in Kaštela. We began selling our products in Kaštela last year during the Adriatic games at the stall organised by the Croatian Chamber of Economy whose promotional campaigns, such as Let’s Buy Croatian, we regularly follow and gladly participate in”, explained Tvorek. Mario Tvorek highlighted several arduous issues he often needs to address in his work: “There are arduous issues in every job. Last year we had serious problems with the purchase of chilly paprika, due to ice damage to the plantation of our contract farmer. We had to tackle many hurdles to purchase chilli paprika and we eventually succeeded, as it is one of the fundamental ingredients on a par with quality pork meat. We have seen the highest demand for čvarci and panceta this year, throughout the presentations during the promotional campaign Let’s Buy Croatian”, pointed out Tvorek. (J.V.)
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Privredni vjesnik Year V No 208
Interfest Wine Festival
New visual identity of Daruvar Daruvar-Papuk Tourist Board has recently presented a new logo and a slogan for the Daruvar area designed and created by the Zagrebbased company Logic Marketing. A new visual identity was created in accordance with the guidelines on tourism positioning of the Daruvar area set in advance by the Split-based MarCon and the Barcelona-based DDS Consultancy experts. The slogan Love of life promotes Daruvar as a longevity centre and a centre for quality life, due to its thermal springs presented as a source of healthy life. Hong Kong tourists visiting Vukovar
A group of some 30 tourists has visited Vukovar and the memorial sites of the Homeland War and was welcomed by Željko Sabo, the Mayor of Vukovar. The arrival of the tourist group from the Far East is the result of the business co-operation between Uniline tourism agency and the Vukovarbased Danubiumtours. It is simultaneously a business project of the tourism company called Uniline which has started operating focusing on strategic integration plan of a copious number of tourists from China and the Far East, through Uniline representative offices in Shanghai. The success of Polish film at Zagreb TourFilm Festival
Zagreb TourFilm Festival, the First International Tourism Film Festival has recently been held in Zagreb, organised by Zagreb Tourist Board and the company Balduči film, supported by the Croatian President Ivo Josipović. 132 films from 37 countries were competing for 22 awards and the Grand Prix in 4 categories and the Polish film Polska – feel invited won the Grand Prix award.
Croatian wine producers not sufficiently positioned Croatian wine producers, who are the most numerous foreign participants, have been supported by the Croatian Chamber of Economy Zagreb Jozo Vrdoljak his year’s ninth Interfest Wine Festival in Novi Sad has brought together 120 participants from 15 countries. Wine producers coming from the New World Wine countries – Australia, South Africa and South America - have participated in the festival for the first time this year. On the other hand, wine producers from Serbia, Montenegro, Croatia, Slovenia, Macedonia, Hungary, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Austria and France are its regular participants. “Interfest has proved its resilience to the crisis, according to the number of visitors and the number of bottles of wine sold. This year’s Interfest has seen around 25,000 wine enthusiasts, whereas over 30,000 bottles of various wine varieties have been consumed during the festival”, stressed Nataša Budisavljević, Director of the Festival.
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Enhancement of the wine culture Interfest is an event which has significantly contributed to enhancement of the wine culture in the largest city of Vojvodina, yet it is the only event in the region which is not financed exclusively by the participants. During most
festivals and fairs, wine producers have to pay for the exhibition space, they are obliged to provide free wine tasting for participants at the events and they have to pay for the participation in workshops, whereas ticket revenues are mainly allocated to the organisers. Nevertheless, Interfest charges the participants solely for the exhibition space. In addition, the participants receive a commission from visitor vouchers and can hence fully cover all the expenses generated by their participation in the festival, with many of them creating profits, as they are fully entitled to sell their wines. Croatian wine producers, who are the most numerous foreign participants, have been supported by the Croatian Chamber of Economy Zagreb over the past few years. This year, Croatian Chamber of Economy Pula and Dubrovnik have participated in the organisation. Croatian wine producers appeared under the brand called Vina Croatia. Moreover, Agrokor vina (presenting its wine varieties in a separate exhibition area included in the Croatian stall), Badel and the City of Vodnjan have also traditionally and separately
participated in the festival. This year, the municipality of Oprtalj participated as well. Ipša and Chiavalon, olive oil producers, have been noticeably successful also this year. “Wine enthusiasts in Novi Sad are well-acquainted with Croatian wines. Nevertheless, our wines are not sufficiently positioned”, stated Edo Tanović, representative of Kalavojna vina, an Istrian company. Matuško: A worthy investment The Pelješac-based wine producer Mato Violić Matuško believes this market has huge potential. He is one of the few Croatian wine producers whose wines have been included in wine lists of the most exclusive Serbian clubs and restaurants. “I believe this market is a worthy investment and we have consequently achieved significant results, primarily in the category of top quality wines. I would like to highlight that I have succeeded in market positioning of my best wines due to good lobbyists and distributors. Had I waited for someone else to do it for me, I would not have achieved anything”, pointed out Violić.