He is a valued but brave young man whom his fellow citizens remembered recently when he was dissatisfied with the termination of his raspberry harvest purchase, and as a sign of protest, he threw away several hundred bunches of this plant in front of the municipality building. Subsequently, a compromise between the growers and the local authorities was soon found. The young farmer argues that education for him plays a major role in the raspberry business - that is, above all, reflected in the use of communication technologies, internet, management and marketing in agriculture as well as the ability to improve production technology to make yields higher. Andrija grows raspberries on about one hectare and 24 acres. Together with his family, he started with this business two years ago.
PHOTO: Private archive
"I got the idea to work with raspberries after consultations with my friends from Arilje and Kosjerić. My estate, by land structure, altitude and configuration, is ideal for cultivating this plant species, "Andrija says.
His father Danilo is most helpful in this business.
"We do everything by ourselves, except when it is the harvest season, when we pay for the labor. The reasons for this are twofold. One is because the processing cannot be done by anybody as there is so much detail and the other is of a financial nature because the price of the raspberry is very low so we would have a bigger deficit in our budget," he explains.
He noted that the state should simplify the procedures and subsidize the beginners in the raspberry business.
"I believe that the support of the state of 50 percent would be a great support for the development of this branch of agriculture but it would be even more valorized if the state would give 50 percent of the money when buying the funds - so that the grower of the raspberries would have an easier start. Because it is very difficult for a beginner to have the resources available to him, so that only a few months later the state will return 50% of the money invested."
He said he believed the state should take a more serious stance on the issue of cooperation with raspberry businessmen - because this year the number of raspberries increased drastically.
"The state must recognize that the 'red treasure' is one of the great chances of the development of Northern Montenegro and is raising the standards in the population. Also, the state would have a great benefit by following the examples from the countries in the region. Say, Serbia has 300 million euros of benefits from the raspberry business, and only the municipality of Ivanjica has 40 million euros. So how much profit it there?"
He claims he plans to expand his planting area for another 40 acres, but with another sort of raspberry.
Andrija Delić PHOTO: Private archive
"It is a Scottish variety 'glen ample' that has a high yield and is also without thorns. The first-class seedlings with blue labels are located in Bijelo Polje so it greatly facilitates the realization of this project.
Although agriculture is not an easy business, Andrija says that as all physical jobs it contributes to a better state of health. The family, with 20 acres of the raspberry sort "vilamet", can harvest from 2,000 to 3,000 kilograms, depending on the quality of seedlings, effort and knowledge during their processing. Earnings are conditioned by the market price of raspberries as in the refrigerator, and the prices on the green markets, supermarkets, and more.
Andrija says that from dealing with raspberries might produce the sufficient money for a normal life if the state would make the cluster system functional.
"By doing so, they would keep a large part of the raspberries at our market, which would be found in markets and other business entities at affordable prices for ordinary citizens. Also, if it were to be processed into juices, jams, liqueurs, rakija and the like, there would be some calculations that would be profitable for every producer. We need to make the raspberry available in central and southern areas at a price that is optimal for citizens, rather than a kilogram of up to 10 euros. And this can only be done if the 'gray economy' and the resellers who make several times more money than the producer are thrown away from the raspberry business, and at the same time producer has to throw away huge amounts of raspberries because of the price the turnover is too small. "
Text by Jadranka Cetkovic, on July 23rd, 2018, read more at Vijesti
