Slovakia’s grain harvest is this year likely to amount to 2.5mn tonnes, 20% down year on year, but comfortably enough to cover domestic needs and leave a million tonnes for export, SITA newswire reported Milan Semancik, chair of the Slovak Agriculture and Food Chamber (SPPK), as saying on July 11.

Given that last year’s harvest hit a record-high, the decline, caused by lengthy droughts, is not so disappointing, he reportedly added at an annual harvesting event held in Drahovce near Piestany in western Slovakia.

“I am glad to hear that despite the damage [to grain quality and crop volumes] caused by droughts, and despite the sparser harvest, there will still be enough grain to cover domestic consumption with enough left over for exports,” said Prime Minister Robert Fico, who also attended the harvesting event, according to SITA.

Farmers who attended the occasion discussed the creation of a natural disaster fund with contributions to be made by farmers, insurance companies and the state, and payouts to be available to badly hit drought victims in agriculture.

Controversy at the Drahovce gathering was stirred by Alojz Hlina, chair of Slovakia’s Christian Democratic Movement (KDH), who was involved in pouring 100 litres of sheep milk on the ground in protest at the current state of Slovak sheep breeding and its impact on Slovak “bryndza” sheep milk cheese, TASR reported.

Protesting that Agriculture Minister Gabriela Matecna had opted to attend a “PR event” with PM Fico instead of meeting with a delegation of farmers concerned that Slovakia’s sheep breeding industry is going under, Hlina joined farmers in pouring away the sheep’s milk outside the Agricultural Production-Trade Cooperative Drahovce.

"Seeing as the prime minister was slated to go to a field to assess the harvest in Slovakia and I was accompanying him, I myself suggested to Mr Hlina that he could have at his disposal the ministry's state secretary, the food and trade department general director and animal commodities department director. Although we offered him the whole nine yards, Mr Hlina chose to cancel the meeting," Matecna said, according to TASR.      

Matecna pointed out that imports of sheep milk were already vital in Slovakia’s production of traditional bryndza. "Consumption of bryndza has recorded a significant upsurge, and we're no longer capable of covering this with our own resources. Our Wallachian and Tsigai sheep produce inadequate amounts of milk - some 100-115 litres. A certain amount of hope lies with a new national breed, the Slovak Dairy Sheep, that took 25 years to develop and might bolster milk production to as much as 160 litres," Matecna reportedly said.