Farmers are leaving investments in Albania and are leaving for emigration again, here are the reasons

Fatmir Ndoja, originally from Tropoja, invested in 2010 in the village of Lunas in Lushnja, 8 million ALL for the purchase of 30 hectares of agricultural land and the establishment of a greenhouse with an area of ​​5 acres, with the income saved after 11 years of work in emigration. In the greenhouse, Fatmir Ndoja grew tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and melons. In the first years, the activity flourished, while for 3 years, the income from the planting of greenhouses is at a loss. Due to the sale of products below cost, Fatmir Ndoja decided not to grow vegetables in the greenhouse this year, but to emigrate to Germany to work in construction for a salary of 15 euros / hour.

“In 2010, I invested the savings from emigration work in Greece and Belgium in agriculture. The initial investment for the construction of the greenhouse cost 4 million ALL. For the purchase of land with an area of ​​35 ha, I spent another 4 million ALL. In the first years, the annual profits from the production were satisfactory, reaching up to 15,000 euros. For 3 years now we continue to produce vegetables and greens at high cost, while selling them at prices below the cost of production. This situation has caused us high, unbearable losses. For this reason, I have decided to emigrate again “, says the farmer from the village of Lunas in Lushnja, in the conversation held with the magazine” Monitor “.

Greenhouse farmers, in difficulty from rising costs by 25%
Losses from greenhouse production started in 2019, when the change of the compensable VAT scheme from the previous 20% to 6% started to be implemented. Discussions about changing the scheme were accompanied in 2018 by protests from farmers, who warned that reducing the compensation rate would increase production costs. In the following years, losses from agricultural products deepened, due to the increase in the price of seedlings for crops, agricultural inputs and oil. Farmers, on the other hand, are worried that they will not be able to find a market for their products.

Market oversupply from the production of tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers or melons has affected the fall in the selling price. For several years, farmers have been selling their produce below cost, the main reason for which has turned the investment of setting up unprofitable greenhouses. The production cost for 1 dynym greenhouse has increased over 25%, while the selling price of the final product is very low.

“The cost for the production of 1 dynym tomato, starting with the costs for the purchase of seedlings, the cost of 20,000 ALL for spraying plants with chemical fertilizers, payments of 1,000 ALL / day for workers who harvest tomatoes, high prices for the purchase of plastic for to replace the injured party and the agronomist’s payments, years were 130,000 ALL out of 100,000 that it cost in the period 2019-2020. Years of tomatoes we sold for 200 lek / box (the box has 18 kg of tomatoes).

The lack of a market for the sale of tomatoes forced me to throw 30 tons of production into the canal for years. Greenhouse production has a feature, if one year you can not get the money invested, you can not recover the next year. So far, we have managed to survive with our income, without anyone’s help, we have no financial means to continue production.

For these reasons, I decided not to plant any greenhouse crops this year and to return to emigration. In the village of Lunas, most farmers have emigrated again. “Today he does not find any young people in the village, as they have emigrated”, claims the farmer Ndoja, owner of the greenhouse with an area of ​​5 ha. He explains that it is impossible to cultivate other crops, as high prices of agricultural inputs have added to pessimism about tillage. “The price of the bridge from 3,500 lek / kv – 4,000 lek / kv, today it is sold for 9,000 to 10,000 lek / kv. The selling price of 1 kv of wheat varies from 2,500 to 3,500 ALL / kv. “If you calculate the costs from the bridge and the planting costs, the profits from the harvest are zero.”

According to the chairman of the Farmers’ Union, Eduart Sharka, last year, farmers sold 90% of their products below cost. “This is the main reason why many farmers are leaving barren lands, abandoning investments in greenhouses and leaving. In the area of ​​Lushnja and beyond there are hundreds of cases of farmers who invested in setting up greenhouses with income from emigration and are already abandoning the investment to work in greenhouses in Sicily or Crete. The agricultural sector continues to remain chaotic, as subsidies are lacking, when farmers are affected by rising prices of agricultural inputs, or seedlings. In this situation, every new investment manages to flourish only the first 3 years, and then, only survives.

Manufacturers do not find the market for the sale, they throw the products in the canal
In the rural area of ​​Lushnja, which is considered the heart of the Myzeqe area, there are many young farmers who have abandoned investment and are returning to emigration. The reasons for leaving the greenhouse are the lack of finding a market for the sale of products, while the production costs from year to year are becoming unaffordable. Ardit Llupo is another farmer from Lushnja, who invested his income from emigration work in setting up a greenhouse, but is now forced to abandon his family investment to return to Italy.

He owns 4.5 acres planted with eggplant and squash in greenhouses, an investment raised 20 years ago by his and his father’s work in emigration. “For the establishment of greenhouses we invested about 3 million ALL with the income earned from work in Italy. The greenhouse was set up in 2000, about two decades ago, an investment that according to financial logic should have been consolidated. The first years profits have been good, but for three years, production is in crisis. The reason is the increase in production costs and the lack of finding a market to sell the products profitably.

In 2019, the cost for planting 1 dynym greenhouse was 80,000 ALL, today it is estimated at 130,000 to 150,000 ALL / dynym. From 2019, the cost of vegetable production has increased, while the selling price has fallen. The change in the compensatory VAT scheme has mostly affected the increase in the price of chemical fertilizers and seedlings. A plant sapling costs 12 lek. The costs for the purchase of 2,400 sapling plants for 1 dynym greenhouse are about 30,000 ALL.

For our greenhouse, with an area of ​​4.5 acres, only the costs for the purchase of the seedling reach 130,000 ALL. There are also the costs of plastic and labor to collect it. For example, for picking beans you have to hire 7 women. The cost for workers’ salaries is unaffordable, as the working day is paid 1,500 ALL. Apart from high costs, they do not find market for selling products. We ask local collectors for cheap products that are below the cost of production. Even though we all work as a family for the greenhouse, we can not afford to make a living. Currently, to generate family income, I am working as a driver in a company.

“It is a shame to have your investment and work in private.” Arditi Llupo adds that even with the work found, he is not optimistic, as the company that trades in plastic has a decrease in demand and is not able to afford the salary costs of employees. “My only hope is to return to work in emigration. I expect to leave soon for Italy where I will work as a painter. I came back 4 years ago from emigration and I will leave again. “I do not see a future in agriculture.”

Berat farmers are also abandoning greenhouses
The phenomenon of abandonment of greenhouses set up years ago has spread massively in rural areas outside Lushnja. Ardit Tafa, the director of the agricultural pharmacy from the village of Gurican in Berat, claims for “Monitor” that a large number of farmers in this area are returning to emigration, after they have gone bankrupt. Such is the case of Muharrem Gjozi, 40, from the village of Gurican. This year he did not plant the 3.5-acre greenhouse, which he set up 6 years ago with the money earned from work in Greece, as the losses are 67% of the expenses for the seasonal planting of a crop.

Gjozi points out that the main problem that caused the crisis of his business was the lack of market, as the products from the collectors are demanded at a price below the cost of production. “Years, I spent 150,000 ALL for 1 dynym of tomatoes planted in greenhouses. From the sale of the product I gained only 50,000 lekë and lost 100,000 lekë per dynym. Tomatoes produced in the greenhouse last year were sold for 20-25 lek / kg, while cucumbers from September to November were sold for 15 lek / kg.

I bought only the cucumber seedling for 35 lek / plant. 100,000 lekë is only the cost of buying the seedling and 60,000 lekë are the expenses for the purchase of chemical fertilizers. This is the second year we have lost production. This year we did not plant new seedlings due to the lack of a market for the sale of products. In this situation it is impossible for us to survive, because for the development of the greenhouse I had to take a loan. For this reason, I decided to return to emigration to work in construction “, emphasizes among others the farmer Muharrem Gjozi, whose love for the land and the need to be close to his family encouraged him to invest his emigration savings in 2015. The initial investment was in the amount of ALL 3 million.

The low budget for agriculture and the lack of support funds to the farmer are considered the main reasons why farmers are abandoning the land by the head of the Union, Mr. Eduart Sharka. “The fund for the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is 1.2% of the total budget, in Kosovo it occupies 3.6% of the budget, while in European countries, 5%.

In the EU, the share of agriculture in Gross Domestic Product is 2-3%, while in Albania it is 20% of GDP. The report is very skewed and this is where the problems for the sector start. On the other hand, the implementation of subsidies would alleviate production costs for farmers and encourage them to work the land. “Due to the lack of support for agriculture, farmers are facing losses every year.”

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