Agriculture Minister Josip Dabro said at the Autumn Agricultural Fair in the town of Gudovac on Friday that the consequences of this year's "epic" drought on domestic agriculture would be huge.

Responding to questions from the press, Dabro said that at this point the damage was estimated at €130 million and that higher figures could be expected given that the damage was still being assessed.

He said that crops such as sugar beet and soybean were hit the worst, and added that the priority for the Ministry was to get an accurate assessment of the damage in order to identify the crops and areas most affected.

“Without precise information from the ground, it is difficult to adopt specific support measures,” Dabro pointed out, saying that the Ministry would activate EU funds intended for aid to farmers.

As part of changes to the agricultural strategy, he announced new sectoral tenders to increase production, notably the production of meat, milk, fruit and vegetables.

“We plan to reduce the number of tenders and make them more target-specific. In that way, we will provide effective support to farmers who are ready to increase their production and modernise their business,” Dabro said, adding that the Ministry aims to maintain current production levels.

Asked about the drop in milk production, Dabro said that the trend was changing and that he expected milk production to increase this year compared to last year.