Tenants of the tavern and imported goods: Fruit and vegetables from Turkey, Senegal, China... are displayed on the stalls.

While registered farms, or citizens and companies with contracts to purchase agricultural products from producers, have the right to sell at city markets in the European Union, in Montenegro anyone can rent a stall, even to sell imported fruit and vegetables - without the obligation to state that they arrived across the border.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Podgorica's "Markets and Markets" responded to questions from "Vijesti" that there are currently no conditions for registered agricultural producers or traders who purchase products from them to sell at markets, and that they are not aware of the obligation to sell domestic fruit and vegetables at markets.

The Ministry stated that they have no jurisdiction over the operation of markets and the regulation of this activity, but that this is the responsibility of local governments and their companies that manage the markets.

The "Vijesti" interlocutor said that about half of the stalls in Podgorica's green markets are run by tenants, who are not producers or sell domestic products, but rather buy vegetables and fruit at the Truck Market from importers. He explained that inscriptions in foreign languages, mostly Turkish, are also visible on the crates and packaging.

There are no regulations for the protection of domestic

Podgorica's "Markets and Markets" told "Vijesti" that their work is determined by the Decision on Markets - Municipal Regulations from 2021 and the Regulation on Market Order from 2025, and that these regulations also define who can rent a stall.

"Stalves for the sale of fruit, vegetables and other agricultural products can be rented by other tenants, in addition to individual agricultural producers, with the obligation to comply with food safety regulations, which means that tenants of stalls for the above do not have to be exclusively agricultural producers, but sales at stalls can also be carried out by tenants who purchase products from agricultural producers or sell imported goods," the Capital City company stated.

When asked whether there is a regulation stipulating that only domestic agricultural products can be sold at market stalls, given that fruit and vegetables are visibly sold in packaging and with declarations of imported products, the company stated that such a thing is not defined for normal work, except when there are fairs of domestic products.

"We are not aware of any regulation that stipulates that only domestic agricultural products can be sold at market stalls. We would like to point out that when fairs are organized for domestic producers, only domestic producers sell at these stalls, and they also display a declaration about the product and the producer on their products."

The Market Order Regulation does not require vendors to state the origin of the goods they sell, or whether they are domestic or imported fruits and vegetables. Only if they are registered as organic producers can they state a “healthy organic food” certificate, and if they sell wild mushrooms they must have a “certificate of edibility from an authorized person.”

So, if they sell tomatoes, lettuce, onions... from Turkey, Senegal or China, they don't have to label it, which can mislead consumers into thinking that only domestic products are sold at the markets.

Markets in Croatia guarantee that everything is local

In the member states of the European Union, where Montenegro could join in two years, domestic agricultural producers have the advantage in the markets, or they are the only ones, and they must clearly state the origin of the product and the name of the farm from which it comes.

An example of how markets are organized is Split and its “Markets.” Their website guarantees that visitors will buy local fruit and vegetables, fish, meat, and dairy products from family producers at the stalls.

"Markets and fish markets are the only place where you can find and reliably buy fresh domestic produce, i.e. seasonal fruits and vegetables, fresh cheese and cream, high-quality fresh fish, meat and meat products, and various products produced by small and hard-working family producers and growers, directly from the producer," it was stated.

It also states that their mission is to “ensure producers get their products to the end user, or customer, as quickly as possible,” and their vision is to “increase the share of consumption of domestic products by purchasing directly from farmers themselves.” They also state that the value of Split’s markets and fish markets is to “contribute to preserving and increasing the value of domestic production and ensuring the availability of fresh seasonal products.”

Correctness is checked, but not origin

When asked by "Vijesti" who controls the safety of agricultural products sold at markets, as well as their origin, i.e. whether they are domestic or imported, Podgorica's "Markets and Markets" responded that the safety of agricultural products is controlled by the competent inspections in accordance with the Law on Food Safety, i.e. that there is an obligation to control the safety, but not the origin of the products, because imported fruit and vegetables can legally be found on the stalls.

The Ministry of Agriculture did not directly answer the question of "Vijesti" whether there is an intention (or an obligation from the accession negotiations with the EU) to regulate the operation of markets in a different way, so that agricultural producers would have stalls and domestic agricultural products would be sold there.

"Regarding your questions regarding the operation of markets, the conditions for using and renting stalls, the method of organizing sales at markets, as well as possible benefits for market users, we inform you that the above issues are not within the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management. The Capital City of Podgorica, namely the company 'Tržnice i pijace' doo Podgorica, is responsible for organizing the operation of city markets, managing, allocating and renting sales points, as well as determining the conditions under which products are sold at markets. Accordingly, for information regarding the possibility of renting stalls by registered agricultural producers, the sale of domestic and imported products at markets, possible subsidies or discounts, as well as plans for further organizing the operation of markets, it is necessary to contact the aforementioned company as the competent entity," the Ministry stated.

When asked who controls the quality of agricultural products sold at markets and whether they are domestic or imported, the answer was that they control quality, while the part about controlling the origin of products was not answered, because there is no such legal obligation.

"When it comes to controlling the safety of food and agricultural products placed on the market, the safety of the products is determined by analyses conducted by authorized and specialized laboratories, while field control and supervision of the implementation of regulations are carried out by the competent inspection services within their legal powers," the Ministry of Agriculture stated.

Markets and markets in Croatia are also advertised as places that tourists should visit because they are guaranteed to try fresh and local products.

Last year, Montenegro imported food worth 842 million euros, of which 130 million were fruits and vegetables, 100 million were milk and dairy products, and 193 million were meat and meat products...

There are no discounts for farmers either.

When asked whether registered agricultural producers should have discounts on stall rental compared to buyers and sellers of imported fruit and vegetables, the Ministry stated that this is also regulated by municipal companies that manage markets. "For information related to the possibility of renting stalls by registered agricultural producers, the sale of domestic and imported products at markets, possible subsidies or discounts, it is necessary to contact the aforementioned company as the competent entity," the Ministry stated.

When asked the same question, Podgorica's "Markets and Markets" told "Vijesti" that they are negotiating with the Ministry of Agriculture about supporting domestic agricultural producers through financing dedicated stalls for them.

"When it comes to supporting domestic agricultural producers, in the previous period, discussions were held with the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management with the aim of creating additional conditions for the sale of domestic products. During the discussions, the Ministry expressed its willingness to finance a certain number of sales stands from its budget, which would be intended exclusively for registered agricultural producers. After reaching a final agreement and implementing this initiative, the public and interested producers will be promptly and officially informed by our company about all the details, conditions and methods of using the aforementioned benefits," the municipal company stated.