Conscious consumers and high quality

Consumers are increasingly looking for quality food of Slovenian origin. We also encourage consumers to be informed and raise their awareness thereof through the project "Our super food" and sectoral promotional activities in accordance with the Promotion of Agricultural and Food Product Act. The active participation of individual sectors in raising the awareness of consumers is vital. We have already begun with the sectoral promotions of milk and meat and we plan to continue with fruit and other sectors. In addition to mandatory labelling, other important sources of information about food include voluntary labelling and quality schemes. Because these schemes require higher quality and added value in agricultural products, we encourage producers to get involved, while we upgrade and develop the schemes themselves.

Our vision is that the food Slovenia offers will place us among the globally recognisable gourmet destinations. In accordance with the natural characteristics of Slovenia, we will encourage greater visibility and consumption of Slovenian goods in households, restaurants, and especially touristic and public institutions. Particular attention is also devoted to reducing food waste. Systemic solutions have already been put in place, but we have to continue to raise awareness among consumers and the enterprise and public sectors.

Resilient and competitive food production and processing

One of the main strategic goals in agriculture is to achieve resilient and competitive food production and food processing. We are working towards this goal by ensuring high standards as regards the provision of safe and high-quality food, encouraging the efficient use and accessibility of resources, ensuring comparable income levels and income stability in agriculture, and supporting agri-food chains, entrepreneurship and a market orientation in the sector. We also support the production and consumption of food with higher added value and strive for the preservation of production potential and the extent of agricultural land.

We are aware of the significant differences in the negotiating power of different economic operators in the food supply chain, owing to which the weakest link, usually the agricultural producer, remains in an inferior position and under excessive economic pressure. To that end, we are taking measures to protect farmers and improve the functioning of the food supply chain. Encouraging and establishing appropriate competitive conditions and eliminating unfair practices along the food supply chain is an essential condition for ensuring the proper functioning thereof and equitable risk and income distribution.

Considering the options that the Common Agricultural Policy provides for the future, the main factors that will contribute to the achievement of our goals will be basic income support through direct payments, sectoral interventions, payments for areas with natural constraints, support for investments in agricultural holdings and the food processing industry, which will raise income in production, processing and marketing, as well as regulatory mechanisms, especially in the tax area. On the other hand, farms and the food processing industry will have to receive support regarding their investments in knowledge in order to achieve greater economic efficiency and implement innovative practices.

The food supply could become a problem on a global scale, since the resources are limited and the population grows by the day. Furthermore, transporting food over considerable distances has a negative effect both on the environment and the quality of the transported food. These are some of the reasons why the issue of local and regional food self-sufficiency is again becoming so important. In Slovenia, we also need a technologically advanced and competitive agricultural industry and agri-food processing that will provide safe high-quality food in accordance with the diverse agrarian and relief structures, local traditions and new creative solutions. Our primary task is to ensure that operators have appropriate access to resources, such as land, labour, capital and knowledge, while their task is to use these resources efficiently.