Soaring electricity and fuel prices are the biggest worry for Bulgaria's meat processors, says Atanas Urdzhanov, chairman of the Bulgarian Meat Processors Association. He spoke as a guest at the traditional Elena Ham festival.
Urdzhanov says the euro hurts the sector less than inflation and high production costs. He gave the example of power at peak hours, which costs up to €340 per megawatt hour. That weighs on producers, and dearer fuel adds to firms' costs.
The sector is waiting for state aid for energy. Officials are now discussing a scheme under which the money would sit in a fund for 10 months. Urdzhanov fears the aid may not reach firms in time.
The pork market is calmer. About 40% of the meat processors use is Bulgarian and 60% comes from the European market. The price has stayed fairly steady so far, and producers can still offer competitive prices.
Beef is harder because local output is small. About 20% of the meat is Bulgarian and 80% is imported from other European countries. That split is worse than for pork.
More than 400 meat processing companies work in Bulgaria, most of them small or medium-sized. Urdzhanov thinks producers should team up more, so they can take bigger orders and meet demand.
Bulgaria should make use of its tourists, he also said. By the figures he cited, there are 12 million of them, and they should eat quality Bulgarian food. Traditional products need more promotion, and local producers need more support.