AGROBIZ Marina Galović

Guest Marina GalovićHosted by Mia MitrovićMay 3, 2026

Marina Galović

About this episode

What you'll hear in this conversation

The problems of farming in a city's green belt are distinct, often ignored, and usually immediate. Marina Galović, president of the Association of Vegetable Growers of Zagreb and Zagreb County, knows them intimately. She is a direct voice for farmers in the metropolitan area, speaking plainly about the challenges they face, from climate volatility to inconsistent government support. This conversation is a window into the daily realities of food production at the urban edge, revealing how policy decisions, market structures, and even the weather directly impact what ends up on your plate. Galović outlines how current agricultural policies often fail to serve local food producers and consumers, focusing instead on large-scale commodity farming. You will walk away with a clearer understanding of the hidden costs and systemic issues that shape the future of local agriculture.

Insights from the conversation

What to take from this episode

Flooded greenhouses and fields, with vegetables literally under water, illustrate the immediate and drastic impact of climate on agriculture. Even with modern techniques, farming remains fundamentally exposed to immediate weather conditions, making long-term planning difficult when the short term is so volatile.

Insurance for agricultural production now covers individual crops for only 50 days, not a full season, and premiums are high. When insurance becomes too granular, expensive, and limited in scope, it ceases to be a meaningful risk management tool and becomes another cost, leaving farmers to rely on chance.

After a hailstorm destroyed their crops, Marina Galović's family farm was offered 2,500 kunas in compensation for two and a half hectares of vegetables — less than the cost of their seeds alone. State compensation for natural disasters can be so disconnected from actual losses that it discourages farmers from even applying, highlighting a systemic failure to understand production costs.

Not all 165,000 OPGs (family farms) in Croatia are food producers; the term covers diverse agricultural branches, from livestock to self-sufficient small plots. Broad statistical categories can mask the true state and scale of food production, making it harder to craft targeted policies for actual food supply.

A quarter of Croatia's vegetable farming is concentrated in the City of Zagreb, with Marina Galović's association alone cultivating over 200 hectares. Urban and peri-urban agriculture often represents a significant, yet overlooked, part of national food production, which policy makers may ignore to the detriment of local supply.

The Ministry of Agriculture has historically prioritized grain and livestock farmers over vegetable growers, treating them as less important. When policy prioritizes commodity production for export over domestic food consumption, it creates a structural disadvantage for sectors vital to local diets.

Farmers are restricted from using certain pesticides due to the Green Agenda, but imported produce often faces no such scrutiny. Unbalanced regulatory standards create unfair competition, forcing local producers to adhere to stricter rules than the products they compete against.

Marina Galović argues that subsidies should shift from grain farming, which primarily serves export markets, to vegetable farming, which directly feeds Croatian citizens. Subsidies designed for one agricultural model can become counterproductive when consumer needs and market realities shift, requiring a re-evaluation of national food security priorities.

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ScenariosBusiness challenges CardsEducational cards TimelineTopic evolution