Banca Intesa has declared the winners of the fourth annual Intesa Farmer selection of the most successful farmers.
According to the assessment of the jury, the winners of the competition were selected as Vladimir Pavasović from Sremska Mitrovica, in the category Intesa Crop Farmer, Peter Dobrković from Bačka Topola, in the category Intesa Fruit Grower, Antal Januško from Novo Orahovo, in the category of Intesa Livestock Farmer, and Renata Nađ from Žabalj, in the category Intesa Vegetable Grower, while Milanka Trtović from Nova Varoš was the awarded participant of the competition in the category of Intesa Slow Food for small agricultural producers, which was introduced this year in partnership with the Slow Food Serbia Association.
Banca Intesa launched the Intesa Farmer project in 2013, with the aim of highlighting the role played by agriculture in the development of the Serbian economy, but also to use the recognition of the most successful farmers to support the sector’s further progress in another way.
Testifying to the strategic commitment of Banca Intesa to the agriculture sector is the fact that in the first three quarters of 2016 the bank implemented investments worth €26.7 million in registered farms, which represents an increase of 43.5% over the same period last year, while the number of clients receiving loans increased by around 20 per cent.
“This year has brought good results in the agriculture sector and the growth in production that we all wanted. In line with this trend, Banca Intesa recorded dynamic demand, and thus an increase in lending activity,” announced Darko Popović, a member of the Banca Intesa Executive Board and Director of the Banca Intesa Division for Business with Private Individuals and Small Businesses.
The fourth cycle of the Intesa Farmer contest attracted the applications of more than 550 farmers, while the commission was guided in its work by general criteria that included annual results achieved through agricultural production, possession of owned storage facilities, the involvement of family members in the manufacturing process, as well as established cooperation with Banca Intesa.