BRATISLAVA, July 26, (SITA) – Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Zsolt Simon and State Secretary of the Economy Ministry Kristian Takac met representatives of foreign retail chains on Tuesday. According to Agriculture Ministry spokesman Juraj Kadas, the topic of their discussion was mainly the quality of foodstuffs sold in Slovakia and in surrounding countries. The ministry made a deal with representatives of Tesco, Carrefour, Billa, Kaufland, Metro, Lidl and Hypernova that an analysis on quality and prices of selected groups of products sold in Slovak retail chains would be elaborated. The chains should deliver their documentation needed for elaborating the analysis to the Agriculture Ministry until August 31.
Last week, the Agriculture Ministry wrote on its website that it is outraged by the behavior of some retail chains that allegedly degrade Slovak consumers to second-class European citizens. The ministry also stated that they consider it absolutely unacceptable that groceries of lower quality are sold in Slovakia for the same or even higher price compared with the rest of the EU .
In its reaction, the Slovak Association of Trade and Tourism (ZOCR) stated it was concerned with the campaign they feel that Agriculture Minister Zsolt Simon wages against them when he accuses them of selling foodstuff of inferior quality compared to the rest of the EU. They emphasized the fact that food producing industry supplies groceries to stores. If the minister has any reservations regarding the quality, he should address the producers and stop its aggressive and offensive campaign against the retail sector.