Bottled water fee reduced by 12%

The fee per liter of bottled water was reduced at the initiative of the Chamber of Commerce of Serbia by 12% compared to 2016, enabling local producers to take a more competitive position in the markets of the EU and the region.

As reported by the CCIS, the new decree on water fees for 2017, adopted by the government at the session of April 13, reduced the fee by 12%, bringing it down to the level of 2012.

The decree is a result of successful cooperation between the CCIS and the Ministry of Agriculture and Environmental Protection, and the talks were initiated by the association of producers of mineral water, fruit juices and non-alcoholic drinks of the CCIS, whose members include Coca-Cola, Knjaz Milos and Prolom Voda.

The producers are satisfied with the decree and see it as an important step forward in improving competitiveness, it is added.

– The decree is very important for our company. We would like to point out that this deserves praise above all as it establishes competitiveness in relation to imported bottled water, but also creates the possibility of regional competition. At the same time, this can help our exporting potential, as well as create the possibility of reinvesting in expanding local business activities, whether through strengthening the brand, expanding the range of products or increasing the distribution – said Andrea Radonjic, manager at Coca Cola HBC.

In Knjaz Milos, they see the reduction of the fee as the first step towards strengthening the competitiveness of local producers in relation to those from the region.

– We hope that this is also the first step towards bringing the fees in Serbia in line with the fees in the region and the EU and adopting the industry's proposal to reduce the fee by 30% compared to the previous period. To us, this decision is a sign that the Government of Serbia has recognized the need to strengthen local production and correct the mistakes made back in 2007, when the fee was raised by 40%, bringing local producers to an unfair position compared to producers in the region and making the export considerably more difficult – stated Adrijana Despotovic, Legal Affairs Manager at Knjaz Milos.

Privredna komora Srbije

Vlada Republike Srbije

Ministarstvo poljoprivrede, šumarstva i vodoprivrede Republike Srbije

Coca-Cola Hellenic bottling company-Srbija d.o.o. Beograd

Knjaz Miloš a.d. Aranđelovac

Udruženje industrije mineralnih voda Beograd

Chamber of Commerce of Serbia

CCIS

Government of Serbia

Ministry of Agriculture and Environmental Protection

association of producers of mineral water

Coca Cola

Knjaz Milos

Prolom Voda

decree on water fees

decree on water fees 2017

bottled water fee

mineral water fee

bottled water

mineral water VAT

Andrea Radonjic

Adrijana Despotovic

export of bottled water