Dry bean production in the first decades of the 21st century: Republic of Serbia

Abstract

Beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) are used in the diet around the world and are a significant source of proteins, especially in lower-income countries. In recent years, their importance has been growing, especially due to its beneficial effects on human health and the global epidemic of obesity and diabetes. Worldwide, the average yield of beans has varied from 786 to 894.7 in the past ten years. In the same period, the areas under beans have varied significantly, but there is a gradual increase in arable land under this crop (30,685 thousand ha in 2010 to 33,066 thousand ha in 2019). In that period, there has been also an increase in production (from 24,775,394 t in 2010 to 2,8902,672 t in 2019). The paper analyzes the situation in bean production in the Republic of Serbia in the period from 2001 to 2020, as well as possible reasons for the observed trends. In that period, average yields varied over the years ranging from 808 kg/ha (in 2012) to 1294 kg/ha (in 2006) and can be explained by favorable and unfavorable temperature conditions. Despite the relatively good prices of beans, which varied from 0.99 to 1.35 USD/kg in 2004 to 2.23 to 4.12 USD/kg in 2014, depending on the size and color of the seeds, and possible profit, a significant decrease in the area under beans was observed (from 24,968 ha in 2001 to 8,512 ha in 2020) and a reduction in total production (30,927 t in 2001 to 9,253 t in 2020).