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Livestock crisis/ Dairy imports increased by 62% for the period 2021-2025

2026-02-05 07:19:23, Ekonomi CNA

Albania's trade balance for basket products is showing an increasingly pronounced dependence on imports from abroad.

According to INSTAT data from foreign trade, the category "Dairy products, eggs and honey" has experienced a strong increase in import value, rising from 6.8 billion lek in 2024, to around 7.7 billion lek in 2025.

This expansion of about 14% within a calendar year and 62% since 2021, is showing that domestic production is rapidly losing ground to products that come mainly from countries in the Region and the European Union.

This increase in imports comes as a direct consequence of a structural crisis that has gripped the livestock sector in Albania. For years, the number of livestock heads has been systematically declining, driven by the abandonment of the village, the aging of the rural population and the lack of interest of young people in inheriting family farms.

On the other hand, the cost of domestic production has become more expensive due to the increase in prices of agricultural inputs and food supplies. Albanian livestock farmers are finding themselves powerless to compete with foreign producers, who are supported by subsidy schemes and more efficient technology.

Meanwhile, the market is reacting by moving towards filling the vacuum created by domestic production through imports. While domestic consumption remains relatively stable and demand from the tourism sector is increasing year after year, the lack of "Made in Albania" milk and its by-products is being filled by foreign factories.

The strengthening of the local currency has made importing cheese, milk or butter from European Union countries much cheaper than in previous years. For a trader, it is now more profitable to bring a truckload of milk from Italy or Hungary than to collect small quantities of milk in the villages of Albania with high logistical costs. The strong lek is hitting domestic producers hard, as they cannot compete with foreign prices.

This situation creates a vicious circle where, as imports increase, the pressure on institutions to support local livestock decreases, leaving the latter at the mercy of fate and devalued in the face of regional competition.

Experts in the field warn that if this trend reflected in the 2025 figures continues at the same pace, Albania risks losing food sovereignty in basic products. The increase in imports by a full 10 million euros within a year is showing that subsidy policies have failed to curb the shrinkage of livestock. /Monitor