March 14 (SeeNews) - Serbia-registered company H&S Fruits has started the construction of a fruit processing factory in Arilje, the agriculture ministry said.
During its first phase of development, the factory will produce pulp and fruit concentrates which will be exported and processed in Hungary, the agriculture ministry said in a statement earlier this week.
The value of the investment was not disclosed.
H&S Fruits is a 50/50 joint venture of Serbian company Stanic and Hungary's Horizon Food Kft, according to data from Serbia's business register.
The new factory will export concentrates from raspberries and other fruit, agriculture minister Branislav Nedimovic said during the groundbreaking ceremony.
Similar projects will be carried out in cooperation with Hungarian investors in other places in Serbia, like Merosina, Bojnik and Koceljevo, Nedimovic said.
In Serbia, raspberries are cultivated on about 15,000 hectares. The area of Arilje, in western Serbia, has intensive plantations where the yield per hectare reaches 30 tonnes, compared to the country's average of 6 tonnes per hectare.