2011-16-09 -  60% of the Croatian Wood-Processing Industry does not Meet EU Requirements! Wood-processing industry of every country in the process of accession to the EU is obligated to meet a series of legal requirements in product safety, health safety, and environment protection. It is estimated that presently over 60% of wood-processing companies in Croatia, the country that already "booked its EU ticket", does not meet at least one of the requirements, particularly in surface finishing and minimal technical requirements in primary processing.
Slovenian wood-processing industry spent over EUR 60 million in the process of adaptation to EU regulations. And yet, 7 years after the accession to the EU, some companies still do not meet the prescribed technical requirements. Over 80% of the Croatian paint booths do not meet the requirements for getting a
valid work license. At the same time, Croatian wood-processing companies do not have an insight into the aspects of adaptation and upcoming legal framework which is threatening to cause difficulties in business conduct, resulting in high penalties in case of failure to meet legal requirements.
Furthermore, it is important to note that 80% of small-size sawmills in the countries of the region do not meet the minimal technical requirements on work safety, fire safety or environment protection. These were some of the topics discussed at a professional seminar that took place in mid July in Zagreb, Croatia. Despite good attendance from the relevant institutions, a large number of industry representatives failed to appear, pointed out Zdravko Jelcic, the president of the Association of Wood Processors at the Croatian
Chamber of Economy, in his opening speech. This can be attributed to an overall lack of information regarding requirement which Croatia gave its consent to during the EU accession talks. Furthermore, the majority of industry representatives are still does not familiar with these obligations.
Relevant Italian and Slovenian representatives were given an opportunity to share their experiences as well. During their EU accession talks, Slovenian government also failed to consult with the industry on those issues, which resulted in "copying" strict German regulations, that placed significant burden on the industry. Hence, seven years after their accession to the EU, considerable part of the industry still does not meet the prescribed requirements. One of the conclusions was the need for a continuous source of
information and education of the manufacturers, as well as the introduction of a transition period in which Croatian and other countries of the Region which are at the very beginning of their EU accession talks could implement EU regulations, given the fact that adaptation to EU regulations entails retention and strengthening of competitiveness of the domestic wood-processing industry. This professional seminar was the first of many other activities to follow, stated the organizer, Wood Cluster Delnice, announcing the autumn
edition. The lecturers were well-renowned experts in their respective academic and scientific fields: Italian Research Institute and Test Laboratory CATAS,
Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia, Faculty of Forestry, University of Zagreb etc.