The value of agricultural, forestry and fishery products purchased and sold by reporting companies and agricultural cooperatives in Montenegro reached €14.1 million in the second quarter of 2026, increasing 10.1% year on year. Companies’ own production accounted for €6.4 million, or 45.1%, of the recorded value, while purchases from individual agricultural producers amounted to €7.7 million, or 54.9%.
The two components moved in opposite directions during the quarter. Sales derived from companies’ own production increased 31.2%, whereas the value of products purchased from individual producers decreased 2.7%. The figures cover the formal purchase-and-sale channel recorded among business entities and agricultural cooperatives. The MONSTAT survey includes entities and agricultural cooperatives with two or more employees, and therefore does not cover every agricultural transaction or represent a complete census of Montenegro’s farm production.
Within the reported commercial value, hen eggs accounted for 28.1%, making them the largest category. Raw cow’s milk represented 22%, followed by fresh vegetables at 14.8%, livestock at 11.3%, fruit at 7.6% and fresh fish at 5.3%. Industrial crops represented 0.7% of the total, while processed fruit and grapes accounted for 0.5%. Eggs and milk together represented more than half of the value recorded through the surveyed commercial channel.
Dairy-sector figures also showed increased activity. Montenegrin dairies purchased approximately 8.15 million kilograms of cow’s milk in Q2, up 5.8% from the same quarter a year earlier. Livestock indicators moved in the opposite direction. The number of cattle slaughtered declined 6.9% to 6,871, while net slaughter weight fell 11%. The different movements across agricultural categories show varying trends among Montenegro’s subsectors during the quarter. The increase in sales from companies’ own production coincided with the decline in purchases from individual agricultural producers. A 2.7% reduction in purchases from private farmers does not establish that small-scale agricultural production as a whole declined, as producers may also sell through direct channels, tourism, markets and informal networks.
A sustained decline in purchases by formal businesses could nevertheless change the structure of the commercial agricultural supply chain, with a larger share of recorded activity originating from production directly controlled by companies. The requirements of hotels, retailers and food processors include reliable volumes, standardised quality, traceability and continuous deliveries. Larger farms, vertically integrated businesses and agricultural companies can invest in equipment, biosecurity, cold chains, storage and consistent supply to meet such requirements. Individual producers can participate in organised supply chains through aggregation, cooperatives and purchasing systems that provide access to larger-scale markets.
The Q2 data also highlight the role of cooperatives, collection centres, cold storage, processing facilities, certification and long-term purchasing agreements in connecting fragmented agricultural production with professional buyers. Agriculture in Montenegro has also been linked to rural-development and social-policy objectives, including support for small holdings, preservation of villages and efforts to reduce rural depopulation. The formal commercial market operates alongside those objectives, with the reported Q2 data showing a 10.1% increase in total purchases and sales, a 31.2% rise in companies’ own production, and a 2.7% decline in purchases from individual producers.
