PRODUCTION AND SUPPLY BALANCE OF POULTRY MEAT IN CROATIA

Poultry meat is an important protein source in the human consumption. The main factors that have a positive effect on the development of the poultry industry are short production cycle, relatively low cost and the lack of religious restrictions on consumption. Chicken meat has the biggest share in the structure of poultry meat. The paper objective was to calculate the level of self-sufficiency degree in poultry meat in Croatia in the period from 2000 to 2012 and the degree of self-sufficiency in 2016 based on the results obtained. The method of balancing was used for calculation of self-sufficiency degree. The degree of self-sufficiency in the production of poultry meat in Croatia is higher than in other types of meat being between 80 and 90%. However, further decrease is expected and in 2016 domestic production would meet 81.17% of the domestic needs