Citizens of North Mitrovica: We miss Serbian goods, we consume low-quality food

A year after the Kosovo government banned the import of products originating from Serbia, the citizens of North Mitrovica say they often feel restricted in their choice of food, and they consider the available market options to be of poor quality.

"We miss Serbian goods because we consume this low-quality Kosovo food, and some foreign food, which may be cheaper but is of much worse quality than what we are used to. A lot has changed, especially the quality of food," David Markovic says.

His fellow citizen complained to Kosovo Online reporters that there is usually only one type of meat available on the market.

"To me, it's nonsense that they are concerned with where something comes from. They should allow people to supply themselves from wherever suits them, which should be possible in any country. It's hard to get meat products and meat. They practically force you to use only one type of meat, which has never been the case, nor have I heard of such a thing. Abroad, you have the option to get any kind of meat," she says.

A younger resident of Mitrovica believes that everything is getting worse.

"We miss everything; we only have Albanian goods, and that's it. We have nothing, what do we have? Just complaints and such things," he says bitterly.

The Kosovo government banned the import of Serbian products on June 14, 2023. The decision followed the arrest of three Kosovo policemen by Serbian forces. The policemen were soon released pending trial, but the ban on Serbian products remained in force. This measure affected both traders and citizens. The supplies in warehouses were depleted within the first few months.