Evaluation of profit and critical values in spinach production in the Republic of Serbia

The subject of this research paper is the evaluation of spinach's (Spinacia oleracea L.) production profitability, given that spinach is an important vegetable species for human nutrition and health. The research started with an overview of spinach production worldwide and in the European Union in the past ten years (2012-2021). The Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia (SORS) does not monitor the production and yield of spinach as a separate vegetable species, so comparison between Serbia and other world countries is not possible. Therefore, the paper analyzes the values of spinach exports and imports in Serbia. In the end, the evaluation of profit and critical values is given on the example of open field spinach production by an agricultural producer in the area of AP Vojvodina, in the South Banat district. The analysis of achieved profit was made based on the calculation of spinach production for one production cycle (autumn sowing 2021/harvest 2022) on an area of 1ha. The achieved results show that the production of spinach in this district is profitable, and the financial result is positive.