Economic aspects of safety and quality food production: The case of small and medium sized businesses settled in the Czech Republic

The basic characteristic of food industry in the Czech Republic is its lagging behind economic performance in comparison with the EU average. It means, measured by the Gross Value Added indicator, more than a 50% lower labor productivity of food producers settled in the Czech Republic. The biggest share of sales within the food industry is gained by economically larger businesses, i.e. businesses with the head count of employees higher than 100. Technological and market economy consequences of safety and quality foods, together with the fact of lower performance of domestic food-processors in comparison to those settled mainly in EU 10 countries, can be discussed as the problem area within sustainable development of small and medium sized enterprises in the Czech Republic. These facts can be mentioned together with the information potential of EU Rapid Alert System for Food Safety (RASFF), which warns against current threats within identified breaking of EU food safety law and order. This article provides partial results of explorative study within cases of breaking the food safety requirements in the Czech Republic, based on data of the Czech Agriculture Food Inspection Authority and State Veterinary Administration, respectively. The sample of foodstuff producers settled in the Czech Republic, which broke the food safety legislation in the time period November 2015-June 2016 was analyzed to identify common factors as possible predictors for intended quality of food and beverages production.