SummaryCost accounting as a segment of an integrated accounting information system by generation of the relevant information provides significant support for both financial and managerial accounting. The above information represents the information base for decision making of internal and external users (management, investors, creditors and other stakeholders). In this paper a special attention is paid to contemporary systems of cost accounting, the application of which can be seen as an integral part of the effort undertaken in order to measure and control costs, since cost management is one of the indispensable elements to achieve, maintain and improve the competitiveness of enterprises. Having in mind the significant potential the Republic of Serbia has in the field of agricultural production, the aim of this paper is to highlight the challenges and specifics of cost management in the agribusiness complex enterprises. Hence, this paper discusses the modern systems of cost accounting as well as the cost management methods suited to the specific agricultural management activities, which could help to the local companies in efforts for share in the global agri-food products' market.

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In efforts to achieve and sustain competitiveness and contribute to the goal of sustainable development of society, entity management requires information that will enable the adoption of adequate decisions. The changed business environment and the growing importance of the issues that emerge from the domain of traditional business, both spatial and temporal, have necessitated the monitoring of costs not only during the production phase, but throughout the entire grain cycle of the product. Since conventional cost accounting systems do not have the capacity to generate the above information, in theory and practice, a life cycle costing system (LCC) has been developed. The aim of the paper is to point out the specificity and importance of perceiving and capturing the impacts and consequential costs that arise during the life cycle of the product, with particular reference to agribusiness, precisely because of the complexity of optimizing costs in that sector.