Overview of the Agricultural Sector in Romania
Potential of the agricultural sector in Romania
The agricultural sector in Romania has a very high potential. The country total production value increased by 12.5% in 2017 compared to the previous year – equal to 78.5 billion RON, or 17.2 billion EUR, according to data analyses by the INS (National Statistics Institute). The country has the sixth surface level dedicated to agriculture in the EU - 13.9 million hectare - after France, Spain, UK, Germany and Poland (PwC Romania). The Agricultural sector in Romania engages around 30% of the workforce of the country and it contributes to 7.9% of the total GDP of the country, a very high level considering that the European average covers only 1.9%. The majority of the land is dedicated to cereal cropping (23.6%) and it covers 2/3 of the total agricultural land. Grain production represented over a third (34.8%) of the whole crop production. Sunflower seed has also an extensive exploitation, Romania indeed is positioned as one of the top producer in the EU. Vegetables, with a particular large production of cabbages, onions, potatoes, green peppers and tomatoes are also cultivated around the cities of Timișoara, Arad, Craiova, Galați, Brăila and Bucharest. The agricultural sector in Romania offers a relevant wine industry too. Thanks to its large export, Romania, indeed, can be considered one of the most important wine-producing country of Europe. The most famous vineyards are located in the area of Odobesti, Panciu, and Nicoresti.
Challenges of the agricultural sector in Romania
The agricultural sector in Romania has past various historical period and the last relevant changed was defined in 2014 when a new law has completely liberalized the acquisition of agricultural lands to foreign investors (law n. 17/2014). This new law has accelerated the innovation and mechanisation process of the agricultural sector in Romania, but the general productivity remains still too low. A side-effect of this new law is the so-called “land grabbing” which has created a high concentration of power and a monopoly in the sector. According to a research developed by the Institute TNI (www.tni.org/en) the 0.4% of the Romanian agricultural companies own more than 48% of the lands. In addition to this, there are other main problems to solve: in Romania there is a spread tax evasion, there is lack of training among farmers and the low level of capitalisation of the sector.
Main Agricultural Sectorial Fairs in Romania
INDAGRA in Bucharest - 30 October - 03 November 2019 - (https://www.indagra.ro/en/ )
AGROMALIM in Iasi - to be defined - (http://www.agri-events.ro/ - http://www.ccia-arad.ro/agromalim/ )