Organic foods market set to triple

The local organic food market will grow by 200% this year relative to 2004 when it reached 1 million euros. “The value of the Romanian organic food market is still low, but we estimate it will be three times higher in 2005 and up to six times higher in 2006. On the other hand, imports accounted for approximately 30% of the market,” said Radu Panait, general manager of Natura Land, one of the largest importers and distributors of organic food. The market was worth 400,000 euros in 2003. “The main problem facing the local organic products market is the lack of domestic processors and the lack of producer and consumer information,” Panait said. Only a few major companies in the food industry – including LaDorna and AsiNature (Sibiu) – have chosen to invest in the production and releasing of organic products on the market. However, they are tempted to export due to the low demand on the domestic market. On the other hand, exports of organic food amounted to some 10-15 million euros and were dominated by raw materials. “We are largely exporting raw material that is processed in EU countries, and then imported as finished products,” Panait added. The best sellers on the domestic market are organic brown sugar imported from Brazil, rye bread, puddings and vegetal milk imported from EU countries together with other organic products. ZF