RALF Romanian Agriculture Leadership Forum is the most complex professional and business event in Romania dedicated to large farmers, investors and leaders in agriculture, producers and processors, which addresses the entire agricultural value chain. The 6th edition brought together, in each of the 2 days, over 250 participants from 29 counties and 71 speakers from 9 countries. “European Agricultural Romania” was the theme of the RALF 2022 Romanian Agriculture Leadership Forum edition, which took place on May 18 and 19, at the JW Marriott Grand Hotel in Bucharest, Grand Ballroom. The first day was dedicated to large farmers and agricultural producers, and the second day to processors.

We present below 60 needs and proposals of agricultural entrepreneurs, conclusions of the two days of RALF events:

1. A coherent policy that prioritizes agriculture and the food industry is needed – following the model of the Netherlands, where the tax relief is equivalent to 6 times the investment made in research or education. A similar measure would be extraordinary in Romania also as it would put the country back on the research trajectory.
2. Romania is a net importer of agri-food products that are exclusively cereals (almost 1.5% of GDP), we are exporters of cereals, however, we should also process a greater quantity internally.
3. In Romania, 16.5% of greenhouse gas emissions come from agriculture; it is necessary to emphasize the discussion about these gas emissions and the Green Deal.
4. The access of Romanian producers to the large networks of supermarkets is limited, the storage spaces are insufficient, and the subsidies are too low for farmers’ needs.
5. Food safety is now the main objective of European agriculture, which entails the availability of quality food products that respect legal pesticide residue limits, but also provide the consumer with affordable food.
6. Constant investment in research and innovation is necessary. European funds are substantial for this field, however, Romania still fails to absorb them. Modern technologies, including digitalization, have as a direct effect a high quality of final agro-food products. Agronomic research can and must provide multiple efficient solutions to the problems currently faced by farmers.
7. A solidarity action plan was adopted in order to support sending food produced in Ukraine to the rest of the world – Romania has provided and continues to provide significant support in this case.
8. The European Union must support food safety through financial assistance, as well as by making European agricultural products available to the rest of the world.
9. A great deal of measures are implemented at European level that are meant to help farmers cope with the increased costs of necessary resources such as fertilizers and animal feed, in order to continue production on acceptable terms.
10. The main objectives of the Common Agricultural Policy are: a fairer distribution of funds, spending such funds in a more and more environmentally sustainable way and reaching a high level of social sustainability.
11. The complicated context that Europe is experiencing now could also be perceived as an opportunity for agriculture; Romania has the chance to become a major player in the field of food production both at European and regional levels. To that effect, we must increase processing capacity nationally so as to be able to export as many value-adding agri-food products as possible, instead of only raw materials.
12. Romanian agronomic education faces a major problem: we no longer have technical schools and agricultural high schools. There is a great need for technicians to be able to practice farming professionally.
13. The challenge for machine builders and farmers is to deliver the best possible products at the most competitive prices while at the same time to protect the environment and the natural resources.
14. Farmers’ money must produce money; to that end, they must become aware of their power, mainly in terms of the power behind farmers’ assemblies to attract European funds. Only through association can farmers develop and put their money to work more efficiently.
15. The state does not necessarily have to provide farmers with many things, but rather to ensure the legal framework for them to be able to do their job well.
16. Romania is confronted with a pest for corn crops which cannot be found in other parts of Europe, the so-called grey corn weevil. Every year, regardless of political colour, the government must give farmers a derogation for the prohibited products, substances called neonicotinoids, to be able to deal with this issue.
17. European intervention is needed to protect farmers, who must still be left with some solutions, at least as long as there are no substitute substances available.
18. With the help of biotechnology, for example, corn hybrids with tolerance to drought or different pests can be obtained.
19. An improved hybrid corn is obtained by conventional methods in 7 years but using new methods it can be obtained in 6 months. It is an innovation from which European and Romanian farmers should benefit.
20. Romania does not yet have a legal framework that gives priority to merging of lands for irrigation. However, the larger the land to be irrigated, the more efficient the investment in irrigation would be from in terms of energy consumption.
21. There have been long discussions about the merging of lands, farmers have wanted it for a long time, but the idea conflicts with the constitutional notion of private property in Romania.
22. The solutions for irrigation are many, but the best ones are not cheap. For this reason, it is very important to educate the market, because investments in irrigation are a relatively new field for agriculture in Romania.
23. In Romania there are also farmers who irrigate the cultivated areas completely, one of them being the President of the League of Romanian Water User Organizations for Irrigation, who has the following strategy: irrigation is necessary, rain is auxiliary. Irrigations must be very well planned, like any other investment.
24. The rule of the three Cs must be complied with in drawing up the legal framework and reaching goals, both at the central and local levels, or on the farm: Clarity, Consistency, Continuity.
25. The involvement of all factors in the field is necessary is order to change the mindset on irrigation and on making agriculture more efficient.
26. The main challenge is that only 2.5% of the water on the planet is fresh water. This resource must therefore be used wisely and efficiently, the key here being irrigation technology.
27.  Authorities should assign greater importance to public-private partnerships.
28. Irrigations are the best possible insurance policy for farmers and the best risk management instrument, especially in countries such as Romania, where the climate is becoming more and more of a challenge.
29. It is very important to invest in training specialized staff because they will contribute to increasing the prestige of the company.
30. It is important to communicate to society and end users how much work is being done in vegetable agriculture and livestock.
31. Producers must not forget that “we are what we eat”; the meat supplied to consumers must therefore have healthy fats, which are indispensable for human consumption.
32. For small and medium-sized farms, making a profit is a big challenge nowadays, which is why their big chance is organic farming and direct selling of high-quality products.
33. Romania has the largest number of farmers in the EU, namely over 2 million farm owners, but only about 10% of them are economically efficient, therefore, the majority must be gradually incorporated into larger and more productive farms.
34. European Union farmers are faced with the same challenges: access to lands, to funds and to know-how.
35. Young farmers must unite and collaborate, because only through association they have the best chance to succeed.
36. Animal feed is a significant challenge nowadays, both due to costs and availability, given the issues in the supply chain. The return on livestock farms depends directly on the availability and quality of feed.
37. It is very important for animals to eat quality food.
38. It is important that bales have as high a density as possible, to achieve greater efficiency. There is no need for any methods of preservation, because removing oxygen is the most effective and natural method. This translates into a better use of resources and a greater efficiency.
39. The main problem of the wine market in Romania is not that wine isn’t consumed, but that wine of a certain value is consumed. 75% of the wine market is under 15 lei per liter, which does not help to create a category brand.
40. The wine industry requires patience and constant investments.
41. All producers should invest in growing the image of quality wines. The decline in wine consumption among the youth is an issue that affects the entire industry. Solutions are sought, including through export, but the image of Romanian wines abroad is not great – that is until foreigners taste these wines and discover their quality, however, due to the sub-optimal image created, the price remains very low.
42. The main problem of Romanian wine is the sale. There is overproduction at European level. Romania has become the 5^th country among wine producers in the EU and better promotion is needed.
43. A greater involvement of the state in terms of railway infrastructure is necessary, because selling wine entails not only quality, a good price and an emotional component associated with it, but also means of distribution and transportation.
44. All farmers need insurance for their crops. A weather prediction-based insurance provided a Romanian farmer compensation worth 1 million euros in one month.
45. Taking over the Israel model was proposed for the Dobrogea area; Israel was a desert area, but due to technology and the rehabilitation of water from industrial and urban consumption, it managed to secure water for agriculture and even became a water exporter for the Middle East.
46. Drawing up a business plan which shows how much money must be invested, how long it takes to regain that money and how much profit results is essential to opening a dairy factory.
47. We would like more association, consulting and cooperation.
48. Supermarkets offer producers more advantages: traceability, predictability, quality and constancy.
49. Online presence increases the notoriety of a business. A farmer from Vâlcea has a very good presence on social media, which sparked curiosity from the public, who later came to taste his products and discovered their quality.
50. Livestock farming should gradually migrate from the sale of live animals over long distances to the sale of carcasses that bring added value and provide work for the entire slaughterhouse infrastructure in Romania.
51. To work in agriculture, it is no longer necessarily need to come from a family of farmers, but first and foremost to be a good entrepreneur.
52. “Fake organic” milk does not totally comply with the conditions of organic farming and is obtained through eco-feeding only in documents. This explains why there are some farmers on the market who sell “organic milk” cheaper than conventional milk. This unfair competition must be denounced because it breaks down the market and brings prejudice to clients, and consumers must be informed correctly about what organic products mean.
53. There is a need for continuous information on marketing methods, as well as on treatment and fertilization technologies, which could lead to a considerable decrease in costs.
54. There is a need for political measures that support processing, especially in micro processing, i.e. fiscal measures to favour the establishment of auxiliary activities on farms, to diversify the activity and ensure continuity of proceeds in slack periods.
55. In the medium and long run, there are two options for farmers who want to produce organic products: for a level of subsistence, they can access funds and create an agro-tourism complex or make associations in cooperatives and establish well-developed logistic chains.
56. Vegetable farming is a highly disorganized agricultural sector, a reason for which it would be useful to establish a horticulture department within the Ministry of Agriculture.
57. It is necessary to rethink packaging because a correct presentation helps product marketing enormously.
58. The consumer must be informed of the real quality of foods.
59. There is very poor communication and cooperation between Romanian farmers, however, the exchange of ideas and projects would be extremely useful for everybody.
60. The biggest wine market is in Bucharest; everyone in the field should therefore invest in tourism and the experience of visiting wineries and participating in tastings in order to attract the public.

On www.romanianagriculture.ro and on the social media pages @romanianagriculture you can read articles reflecting the content of RALF events.

RALF 2022 was organized by the communication platform romanianagriculture.ro and BORO Communication, in partnership with: Corteva Agriscience – Master Partner; Consultech, Netafim by EPRS Romania, Orkel, Zimmatic by Lindsay, Valley, Maschio Gaspardo – Professional Partners; FMC, Agrivi, GrECo – Partners; SmartAgri, SysCAD, EuroPlast, Elica – Supporters.

Next is the series of regional events Our Farmers, which will take place between October and November 2022, in Timișoara (October 20), Cluj-Napoca (November 4) and Iași (November 11).

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