Published in Scientific Papers. Series "Management, Economic Engineering in Agriculture and rural development", Vol. 22 ISSUE 1
Written by Daniel Valeriu ULIU, Luxita Georgiana STAIC, Marius VLADU

Meat consumption in Romania is increasing, but domestic production is stagnant. Although animal husbandry is a basic branch of the Romanian economy, its share in agricultural production has had a downward trend in recent years. This important component of agriculture has a high potential for development, which is supported by a number of factors, including access to raw materials, the upward trend in domestic meat consumption, the record level of trade in meat, the prospect of further European economic convergence, and the consequences of the pandemic-induced shock. Domestic meat consumption has shown an upward trend in recent years, supported by an increase in household income. Meat production in Romania is below meat consumption, in the analyzed period 2015 - 2019, so it cannot ensure the necessary consumption of meat from its own production. In 2015, the production of meat per capita has a value of 54.75 kg, and the value of meat consumption per capita is 66.02 kg. In 2019, the production of meat per capita has the lowest value, of 54.72 kg, the consumption of meat per capita has the highest value of this analyzed period, of 69.85 kg. Meat consumption has been steadily rising, but Romania's GDP, urbanization and the FAO Food Price Index have had very little influence on it. In terms of meat consumption in the European Union, it is found that Belgium has the lowest value of 54.71 kg/capita (it is the fourth largest meat producer in the EU with 158.94 kg / capita), and the highest meat consumption is in Spain with 98.79 kg / capita, and Romania is ranked twenty-fourth. Meat production / capita in the European Union has the highest value in Denmark with 326.14 kg/capita and the lowest value is in Malta with 27.32 kg /capita, Romania ranks seventeenth.

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