Romanian agriculture consumes more than it produces and, last year, the most significant price increases were registered by Romanian products, the president of Romalimenta, Sorin Minea said yesterday, Mediafax reports. According to the source, the food goods sold under the generic name of “traditional” products are actually bought at the market and then resold at 2-3 times higher prices. The companies that sell their products through large retail chains are in a fierce competition over better shelf positions, even if they must pay for it, because it brings them higher sales, said Delia Nica, vice-president of the Association of Large Retailers in Romania and also a representative of Metro Romania. Furthermore, traditional retail accounts for 50 pc of the total retail in Romania, vs. the so-called “modern retail,” 5 per cent points less than a year ago, Competition Council (CC) expert Valentin Mircea said Tuesday, during a specialised forum. According to the CC official, small traders are most exposed to the effects of the economic crisis, because they do not have the cash resources they need.
