Financing Romanian Agricultural Cooperatives’ Investments for the 2023–2027 Horizon

Abstract

Agriculture represents an important sector of the Romanian economy, with certain vulnerabilities under the current geo-political context and pedoclimatic changes with a direct impact upon food security at national and European levels. This paper analyzes the possibilities for revitalizing the Romanian agricultural sector, which was affected by the excessive inflation (especially via the price increases of fertilizers and fuels) and drought, both generating significant cereal and agricultural production losses. The current research highlights the main investment options for the managers of 219 Romanian agricultural cooperative companies, including the available financing alternatives. In our view, the investments realized within the agricultural cooperative companies support the creation and increase in value added and reduce specific risks, consolidating the role and status of agricultural producers within the food chain. The research evaluates the Romanian agricultural investment typologies and establishes a model of assessing these investments by correlating the information obtained from the questionnaire distributed. The research methods include analyzing the reference literature, building the database, collecting and processing the questionnaires’ observations, transforming the qualitative data into quantitative ones and modeling them with econometric instruments. The results obtained using the econometric model reveal the main investment directions to be integrating the production chains through economic association forms, including constructing and modernizing the warehouses, processing the primary products and obtaining higher value-added products, identifying various distribution channels, making the most of all available resources and focusing on digitalization, efficiency, circular economy and short supply chains. The study is of interest for the investors and managers of agricultural cooperative companies from Romania and Europe in view of securing sustainable development, enhancing the role of agricultural producers within the food chain and increasing efficiency of the agricultural activity, with a direct impact upon European food security.