Developing the Romanian Organic Market: A Producer’s Perspective

Abstract

Romania’s organic market increasingly resembles its Western counterparts: a vegetarian diet, disease prevention through consumption of organic food produced according to specific standards, preferring quality over quantity—all relevant factors influencing purchasing behaviour. It is the task of consumerist organisations to educate consumers on the benefits of the above factors, a process influenced by social and cultural trends, experience, lifestyle, motivations and preferences. The market is attractive to domestic producers offering an increasing assortment of organic food types. This paper aims to highlight the most relevant features of the rapidly expanding Romanian organic market from the perspective of organic producers. To this effect, it reviews the literature dealing with the main factors influencing consumer behaviour and attitudes. The qualitative research among producers reveals strategic directions pursued in order to understand and adapt to market characteristics and dynamics. The results allow better understanding of organic consumers’ behaviour in the emerging markets and highlight strategies to increase market success. Healthy lifestyle, desire to protect the environment, product quality and attractive prices are all important factors determining consumption of organic products. Whilst aware of these factors, producers point to the lack of education for developing an organic mentality and identifying organic products, poor distribution of products and lack of financial support across the entire logistics chain.

1. Introduction

Economic globalization has not only enabled the interconnection of organizations all over the world and development of cooperation networks but has also significantly fostered the spread of lifestyles, traditions and habits among consumers [1]. The modern consumer in the knowledge society [2] has full access to producers’ and distributors’ products, services and brand offerings, irrespective of their location. Much like their Western European peers, Romanian consumers place increasing importance on products made in accordance with the principles of environmental protection, which contribute to the preservation and/or reduction of resource consumption [3]. Other research [4] reveals that service providers have become more focused on the environmental component of sustainability, demonstrating growing concern about resources preservation. Organic products, which are increasingly favoured by Romanians, follow this trend. Whether for personal reasons or as a result of the influence of social media, friends and family, Romanians are using organic products more and more frequently and prefer retailers that implement a sustainable strategy [3,5]. In fact, the organic food market has boomed in Romania over the last few years, hitting an almost € 80 million turnover in 2016 [6]. Thus, conventional producers face increased competition from organic producers, many more retailers now selling organic foodstuff in the emerging market than in the past [7,8].

As consumers increasingly favour organic products [9] because they associate them with maintaining a healthier lifestyle, and/or have become more responsible in their consumption [10], organic consumer behaviour is frequently investigated [11,12,13,14]. However, few studies have addressed this issue from the producer’s perspective in an emerging market [15]. Recently admitted to the European Union, Romania has a dynamic and booming economy [16]. Organic farming and foodstuff are becoming more and more relevant and interesting for both consumers and producers [8], the market having undergone an important change in recent years as new rules and standards [17,18] have come into power. Studying producers’ behaviour and market approach strategy in this emerging market might help in fostering and improving other organizations’ capabilities when addressing new foreign markets. Therefore, the aim of this research is to highlight the strategies adopted by Romanian organic farm producers when targeting consumers. The study also points out the measures taken by producers in order to adapt to customers’ needs.

Qualitative research by means of a semi-structured, in-depth interview guide was conducted among stakeholders within the organic farming market, being typically Romanian organic producers selling certificated organic products to consumers or companies. All these producers act in accordance with the Romanian Organic Farming Legislation [19] and are fully accredited as organic producers by specialized accreditation bodies such as Ecoinspect, Ceres Cert, Ecoroiscert and so forth [20]. All the organic producers interviewed were small or medium-sized companies (according to national legislation [21]), rather than industrial organic organizations. Thus, the paper contributes to the furtherance of the stakeholder theory [22] to help better understanding of how organic producers should be managed and how they should develop business relationships with all stakeholders, especially their customers.

Following comparison between the Romanian and European organic markets in terms of production capacity and consumption, in the third section of this paper, the authors deal with the factors influencing consumers to buy organic products. Section 4 contains the qualitative research methodology, while Section 5 presents the results of the interviews with the organic producers: on the one hand, their attitude to and perception of the factors stimulating the consumption of organic food; and on the other, critical opinions about the evolution of the domestic organic market. The paper ends with theoretical and practical implications and comes up with valuable suggestions for better organization thereof.

2. Organic Food Market

As consumers are buying organic products more often [7], the global organic market continues to grow. Organic foodstuff is frequently preferred over conventional foods, due to attributes that improve consumers’ health: better quality, more natural flavour, eco-friendly production processes and so forth [23,24]. In 2017, most European organic food companies were Italian (66.788), Spanish (37.712), French (36.691) and German (29.764). In Romania, there were only 7.908 registered producers [25]. In 2016, the highest consumption of organic food was recorded in Denmark (277.42 EUR/person), Switzerland (274.26 EUR/person), Luxembourg (188 EUR/person) and Sweden (194.34 EUR/person), while in Romania it only reached 3.72 EUR/person. The organic food retail market is still modest in Romania, with sales of almost € 80 million (position 19 in the EU) in comparison with Italy (€ 2.6 billion) or Switzerland (€ 2.3 billion) [6].

The collapse of the communist regime and market liberalization paved the way for big international retail chains to enter the Romanian market, first the Belgian group, Delhaize in 1994 and then the German group, Metro in 1996 [26,27]). These changes further enabled the introduction and development of the organic farming/agriculture sector [20] through the setting up of organic farmers’ associations. Bioterra Romania was the first organic farming association, set up in 1997 to educate consumers about the consumption of organic food and to provide farmers with information on good practice in organic farming. The association contributed to the development of an organic food mentality among producers and consumers alike [7]. Legislation on production, processing and distribution of products from organic farming [23] was first passed in 2010. The Romanian Ministry of Agriculture views this type of farming as a system to produce food which is “clean, fit for human metabolism and fully correlated with environment preservation and development” [28]. According to this viewpoint, organic agriculture combines two values important to consumers: healthy lifestyle and protection of the environment.

Income influences people’s consumption habits and varies considerably from one country to another [13]. In Romania, the gross minimum monthly wage averages € 410 and the net minimum monthly wage averages € 260 [29]. This impedes consumer access to organic products, given their relatively high prices. That said, organic certified honey has gained awareness and trust among consumers, although it is sold for a premium price of up to 20% [30]. In fact, most Romanians prefer to purchase conventional products at low prices, so that they may save extra money for other activities. While low income is an obstacle to the development of the organic market, there is great potential for development in the future, as the gap between Romanians’ income and that of their Western peers will narrow.

Romanian organic farming has enormous production potential, as most of it is intended for export [31]. Out of a total of 226,309 organically farmed hectares (of which 76,696 hectares are being converted to organic production), 156,678 hectares are arable land (75,198 hectares for cereals, 53,397 hectares for industrial plants, 1161 hectares for vegetables and 6353 hectares for fruit). In 2016, Romanian organic farms produced 1000 tons of milk, 42 tons of butter, 4016 tons of cheeses and over 12 million eggs [25], from almost 11,000 organic producers and 150 processors [6]. These figures place Romania in the middle of the European rankings of organic producers, up from the ranking in the previous period. However, due to frequent changes in legislation, delayed payment of subsidies on organic and/or conversion-to-organic farming, poor organization of distribution activities and lack of a mentality favouring organic products [8,31], the organic domestic market is relatively unstable and turbulent, the number of producers varying over time. At national level, there is a growing need to design a more coherent economic policy aimed at supporting not only producers and processors but also distribution activities and the education of consumers [32] to be more open towards these products. Naturally, there is also a need to conduct in-depth research among all stakeholders involved, so that organic products may be more successful in the market.

3. Factors Influencing the Consumption of Organic Products

International literature has studied organic consumers’ behaviour and attitudes, revealing significant theoretical and managerial implications. Some studies have focused on finding the drivers of organic consumption [9,13,14,33], the results enabling producers to adapt their offerings to customers’ ever-changing polyvalent behaviour [34,35]. People purchase and consume organic food depending on certain socio-demographic characteristics such as age, gender, income, background and level of education [14]. Other factors influencing organic consumption are traditions and customs, a pro-organic mentality [7,36], the pursuit of a healthy lifestyle [11,14,34], desire to protect the environment [9,13,37,38], the perception of organic food as being of superior quality to conventional food [33], social values and the desire for acceptance within certain reference groups [14]. Organic consumption is often associated with increased satisfaction in quality of life, which triggers positive feelings. Such feelings are people’s inner assurance that they have made the right choices. Consumption of the best products available in the market also increases self-confidence [39].

A healthy lifestyle for themselves and their families tends to be the consumer’s primary objective [38]. People prefer organic food because it is low in salt, fat and artificial additives [34] and rich in vitamins and minerals [40,41] and also because it might help to prevent or control some diseases [14]. It is not only the lack of unhealthy substances [9] that drives the purchase of organic food but also its low level of allergens in comparison with similar conventional products. This is an advantage for people who are allergic or have digestive disorders [15,34]. Therefore, organic food is looked upon as being “100% natural” and having clear health benefits [37].

The concern for ensuring a clean environment has gained ground among more and more people, willing to pay a premium price for products and/or food obtained in accordance with the principles of sustainability and according to strict norms that protect the environment and support the preservation of nature [3,42]. Organic food fully meets these conditions insofar as the foodstuff is labelled with an organic seal by a specialized accreditation body [14,40]. Consumers who purchase organic products with the purpose of protecting the environment do this for different reasons, in accordance with the value(s) that they cherish. The reason behind people’s preference for organic food may be the social values that they hold, their adherence to organizations and/or associations championing environmental protection, the vegetarian or vegan diet they eat [34] or the desire not to harm animals and their habitats in any way [9]. Consumers’ confidence in organic food also depends on the social responsibility activities implemented [43,44] and the extent to which companies collect and recycle waste [45].

The purchase of organic products may also depend on the perception of their quality [9,14,46]. In the process of collecting information and purchasing a product, consumers pay special attention to labels and logos proving product quality [13,37], to freshness and flavour [47] and to product appearance [40]. However, the premium price of organic products has a negative impact on consumer behaviour [14] because it may prevent the purchase of products in the desired quantity [15]. On the other hand, the price is justified by the relatively high production costs and small quantities obtained [7]. In order to help customers, overcome their reluctance to purchase [46], producers and distributors often seek to highlight the uniqueness and advantages of their marketed products.

4. Research Methodology

In order to study the main characteristics of Romania’s organic market from the perspective of organic producers, the authors conducted a qualitative piece of research by means of semi-structured, in-depth interviews among Romanian organic farming producers selling their products in the B2B and B2C organic market. The producers were selected according to their knowledge and experience of organic agriculture. All respondents had graduated from university and were working in companies producing organic foods. Participation in the research was on a voluntary basis. Only 15 representatives of small and medium-sized organic producers were interviewed out of a total of 20 who accepted the invitation to participate in the research. The interviews were conducted in Romanian. Data was registered both via note-keeping by the interviewer and via an audio device, in order to ensure that all ideas expressed by respondents were properly retained. As data saturation was achieved through representative and relevant information provided by respondents, no further participants were interviewed [48].

This research method was chosen because it enabled interaction with each respondent so that they could express their opinions and perceptions of the research issue and generate new ideas [49]. The design of the interview guide took account of the main factors identified in the literature which influence organic consumers’ behaviour and attitudes [48]: concern for a healthy lifestyle, desire to protect the environment, food quality and price. This procedure allowed the authors to identify ideas and thoughts which are sometimes difficult to express verbally. The authors also developed additional questions appropriate to the purpose of the research [50]. The respondents were Romanian organic producers with an average age of 40 years old, 66.7% male and 33.3% female. They were working in different parts of Transylvania.

The qualitative research data were processed by transforming, transferring, converting, synthesizing and providing meaning for the obtained information [51]. After data had been reduced by eliminating statements with similar meaning, they were synthesized according to the research themes considered, so that pertinent conclusions might be drawn [52]. A deductive (based on ideas taken from the literature) and inductive (the identification of new ideas and information) analysis of results was conducted. This was followed by the content analysis in which the information was reduced, simplified and organized into clear text segments, according to distinct themes, which made interpretation easier [52]. To accomplish this, the authors followed the literature [48] in: selection of the most relevant texts according to the established purpose; identification of repetitive ideas grouped according to the main themes; and creation of theoretical constructs by paying attention to transparency, communicability, coherence and transferability of the obtained information.

5. Research Results

5.1. Producers’ Attitude to Organic Food Consumption: The Association between Organic Food and Health

One of the benefits of organic food is that it creates the perception that it is superior to conventional food. Producers were aware of the association consumers make between organic food and health benefits. They knew that this aspect weighs most heavily in people’s buying decisions. In their opinion, most consumers buy organic products to protect their health and prevent disease and this applied to the respondents themselves.

“Consumers benefit greatly from these products, health being their major concern”.

(Interview 9, man, 30 years)

“First, people choose to eat organic food to maintain their health and to prevent certain diseases”.

(Interview 3, man, 60 years)

“People wish to avoid contracting an illness or getting sick”.

(Interview 5, woman, 50 years)

Prevention is the underlying reason for consumers’ purchasing of organic food, to avoid certain major diseases (cancer) or physical conditions (obesity) which might affect their health. In seeking to boost their immune system through the consumption of organic food, they may avoid products containing additives and other chemical substances.

“I don’t know whether people believe they actually get cured by eating organic food but at least they are aware that the vitamins and minerals in this food boost their immune system, while conventional food has a lot of chemical substances”.

(Interview 10, woman, 27 years)

Food content and processing level are two elements that differentiate the two types of production system (organic versus conventional). Consumers’ buying decisions depend very much on how food is produced. Instead of additives and preservatives, organic products contain vitamins and minerals. This is added value for consumers, turning organic products into ideal products. Consumers also prefer organic food because it lacks food additives.

“My customers think that these products contain some vitamins and minerals not found in conventional products”.

(Interview 11, man, 27 years)

“Buyers believe these are healthy products and view them as an important source of vitamins and minerals for the body”.

(Interview 9, man, 30 years)

“People buy organic products for health reasons because they think these are free from additives (E numbers)”.

(Interview 4, woman, 32 years)

Customers are aware of these characteristics due to the efforts of producers, distributors and/or companies that support organic consumption and the development of an organic mentality. The promotion of organic products is effective when consumers become aware of and keep in mind producers’ ideas.

“I think that the idea of organic food is ingrained in consumers mostly by various ads showing conventional products in a bad light or by acquaintances. Organic consumption is actually a trend based on the negative experiences with conventional products, a trend fuelled by the news claiming that these are full of pesticides, that tomatoes from Turkey contain toxic substances. Thus, the consumer opts for organic products because these do not contain chemicals, pesticides and are a lot healthier.”.

(Interview 1, woman, 29 years)

The information obtained through this qualitative research brought to light a particularly interesting topic: herbal medicine, viewed by consumers as increasingly beneficial, was strongly promoted by producers and distributors. Respondents agreed with the fact that the development of herbal medicine benefits stakeholders in the organic market.

“There is demand for herbal remedies that benefit health and they sell well. We are glad that they exist because we can sell our products”;

(Interview 5, woman, 50 years)

“From a producer’s perspective, the development of herbal medicine is a good thing because this leads to larger areas cultivated with organic products and, implicitly, to a higher volume of sales”;

(Interview 1, woman, 29 years)

“People are inclined to take alternative medicine which our ancestors took in the past and were a lot healthier. Due to this trend, we, the farmers who produce organic crop, gain more and more profit”.

(Interview 8, woman, 28 years)

While respondents, as producers, greeted the development of herbal medicine, as consumers, their opinions seemed to stress the opposite point of view. Indeed, the profitability of the Romanian organic market is not influenced by the producers’ choices as consumers.

“I don’t fall in with the herbal medicine. Teas are beneficial but as for the rest of organic products, I don’t think they help very much”.

(Interview 5, woman, 50 years)

The organic label is important because it certifies the product’s quality and source. However, the interviewees believed that few consumers pay much heed to it. The reasons may be lack of time, habit, hasty shopping and overall confidence in the food sold in street markets, especially by farmers. Farmers who sell their own products are not perceived by consumers as dealers seeking to gain profit. Respondents also thought that imported organic food is more dangerous for health than that sold by farmers because it is obtained through much more mechanized technological processes, although it is not labelled accordingly.

“Customers don’t read the label to see what it contains. In fact, people don’t know what they actually buy because they don’t get sufficiently informed”.

(Interview 10, woman, 27 years)

“Consumers believe that the food sold in the market by peasants is healthier than that sold in the shops. They have more confidence in peasants than in products with the “bio” label”.

(Interview 11, man, 27 years)

“At the market, people ask many times if fruit is sprayed with chemicals. If you tell them that it is sprayed with copper sulphate, they buy it”.

(Interview 3, man, 60 years)

The difficult access of Romanian producers to the big retail chains was an obstacle to the selling of organic products to customers and a major weakness of the market, which prefers to import huge quantities of food instead of supporting domestic products. Deeply disappointed by Romania’s legislation, respondents agreed that they made great efforts to produce what consumers demand, but, at the same time, they were denied direct access to retailers, because these were more interested in price and less in food quality and source. The result is that Romanians buy mostly imported organic food because retailers do not cooperate with domestic producers. It is easier for customers to buy from the stores of the international chains than to go to the houses of domestic organic producers.

“We produce healthy, organically certified products in the quantities that we can sell directly on our own merits. If we produce too much, there are not enough buyers to sell to”.

(Interview 2, man, 55 years)

According to respondents, Western markets have a larger supply of organic products than the Romanian market because consumers have higher incomes, are aware of the benefits of these products and have a pro-organic mentality [7]. Furthermore, Western consumers pay more attention to the information on the labels.

“I think that the foreign producers get larger profits because their customers earn higher wages than the Romanian customers do.”.

(Interview 10, woman, 27 years)

“In Romania, some people go to their grandparents in the country to get food as organic as possible with which they round out their purchases from shops. Then, there are those who keep their own garden where they grow tomatoes and cucumbers. By contrast, in the U.K. people depend very much on what they buy from the markets and supermarkets.”.

(Interview 10, female, 27 years)

5.2. Producers’ Attitude to Organic Food Consumption: Associations between Organic Food and Environmental Protection

The desire to protect the environment is among the factors having a major impact on organic consumers’ behaviour [11], an aspect dealt with at length in the literature [3,42,53]. However, respondents said that some of their customers were not aware of the contribution of organic products to the protection of the environment and were not always sufficiently informed about it. The fault lies equally with the consumers and the organizations that do not provide Romanians with sufficient information.

“There are many associations championing the environment protection. Unfortunately, their influence is rather weak or they are not good enough in educating consumers. I think they encourage people [to buy organic products] but they do not always get the expected results.”.

(Interview 10, woman, 27 years)

“Unfortunately, Romanians don’t allow themselves to easily be swayed. They choose what they want, no matter the source and the content. For example, many customers used to buy Polish apples from the supermarket next door and no one bought domestic apples.”.

(Interview 2, man, 55 years)

Although organizations have shown minimum effectiveness in promoting the advantages of organic products, respondents were quite optimistic about this aspect. Educating consumers since early childhood is a good way to make them aware of the importance of product characteristics and how these affect their health. Getting information at an early age determines consumers’ diet and behaviour towards the present and future environment.

“In theory, there are regulations and standards concerning the environment protection and the substances that should be found in organic food. No matter what regulation is in force in Romania at a given moment, ways will still be found to evade it. Things could only be changed if strict control existed, perhaps implemented by a foreign European organization.”.

(Interview 11, man, 27 years)

“First, consumers must be educated with regard to organic product characteristics. From an early age, the child must know what is good and what is bad, what is beneficial and what is not, what should and what should not be eaten, what must be thrown away, where must be thrown away and so forth.”.

(Interview 3, man, 60 years)

The vegetarian diet is a method whereby people show respect to animals [9]. The people who took part in the qualitative research said that Romanians often tend to imitate the lifestyle of their Western peers due to the influence of social media, the desire for social acceptance and the films and TV series they watch. The interdependence between vegetarian food and the concern for health is another possible reason that justifies this type of consumption. For example, the profitability of organic fruit and vegetable businesses is positively affected by people’s adopting of a vegetarian diet.

“Vegetarian diet is more like a fashion with us. People are being swayed by TV films and series.”.

(Interview 1, woman, 29 years)

“I think people eat vegan because they want to keep figure, not to protect the environment.”.

(Interview 4, woman, 32 years)

“This vegan behaviour is of great benefit to producers of fruit and vegetables but certainly not to meat producers.”.

(Interview 1, woman, 29 years)

Package re-use and waste recycling is not something Romanians are familiar with, as they rarely adopt this behaviour. Moreover, they do not seem to make any connection between the products consumed and the level of environmental pollution.

“I don’t think people give much thought to the environment when they buy organic products.”.

(Interview 11, man, 27 years)

Although conventional products are viewed as harmful to the environment, being obtained with more chemical substances [9] than organic products, they are not associated with environmental pollution. The legislation in force seems to be accurate in this respect, compliance with it contributing to the reduction of pollution. If consumers cannot afford to buy organic products, they may buy conventional items, with no concern about their health.

“Protecting the environment, the water, the soil, is important but they can be protected through conventional agriculture as well. In every country there are clear rules concerning the quantity of fertilizers and pesticides to be used in agriculture that must be implemented. By complying with the recycling regulations and by throwing waste in drop-off points, nature pollution is avoided.”.

(Interview 1, woman, 29 years)

5.3. Organic Products’ Quality and Appearance

The quality of organic food is assessed by means of two essential criteria: price and its health benefits [53]. These two criteria, however, must be correctly conveyed to the buyer of organic food. Romanians are paying more and more attention to product quality and frequently consider it when making a purchase of organic products. The correct perception of the quality of organic food as the primary selection criterion was greeted with satisfaction by producers.

“Consumers of organic products are increasingly interested in the standard nutritional values. They are more interested in product quality than their fellows.”.

(Interview 6, man, 30 years)

“The manner in which these products are promoted creates the perception that they are of higher quality and that’s why people buy them.”.

(Interview 11, man, 27 years)

“I’m glad to see that there are people who try to eat, as far as possible, organic products. Thus, we make progress because we focus on food quality and source and not on quantity.”.

(Interview 6, woman, 26 years)

Respondents noticed that a major obstacle to the purchase of organic products is product appearance. Unlike products made with conventional technology, organic products sometimes have irregular, imperfect shapes, which diminishes their commercial value. Consumers pay special attention to flavour, an aspect that organic producers wished to promote so that their food might be in greater demand.

“It is one thing to sell a big, beautiful and shiny apple and another thing to sell an apple with a tiny worm or with wrinkled skin”.

(Interview 14, woman, 48 years)

“An organic product does not look like one created through industrial processes. The former’s beauty can be seen with the naked eye.”.

(Interview 15, man, 45 years)

“Organic products are not necessary of higher quality, they’re just healthier. It’s a mistake to think they are only of higher quality.”.

(Interview 2, man, 55 years)

“What is it that makes the shiny apple better than the wrinkled, organic apple? The latter has a more delicious flavour, is sweeter and more natural.”.

(Interview 13, woman, 48 years)

Price is both a quality indicator and a barrier to consumers with low income. It is perceived differently, depending on the characteristics and relevance of each product [53]. Due to people’s modest incomes (the average net monthly wage was about € 500 at the time of the research [54]) great importance is placed on the price of Romanian organic food. Respondents concluded that the barrier represented by the high price of organic products should be removed, so that the sale of these products might be more successful in the future. Government measures to support the population financially could promote a timely boost to the organic market. According to producers, the sale of organic food at low prices was out of the question. They claimed that the price difference is justified by high production costs and the small quantities obtained per area unit.

“In my opinion, the first and most important barrier to the purchase of organic products is the high price.”.

(Interview 7, woman, 29 years)

“There’s no point in telling customers that a product is good if they have no money to buy it”.

(Interview 3, man, 60 years)

“Proper government policies must be implemented and social measures taken to break down customers’ financial barriers. If wages rose, consumption would go up, too. Conventional products are not that toxic, the organic ones are even better but one cannot boost organic sales if people don’t have money. One must end poverty and to do this, proper financial support is needed.”.

(Interview 2, man, 55 years)

“The ratio between the budget of an organic food business and that of a business with conventional products is high because in horticulture, for instance, the use of machinery is not allowed. Thus, a lot of paid work force is needed. Unlike conventional agriculture, which is likely to receive funding for purchasing the needed production machinery, organic agriculture does not receive funding to pay the workforce, which means that the budget is a lot bigger.”.

(Interview 11, man, 27 years)

5.4. Producers’ Attitude to the Organization of the Romanian Organic Market

The Romanian government provided organic producers with minimum support in the form of subsidies during the conversion period only but not after this stage. They actually have to draw upon their own resources to self-finance their businesses. Most respondents admitted to a lack of confidence in the authorities’ willingness to support organic producers. In addition to the lack of subsidies for organic products, access to special funds faced other challenges in the form of vagaries of weather, storms, accidental pollution and so forth.

“There is funding available but access to it is very difficult to obtain. I submitted an application but it was not approved. I wouldn’t try any more to get funding because it is too much red tape, formalities and requirements are complex and controls are very strict”.

(Interview 4, woman, 32 years)

“I haven’t tried to get funding because I don’t the trust the bodies that manage it.”.

(Interview 2, man, 55 years)

“The first thing I would warn a fellow about in the business with organic products is the likelihood that they might not hold during the long term storage. At the same time, their resistance to disease and pests is lower because the use of aiding chemical substances and of genetically modified organisms is not allowed.”.

(Interview 8, woman, 28 years)

Respondents thought that local and central authorities do not make sufficient effort to ensure transparency and reduce bureaucracy or to properly inform people about the benefits of organic food, institutionalized corruption and government employees’ material interests, hampering severely the organic producers from achieving sustainable development.

“State institutions exert the greatest influence on consumer trust. They tell people that imported products are healthy, pushing the idea that domestic products are not of sufficient quality, which is not true. The authorities inform people that our products are toxic. For example, the head of a product certification lab told people that Romanian food contains toxic substances, failing to mention that it complies with the imposed rules. People are manipulated by the authorities.”.

(Interview 2, man, 55 years)

“Demand is not too great because only a small number of Romanians can afford to buy organic products on a regular basis. For lack of constant demand, producers are not very eager to grow organic food”.

(Interview 1, woman, 29 years)

“Selling in Romania is not profitable. In fact, it’s a big loss.”.

(Interview 2, man, 55 years)

The success of an organic business is highly influenced by the distribution system. Retailers’ marketing strategies had a negative impact on Romanian organic businesses, which increased producers’ dissatisfaction. Although big retailers’ assortment of organic food is becoming larger and larger, few products originate in Romania. Unfortunately, the central authorities do not make sustained efforts to fix the problem. The creation and support of organic producer associations, compelling distributors to market products from Romania, providing producers with subsidies, preparing markets and/or other selling methods for the organic sector and so forth. are just a few possible measures that public authorities might take to improve the situation of domestic producers and offer them opportunities to sell abroad.

“The policies of distributors are a big challenge for organic producers. They only sell end consumers what they want, foreign products in particular”.

(Interview 2, man, 55 years)

“In the U.K., retailers have entire departments only with organic products so that consumers find quickly and easily what they look for. One cannot say the same about as many kinds of products in Romania. If the supply for the Romanian consumer were larger, he or she would buy more”.

(Interview 10, woman, 27 years)

“The Romanian producer would invest more if the authorities were willing to help. During the agricultural production cooperatives, the Romanian market was flooded with Romanian natural products. Now we are flooded by foreigners.”.

(Interview 14, woman, 48 years)

These shortcomings go hand in hand with a serious failure to inform Romanians about the organic market and domestic producers, a failure that it is the authorities’ duty to remedy. This lack of awareness of local organic producers’ existence is an obstacle to the market development and consumption of Romanian organic products. The relevant authorities could carry out campaigns to inform and educate people in general and young people in particular, including primary and secondary school students. Thus, when they come of age, they could explain to their own children the importance of organic consumption, fostering the development of an organic mentality. Obviously, such endeavours should be supported by producer and consumerist organizations.

“An organic business in Romania has only partial success because most consumers are not sufficiently informed about the benefits of organic products.”.

(Interview 9, man, 30 years)

“A business in the organic sector in Romania should be supported by projects at national level aimed at educating people to consume organic products.”.

(Interview 9, man, 30 years)

“Education and explanation as to what all these food additives mean is essential from early childhood.”.

(Interview 10, woman, 27 years)

“I think that some food tasting campaigns should be launched. In this way people can come to know the products and test them to make sure of their characteristics.”.

(Interview 8, woman, 28 years)

6. Conclusions

Organic food companies are faced with a new consumerist paradigm: on the one hand, the growth of the world population calls for not only an increase in food production but also the improvement of nutritional values; on the other hand, organic food is obtained at greater financial cost, while the quantities are smaller than those of conventional food. An appropriate reaction from companies operating in this market will help them adapt to this new paradigm, notably in the context of an estimated population growth of 9.6 billion people by 2050 [55]. Today’s main challenge for organic producers is to identify effective methods to produce organic foodstuff in sufficient quantity at an affordable price level for consumers, to enforce a proper mentality towards organic products and to highlight to consumers how organic food might add value to a healthy diet [7,56]. The growing preference for organic food also comes from the individual’s attachment to nature [57] and awareness of its health benefits [58,59,60]. Therefore, it is to be expected that areas cultivated with organic foods will increase worldwide [24].

This study shows the need to properly inform consumers about the characteristics and advantages of organic foodstuff. As stated by respondents, the high price of organic products remains a barrier to acquiring them in greater quantities. If the authorities would subsidize both organic producers and also retailers, the price of organic foodstuff could be more accessible for consumers and they could compete more with conventional producers. In order to achieve lower prices, organic small and medium-sized producers should associate with organic farmers and sell their products together, so that they can compete more efficiently with big organic companies, which are more likely to implement “industrialized” organic agriculture.

The present research reveals several key characteristics of Romanian organic businesses. Just like the global market, the domestic market is undergoing continuous developments, its customers and their European peers exhibiting similar behaviour. However, Romanian’s low purchasing power could represent an obstacle to the ongoing development of the domestic organic market. Although Romanians wish to eat more healthily and to protect the environment, relatively few can afford to buy organic products because of the relatively higher prices. Sometimes Romanians choose to grow food by themselves or to purchase it from street markets, so as to prevent the foreign retail chains from “getting rich” [7,61].

The research also shows that consumers do not pay sufficient attention to organic food labels, probably because Romanians are not properly educated in this regard and because of hasty shopping. The research identifies certain measures, the proper implementation of which could foster the development of the organic market in Romania. In view of the factors influencing the consumption of organic food, this should be promoted by focusing on the intrinsic benefits for an individual’s health. Furthermore, the contribution of organic food to environmental protection should be pointed out, being produced through environmentally-friendly production technologies and in compliance with strict standards that stipulate the minimum use of chemically synthesized substances and maximum use of natural fertilizers. Building a favourable image in consumers’ minds and educating them to develop a pro-organic consumption mentality could be achieved by emphasizing a product’s capacity to cure certain diseases and prevent some of the symptoms and side-effects of conventional medicine.

Providing the population with proper information about the benefits of organic food would help consumers to adopt a favourable attitude and increase the likelihood of purchase. It is the task of producers, distributors and consumerist organizations alike to get people informed. Public authorities should act as a catalyst in providing relevant, complete and correct information on the characteristics and benefits of organic food. An effective collaboration between all these stakeholders would result in the strengthening not only of the domestic market but also of the position of the Romanian producers, who would thus be able to promote their products both at home and abroad. From this perspective, this paper contributes to the development of the stakeholder theory in relation to the organic food market, showing how the synergic effect increases exponentially through cooperation and joint efforts.

This qualitative research has made possible the identification of some aspects that could help the development of the Romanian organic market. Given the factors influencing organic consumption, organic products should be promoted, starting with their benefits to health and the environment. Setting up businesses with organic products used in herbal medicine to cure or prevent diseases or just to complement classical drugs would satisfy demand from consumers who truly believe in the power of plants.

Given that organic products are still regarded as innovation by Romanian producers and consumers [31], respondents had little knowledge about the field, being newcomers to the market. Over time, however, Romanian organic producers are likely to gain vast experience in this market. Therefore, similar future research will be able to monitor the evolution of the organic market in Romania in terms of production, consumption and profitability.

Providing people with proper information on the benefits of organic products and on the lack of chemical substances in the production processes may help people to adopt a favourable attitude, prompting them to buy more frequently. Close collaboration between organic producers and the Romanian state institutions is of paramount importance, the expected result being the successful development of the organic market. The high price of organic products in comparison with people’s income is still a threat to business profitability. However, special funding could be accessed to develop organic businesses.

Drawing on the obtained results, future research could analyse the perceptions, attitudes and motives of other stakeholders in the organic market: distributors, organic associations and organizations, consumers and relevant authorities. Appropriate subsidies are also needed to strengthen the market. This further heightens the need for the authorities to develop viable strategies intended to support particularly the small domestic producers, as these, in turn, could support local communities and help preserve traditions and customs. As Romania’s economy develops and the buying power of its citizens increases in parallel with education, the Romanian organic market will reach maturity, so that in the future, Romanian producers will find customers willing to buy their products, even at higher prices.

The challenge for the Romanian organic market probably lies in winning the competition not only with conventional products but also with foreign organic products. Therefore, branding national organic foodstuff as “local” in order to support regional organic producers and farmers, as well as educating consumers to buy national products in order to sustain Romanian producers might help the market in its development. Local authorities and organic consumer associations, together with organic producers could and should do more in this respect.