“FirstFarms has carried out significant parts of the turnaround, which the company has been working with over the last couple of years, and will now focus on realizing the company’s original objectives of becoming a large and effective listed agricultural company with focus on initially Slovakia and Romania (…). ” a FirstFarms report reads.
In order to do that, the company appointed Anders H. Norgaard as its new chief executive officer so that “FirstFarms will, among other things, work on growing through mergers with other Danish agricultural projects in Eastern Europe.”
Danish investors own approximately 32,000 hectares of farmland in Romania, accounting for 4.5% of the total surface of land owned by foreigners, according to previous information provided by the Romanian Agriculture Ministry.
Danish investors’ biggest projects in Romania’s agricultural sector belong to the Raunsing family via Ingleby, a company that owns 10,400 hectares near Lugoj town in Timis County (western Romania). Ingleby and FirstFarms have already done businesses together, as the former paid EUR8.2 million to the latter for 2,000 hectares of land, equipment and facilities two years ago.
Other companies controlled by Danish investors working Romania’s farmland are JD Agro Cocora and Jantzen Development, respectively.
FirstFarms owns 7,500 hectares of land in Romania. In 2011, it sold 176 hectares and bought another 67 hectares of land.
FirstFarms plans to expand operations in Romania after having seen its revenue more than double last year, to some EUR4 million.
(English version by Loredana Fratila-Cristescu)