“Today’s announcement is a wonderful development for Smithfield Romania because the IFC loan will not only help promote greater production and job creation, but it will also enhance the company’s ability to improve its sustainability program to meet the ever-changing needs and demands of its customers and consumers,” said C. Larry Pope, Smithfield’s president and chief executive officer.
According to the company’s representatives, the investment will promote employment in the agribusiness sector and the spread of environmental, food safety, and animal husbandry best practices in Romania.
Pork accounts for half of all protein consumption in Romania and demand for pork remains strong domestically and internationally, Dariusz Nowakowski, president of Smithfield Europe, said.
“Romania’s agribusiness sector holds great potential for generating employment and improving food security in the country and beyond,” said Alzbeta Klein, IFC’s director for manufacturing, agribusiness and services.
Smithfield Romania, a part of Smithfield Foods International Division, is a leading pork producer and processor in Europe while Smithfield Foods is a $15 billion global food company and the world’s largest pork processor and hog producer.
The group started operations in Romania in 2004, when it bought the local companies Agrotorvis and Comtim Grup. Later, Smithfield bought 50% of food products wholesaler Agroalim Distribution Bucharest, as well as 50% in the Frigorifer storage facility, in eastern Romania.