Romania ranks 10th in the European Union in terms of raw milk production, with nearly 4.4 million tonnes produced annually. And yet, processing plants are importing ever-increasing quantities of raw milk. This paradox does not stem from a lack of raw materials, but from the difficulty in sourcing these existing raw materials, according to a report of the Romanian Competition Council.
Low quantity of milk reaching processing plants
According to a report published by the Competition Council earlier this summer, only around a third (33.3 per cent) of the raw milk produced in Romania actually reaches industrial processors. The rest remains on farms (for household and feed consumption), is sold directly to consumers or is turned into traditional products outside the industrial supply chain. This collection rate places Romania 17th in the EU - seven places lower than its ranking in terms of production.
Imports are rising despite the availability of locally produced milk
In the first five months of 2026, Romania imported 92,393 tonnes of raw milk, 39.8 per cent more than in the same period of 2025. However, imported milk accounts for just 10.5 per cent of the raw material used by dairies - compared with 9.6 per cent last year - whilst the volume collected over the same period from Romanian farms (around 785,500 tonnes), remains almost nine times bigger than imports. Although the amount is not alarming, the growth trend is. In practice, it is not a shortage of Romanian milk that forces dairies to import, but the inability of the collection system to deliver it, consistently and on time, to the processing plants.
Causes of the current situation
The main cause is structural: the sector is highly fragmented, consisting of small farms with a limited number of animals, scattered geographically - a network that is very costly and logistically difficult to manage for a processor requiring a constant volume and quality every day. Added to this is the lower productivity of Romanian cows compared to other European countries, which keeps costs high and reduces the competitiveness of locally produced milk. Therefore, for most of the industry, the alternative of importing raw milk remains, for the time being, much simpler to manage than a fragmented collection network.
A possible solution: cooperatives
The Competition Council recommends that farmers form cooperatives as a structural solution - a form of organisation that could provide exactly what is lacking today: bargaining power, aggregated volumes and a steady supply to processors, conditions without which Romanian milk will continue, for the most part, to remain outside the processing plants.
More information
For more information, you can reach out to the Netherlands Agricultural Network in Romania via: bkr-lvvn@minbuza.nl