The improvement is related to last year’s decision by the Romanian government to lower the value-added tax (VAT) on meat and processed meat products, according to senior company representatives.
“The first quarter was very good. The measure which allowed the reduction of VAT on food to 9% relaunched consumption and we have been able to experience its results. For this year’s target, we proposed an increase of 10%, but so far we have reached between 19% and 20%. We are happy with whatever happens,” Radu Timis, the company’s co-owner and the head of the Romanian Meat Association (ARC), told local business daily Ziarul Financiar.
In 2015, Cris-Tim reported sales of about €105m. Should this positive growth trend continue throughout this year, the Romanian meat processor could post annual revenues of up to €126m for 2016.
Salami plant modernisation
The improved forecast for this year is enabled by Cris-Tim’s recent investments at its facilities. Last year, with the aim of raising its output capacity, Cris-Tim spent about €8m on modernising and expanding its meat-processing facilities, including the company’s salami plant in Sibiu, in the country’s central region. In total, the meat processor says it has invested about €15m in upgrading and expanding its output and R&D capacities over the past three years.
The Romanian government decided to lower the VAT rate on meat and processed meat products last year in a bid to stimulate lagging domestic consumption and combat the tax evasion which has been plaguing the country’s meat industry. The tax was lowered from 24% to 9% on 1 June 2015.
Livia Harbuz, deputy head of the agriculture commission at the Romanian parliament, told local journalists that this problem affects an estimated 40% of Romania’s meat sales. Local daily Jurnalul National estimates the Romanian meat market to be worth some €3.2bn.
Cris-Tim among Romania’s top brands
Pork meat continues to dominate the Romanian meat market despite the continuing increase in poultry meat consumption over past years. Romanians consume about 29kg of pork meat per capita, 20.1kg of poultry meat, and only about 5.6kg and 2.3kg of beef and sheep/goat meat, respectively, according to data released by the country’s National Institute of Statistics (INSSE).
Based in the country’s capital Bucharest, Cris-Tim was established in 1992 by Radu and Cristina Timis. The company sells a wide range of processed pork and poultry meat products under the Cris-Tim, Matache Macelaru, Vitality, Alpinia and Bunatati brands, according to Cris-Tim. These comprise sausages, hams, frankfurters, salami and many others.
In 2013, Romania’s leading business magazine BIZ Magazine ranked Cris-Tim among the top ten strongest Romanian brands, and the number one brand in the meat products category.