Romania - The Scramble for Land

Austrian investors secure access to important resources in Romania. As early as 2002, Andreas Bardeau acquired 9,000 hectares of farmland in the Banat. Today he farms about 18,000 hectares with his son, making him one of the biggest foreign agriculture investors. With only 160 employees he produces 7,000 litres of milk a day and thousands of tons of grain per year. In addition to the amount realised, he annually collects 3 million Euros from Brussels agricultural funding coffers. Small farmers, however, who practise biological, sustainable agriculture on 20 hectares and raise traditional cow breeds, get no agricultural subsidies. That fate is shared by 70% of Romanian businesses. The dominant position of the Austrian is now bringing more and more critics to the scene.