Banca Comerciala Romana (BCR), together with BCR Social Finance, opens the conversation about protecting local identity in agriculture and supporting farmers in Dabuleni, according to a press release sent to AGERPRES.
"In the middle of summer, when watermelon is the symbol of the season, BCR, together with BCR Social Finance, draws attention to the need for investments, cooperation and public policies to protect local identity in agriculture," the press release reads.
Romania, the fifth-largest producer of watermelons in the European Union, has lost approximately two-thirds (65%) of its domestic watermelon production in the last six years, according to official data, from approximately 584,000 tonnes in 2018 to fewer than 200,000 tonnes in recent years, the cited source informs. Domestic consumption remains stable, at around 370,000 tonnes, which means that almost half of the watermelons we consume are imported.
According to the BCR's press release, Romania pays over 24 million euros annually on watermelon imports (from Greece, Germany, Turkey, the Netherlands and Bulgaria), while exports are only 3 million euros (Poland, Ukraine, Hungary, Moldova and the Netherlands). The cultivated area has decreased from 22,000 hectares in 2018 to 10,200 hectares in 2024, and many farmers have given up the crop due to high costs, lack of infrastructure and climate change.
The locality of Dabuleni, in Dolj County, produces 1 in 6 watermelons consumed in Romania and contributes approximately 16% of the total national production, thanks to the sandy soil and warm climate, which allow for early harvesting. However, local farmers face major challenges. Thus, the cultivated area in Dabuleni has decreased in the last decade from 1,400 ha to under 900 ha, and yields are increasingly affected by extreme weather phenomena, hail, drought and the lack of modern irrigation, reaching in difficult years below 90 tons/ha, compared to the maximum potential of 110 tons/ha.
BCR, a member of Erste Group, is one of the most important financial groups in Romania, including universal banking operations (retail, corporate & investment banking, treasury and capital markets), as well as specialized companies in the leasing, private pensions and housing banking markets. BCR offers a full range of financial products and services, through a network of 20 business centers and 18 mobile offices dedicated to companies and 298 retail units located in most cities in the country with over 10,000 inhabitants, of which 71% are units where cash transactions are carried out only at machines (cashless operations).
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