Marcel himself grew up around a sow farm, so pig farming was familiar territory for him. BanatFarming started fattening pigs around 2014–2015. Initially, piglets were imported from Germany. The next logical step was to start producing their own piglets. From 2016–2017, the company invested in sow farming. For Marcel, pig production is a logical extension of arable farming. Grain becomes feed. Feed becomes pig production. Manure goes back to the land.

Despite this pressure, Marcel sees a clear long-term trend. Larger companies continue to invest in production and integration. Medium-sized businesses invest as soon as market conditions allow. At the same time, smaller professional pork producers do not simply disappear. Marcel actually sees value in this mix. A market made up of only a few large companies loses some of its flexibility. What is slowly declining, however, is traditional backyard pig farming. Romania is becoming more urban. Young people are increasingly living and working in larger cities. Instead of keeping pigs themselves, they buy meat from supermarkets.

This changes the structure of demand. A larger share of pork must be produced through professional production chains.

Marcel expects Romanian pig production to continue growing over the next five to ten years. The country already produces many of the raw materials needed for pig production. But challenges remain. Infrastructure increases logistics costs. Wages are rising. Finding good employees willing to take responsibility remains difficult. Future requirements regarding animal welfare may require additional investments. And ASF can change the commercial situation at any moment. For Marcel, this makes efficiency throughout the entire chain increasingly important.

BanatFarming has now been working closely with VAEX Romania for about three years. VAEX currently contracts around 100,000 piglets per year from the company. Marcel recalls that the partnership began with Carmen. One thing immediately stood out to him: reliability.

Marcel regularly uses another word when talking about the collaboration: flexibility. A sow farm cannot simply stop production because the market changes. New piglets are born every week. A finishing pig farmer can postpone a delivery. ASF can close off a region. A slaughterhouse can adjust its demand. A producer then needs alternatives. Marcel sees this as one of VAEX's most important roles. Carmen has an overview of the market and contacts with many finishing pig farmers. When one destination falls away, she can look for another solution.

The cooperation sometimes works the other way around too. If VAEX needs extra animals or BanatFarming has suitable fattening capacity available, both companies can support each other. For Marcel, livestock trading is therefore not just about a fixed contract. It's about solving the situation that arises at that moment.

Romanian consumers are increasingly paying attention to the origin of their food. BanatFarming is already participating in retail concepts where the entire supply chain within Romania is traceable. For a producer like BanatFarming, this offers opportunities to create more value than just competing on price. This development fits with what VAEX is seeing more broadly in Romania. Where the country was once heavily dependent on imported piglets, domestic production is becoming increasingly important. Marcel clearly sees the potential. The country has grain. It has consumers. It has agricultural land. And professional companies continue to invest.