There is enormous potential in the Central-Eastern European region in the field of agriculture, and Hungary can play a central role in its development, pointed out the leaders of Hungary's market-leading feed production company.
UBM would also become a more prominent player in the EU market, while according to the company, Hungary has all the capabilities to return to where it was decades ago, i.e. at the top of the continent, in terms of agriculture.
Perhaps few people know, but Kerelőszentpál, near Marosvásárhely, is home to one of the largest feed factories in the Central-Eastern European region, which is also owned by Hungarians.
Founded in 1996, UBM has grown into Hungary's leading agricultural company over the past 28 years, the country's market-leading feed producer and one of the largest domestic feed raw material traders. After conquering the domestic market, the company group set foot outside our country's borders as well. In addition to its factory in Romania, it also opened a plant in Slovakia, while its sales offices are also present in several Western European markets.
The history of UBM in Kerelőszentpáli goes back to 2015. The creation of the classic green field investment was mainly inspired by saving huge logistics costs. The production of feed locally is significantly more cost-effective than transporting it over hundreds of kilometers.
"It is a general trend in Western Europe that feed does not travel more than 150 kilometers, and we created the plant in Romania in the spirit of this"
- said Dénes Laczkó, managing director of UBM Feed Romania.
Hungarian know-how is a market advantage
The largest independent feed mixing plant in Romania was built in Kerelőszentpál with a total investment of around 15.6 million euros.
"The plant fills a gap, its establishment was justified by the market potential of the country, especially the Transylvanian region"
said Dénes Laczkó.
The factory produces and distributes high-quality feed for poultry, pigs and ruminant farm animals to many counties in Transylvania and Transcarpathia. With a capacity of 30,000 tons per hour and 220,000 tons per year, it is one of the largest feed production facilities in the region and one of Europe's most modern technologies. This production capacity is accompanied by an annual requirement of 130-140 thousand tons of grain on the raw material side. In addition, animal husbandry in the region is on a reliable development path, which is accompanied by a growing demand for feed.
The importance of UBM's presence in Romania is clearly demonstrated by the fact that the neighboring country's total annual feed production capacity is 2.8 million tons, of which the Kerelőszentpáli plant covers nearly 8 percent.
"In 2023, we produced around 150,000 tons of feed, which meant a business turnover of 60 million euros and a pre-tax profit of 1.5 million euros"
said Dénes Laczkó.
An automatic bagging and palletizing system is also connected to the production line, so the plant can also serve the customer with products in bulk or different sizes in bags. The bagged products are thus also available for backyard feeding.
"As the market leader in Hungary, the UBM Group has additional knowledge in the sector, which gives it an advantage over its Romanian competitors. The geographical positioning is no accident either. From Kerelőszentpál, ready-made goods are available to all corners of Romania. In addition, it is a region rich in agricultural activity and productive areas, which provides a good raw material market for the production of feed."
- explained the managing director of the Romanian subsidiary of the Hungarian UBM group.
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