Timisoara: Romanian entrepreneur invests EUR 1 mln in organic sea buckthorn business

Timisoara is the home of the newest production line of Frootya organic sea buckthorn nectar, a brand developed by a local entrepreneur who invested EUR 1 million since 2013 in growing the plant. The investment was covered with private and European funds.

The Frootya production line includes raw sea buckthorn juice, but also its combinations of sea buckthorn nectar with mango, aronia, ginger, orange and honey.

“Our sea buckthorn grows in Romania, in the Mures Valley, in a farm equipped with all the necessary facilities, under controlled and certified organic conditions. In our first year of launching the Frootya brand, we aim to achieve a business of EUR 250,000, of which EUR 100,000 from the sale of juice and nectar and the rest from the wholesale sale of sea buckthorn fruits,” said Lucian Popa, Managing Partner at PALD Biofarm, the company that operates the Frootya brand.

Lucian Popa decided to start an investment in agriculture in 2013. He chose the sea buckthorn, a suitable product for ecological agriculture, and the first investment consisted in the purchase of a 42-hectare plot of land in an area with a tradition of fruit growing - the Mureș valley, Arad county.

In 2014, the first 10 hectares of sea buckthorn were planted, and in 2019 the project successfully accessed the first round of European funds. In the first years, sea buckthorn was sold to internal and external processors, wholesale.

“Following a market analysis and the desire to be closer to the final consumer, we decided to add juice and nectar to our offer,” Lucian Popa said.

For 2023, the entrepreneur plans to expand with a new automated production line, with European funding, and optimize costs through energy independence by installing photovoltaic panels.

(Photo source: the company)