Romania’s pet food boom draws new manufacturing investment
Bottom line
Romania’s pet food sector is drawing a fresh wave of manufacturing investment, with PetfoodIndustry reporting roughly €300 million tied to new or expanding projects from Swiss producer AktivDog, Belgium’s United Petfood, and Romanian poultry group Transavia. The story also points to Kormotech sharpening its Romania strategy as the market grows. Recent reporting and company announcements add detail: United Petfood has been building a second Romanian plant with a reported €35 million investment, while Transavia said in November 2025 that it was investing €150 million in what it called the country’s largest pet food factory, with production targeted for the second half of 2026. Market growth helps explain the interest: PetfoodIndustry, citing Euromonitor, previously reported Romania’s pet food sales rose nearly 10% in 2024 to RON 4.97 billion, or about US$1.1 billion. (petfoodindustry.com)
Why it matters: For veterinary professionals, this is another sign that Central and Eastern Europe, and Romania in particular, are becoming more important in the pet nutrition supply chain. More local production can eventually mean broader product availability, faster distribution, more private-label competition, and potentially more nutrition options for pet parents. It also suggests continued premiumization and formalization of feeding habits in the region, trends that can shape client questions about ingredient sourcing, product quality, and value. (petfoodindustry.com)
What to watch: Watch whether these factories come online on schedule in late 2026 and whether manufacturers pair new capacity with retail expansion, veterinary-channel products, or more aggressive pricing in Romania and neighboring markets. (transavia.ro)
Romania’s pet food industry is moving into a new phase, with around €300 million in announced investment underscoring how attractive the market has become for both domestic and international manufacturers. PetfoodIndustry highlighted new or expanding activity involving AktivDog, Transavia, and United Petfood, while Kormotech is also treating Romania as a priority growth market as competition intensifies. (petfoodindustry.com)
The backdrop is sustained category growth. PetfoodIndustry reported earlier this year that Romania’s pet food sales climbed nearly 10% in 2024 to RON 4.97 billion, citing Euromonitor data. Industry observers have described a market that has changed quickly: where Romania once had very limited domestic pet food manufacturing, it now has several sizable production sites, with more on the way. That growth has been tied to rising acceptance of commercial pet nutrition and a broader shift toward more structured feeding practices among pet parents. (petfoodindustry.com)
The biggest single project appears to be from Transavia, one of Romania’s major poultry companies. In its November 11, 2025 announcement, Transavia said it would invest €150 million in a new pet food factory in Ciugud, Alba County, describing it as the largest such facility in Romania and one of the largest in Europe. The company said the site would make both dry and wet food, use poultry by-products as part of a broader resource-efficiency strategy, and begin production in the second half of 2026. PetfoodIndustry’s newer report puts the Transavia project at about €200 million, suggesting either updated project scope or differing public estimates. (transavia.ro)
United Petfood is also expanding its Romanian footprint. Multiple reports say the Belgian manufacturer committed about €35 million to a second Romanian plant in Răcari, Dâmbovița County. That follows a broader regional pattern in which established European pet food groups are adding capacity in Eastern and Southeastern Europe rather than serving those markets only through imports. (romania-insider.com)
Kormotech’s role is a little different, but still notable. The company was cited by PetfoodIndustry as revamping its Romania approach, and Kormotech’s own materials show why: Romania already accounts for a meaningful share of its export business, and the company has said it wants at least a 10% share of Romania’s pet food market by 2028. Its partnership with retailer Profipet suggests manufacturers aren’t just thinking about production capacity, but also about route-to-market and brand-building in a fast-developing category. (petfoodindustry.com)
There’s also a wider industry read-through here. Analysts and trade publications have increasingly framed Romania as a potential regional production hub, helped by its agricultural base, lower-cost manufacturing profile, and access to neighboring Central and Eastern European markets. At the same time, executives have flagged the challenges that come with that opportunity, including permitting complexity and a volatile geopolitical and economic backdrop. (petmagazine.ro)
Why it matters: For veterinary professionals, manufacturing investment may sound like a pure industry story, but it has practical relevance. More regional capacity can improve supply resilience, widen the mix of therapeutic-adjacent, premium, and private-label nutrition products available to pet parents, and increase scrutiny of formulation quality, ingredient sourcing, and claims. As more brands compete for shelf space, veterinary teams may see more client questions about how to compare foods made locally versus imported products, and whether newer entrants meet expected nutrition and safety standards. (transavia.ro)
What to watch: The next milestones are operational. Transavia has pointed to the second half of 2026 for production start-up, and the broader investment wave will be easier to judge once facilities are commissioned, volumes are disclosed, and companies signal whether they’re targeting mass retail, export, specialty retail, or veterinary-adjacent segments. If those launches stay on track, Romania could move from a growth market to a more influential production base in the European pet nutrition map. (transavia.ro)