* "I haven't seen such a drop in a long time", the president of "Romalimenta" said
* In his opinion, the only solution would be the urgent reduction of VAT and the introduction of tax cuts, or else the situation will spin out of control
For the most part, the recent price hikes are speculative, the representatives of the food industry told us.
"Market speculations are dramatic. The price hikes caused by what is happening right now in the country and in the world will take place towards the end of this year and the beginning of the next. At this moment, most of the price hikes are caused by speculation. The price hikes are fake. Especially in the case of vegetables, most of them are tax evaders who are speculating the moment to increase their profit", said Sorin Minea, the president of "Romalimenta".
He said that no one knows how big the price changes will be.
"Some of the food processors did not hike their prices, on the other side there are the tax evaders, and we are left in the middle, who don't know what is going to happen and what we are going to do. Based on the huge price increase in grains, on a global level, we are also expecting a price increase in meat. But the rise in the price of grains is exaggerated", said Sorin Minea.
According to him, the hike of the VAT rate at 24% killed consumption in Romania. The president of "Romalimenta" claims that things have come to a generalized financial deadlock, and he went on to say that everybody is selling but nobody has the money to buy.
"Real producers are in trouble - it is very hot, everybody is on holiday, consumers buy from the side of the road and from shops that don't pay taxes, the rest of the stores are empty. I haven't seen such a drop in sales in a long time. We are in the midst of a financial deadlock across the entire chain. If something doesn't happen soon, th
