George Safir: The customers are very attentive to what they consume and the ingredients used in their family’s meals

The favorite choice of meat of Romanian consumers is poultry. According to INS data, the monthly consumption of poultry is over 1.7 kg per capita and one of the market trends is that people want Romanian meat and wishes to know its origin. Fortunately, in the poultry meat industry are many important Romanian producers, that can cover the demand of the domestic market. Safir Group is one of those producers, founded and run by the Safir family, and it has become known as a brand of correctly produced poultry meat, preserving the natural color of chicken.

Safir group of companies in Vaslui, Moldova, makes a significant contribution to the regional economy and employs nearly 800 people from the area. Safir’s management places a special emphasis on creating stable jobs and fostering the development of Moldova, as the company promotes cultural diversity and ensures a healthy and motivating work environment for all its employees. Business Review talked to George Safir, CEO of Safir Group, to find out more about the business. George Safir runs the business with his father and brother, and this year they achieved remarkable growth in the Moldova region.

George Safir shared with us their paradigm of raising chicken and of producing quality meat: the chickens are raised on the ground, with permanent access to sunlight, fed by hand with self-produced food and are provided with outdoor space and play areas. The slaughterhouse produces healthy chicken meat, and the staff pays great attention to the deboning process. “We have grown significantly our Familia Safir business, and we have national distribution, which we need to strengthen. This year, perhaps more than in other years, we have learned that many of our customers, who go to the store specifically to buy ‘Zdravan Moldovenesc,’ our slow-growth chicken, are very attentive to what they consume, and the ingredients used in their family’s meals. I have repeatedly said that we produce Familia Safir chicken meat as if it were for our own children, and I am pleased that this message has reached the ears of many Romanians, some of whom are already loyal buyers of Familia Safir chicken,” says George Safir.

Safir group, that includes the companies Safir, Nutriva, Sagem and Safi-Star, stands as one of the most significant local employers. Among the 767 active employees, almost 9% are of Asian nationalities coming to work in Romania. Also, about 80% of the employees are from Vaslui county. “Many of our employees have been with us for a long time – 15 years, 18 years, 20 years. The most tenured employee has been with us for 27 years. There are also many who celebrate more than 10 years of service with us. In the management department, 75% of the members have at least 10 years of experience in our organization and I believe this reflects the quality of work we have consistently delivered over time,” says George Safir.

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Powerful Employers in Romania: Safir Group

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The distribution of employees within the group is as follows: Safir represents 74% of the total workforce, Nutriva (animal feed) 8%, Sagem (farms) 17% and Safi-Star 1%. Safir group has 68 Asian employees, accounting for 8.8% of the total active workforce within the group. The company’s employee growth rate increased by 4% in 2022 compared to 2021, and in 2023 it rose by 20% compared to 2022.

Familia Safir portfolio

Among the products in the Familia Safir portfolio, ‘Rasfat Romanesc’ has become very competitive in the market, considering that the ingredients are 100% natural – we use chicken meat and spices only.

“I would be happy if our customers understood that we have not directly transferred the price increases of energy, resources, salaries, etc., to their pockets – all of which, combined, would have led to a huge price increase at the shelves. We have assumed a significant portion of the cost increase ourselves, as business. Our turnover is solid, especially this year, because we have chosen to stay close to our customers with natural products and competitive prices for the quality we offer,” explains George Safir.

The market needs consolidation

Like any other industry in Romania, the chicken meat producer market needs to consolidate. Every market tends to consolidate at some point – through acquisitions or mergers, thereby separating stronger players. This is a solid and natural direction in other markets, and it is also our future plan: to consolidate more production points under the Safir group of companies.

“I estimate that in the medium future, small slaughterhouses in Romania will decrease in number; staying in the current configuration cannot lead to long-term competitiveness and relevance. I am referring particularly to small slaughterhouses that process around 5,000 heads per hour. Medium-sized slaughterhouses in other countries process three times more per hour and we are heading in that direction as a group of companies. I am convinced that in Romania, before long, the market will be consolidated under few producers only and they will be the ones with the strongest brand, the best products and the loyalty of customers. Price will remain important, but it will not play the defining role in the choice of the brand food that families consume. Educated people – our customers – understand (and expect) that for true quality, you pay a certain price,” states George Safir.

Safir Group took over Rachiti chicken farm in Botosani last month. The farm has 8 halls and a capacity of 960,000 heads per year. The first batch of chickens from this farm will reach the shelves in February 2024. “During the past two years – 2022 and 2023 – our business has been very intense in terms of investments. Although Safir group of companies did not make as many acquisitions of other entities or farms, as we did in previous years, in 2022 and 2023, we invested in equipment (especially refrigeration), process optimization (ERP) and, in general, we focused on cost optimization while simultaneously developing our team,” says George Safir.

“Among the significant investments made in 2022 were those in modernizing the slow-growth chicken farms and in the development of the slow-growth chicken rearing and care process. This year, in terms of investments, we focused on increasing production capacity through the exploitationn of three new farms: Simila, Parincea, Tatarasti. When I look back at how this year has been, I see that despite all the challenges at the national and international levels, we have remained a relevant player on the Romanian chicken meat market and we have increased our turnover year after year. I estimate that we will exceed 75 million euros in turnover this year (we will confirm at the end of the financial year).”

The evolving purchasing behavior, especially in meat products, presents an opportunity for the market of healthy chicken meat producers.