A family agribusiness from Mures, Transylvania, has launched a new innovative product, an antibiotics-free chicken, the company’s representatives announced in a press conference today.
Puiul de Crăiești/Crăiești Chicken, a brand owned by Poultry Investment SA, is launching a new range of premium chicken products, sourced from animals raised without antibiotics.
The achievement is the result of 30 years of effort and an investment cycle totaling over 8 million euros, which has allowed the company to vertically integrate and modernize the entire process of raising and processing chickens from its own farms. With the help of the latest and most efficient technologies, the new Crăiești Chicken products are consistently of the highest quality and healthy.
Thanks to new investments in breeding farms, hatcheries, grow-out farms, and chicken processing facilities, the entire chicken production process is now fully integrated. This includes everything from feed production units, ensuring rigorous quality control, to the company’s own chain of 36 stores.
The group, who currently counts over 800 employees, has feed mill, two breeding farms, one of which in Satu Mare, two slaughterhouses, 13 grow-out farms, and two hatcheries. According to the group’s representatives, they have herds of 18 million chickens at the moment.
The slaughterhouse in Sânpaul, Mureș County is the result of a greenfield investment completed in 2021, and it is one of the most modern processing facilities in the country. Poultry Investment has also made EUR 4 million investment this year in breeding and incubators.
“These recent investments reflect our ongoing commitment to providing high-quality poultry products. Recently, we have made significant investments to achieve complete vertical integration of our activities, allowing us to ensure the entire internal supply chain: feed, genetics, growth, slaughter, and processing. As a result, we have significantly improved production processes and met the latest and most demanding industry standards and regulations. The performance level of the poultry sector in Romania is high, and in some respects, even above the European average. The poultry products available on store shelves across the country are of good quality, supported by the expertise of market players and the vigilance of the competent authorities. The launch of our certified product range represents a guarantee of superior quality for our customers,” stated Mr. Dénes Laczkó, CEO of Poultry Investment.
The group is present on the local market through partnerships with major retail chains, distributors, local store networks, and its own chain of 36 stores in the Transylvania region, with products also reaching international markets. The exports are currently below 10% but the group is aiming higher.
Puiul de Craiesti, the antibiotics-free chicken is already available in those 36 local stores and the group is negotiating contract with local distributors and also with the big foreign retail operators.
“Our main concern has always been and continues to be ensuring that Crăiești Chicken is raised under the best conditions. At the end of this complex investment cycle, which has spanned several years, Crăiești Chicken now benefits from a very high food safety standard. Through these investments, we can guarantee the cleanest chicken possible for all our products, which we hope will reach the tables of as many families as possible in Romania,” stated Emanuel Oprea, COO of the company, whose father started this family business more than 30 years ago.
“The Zero Antibiotic product is the result and culmination of over 30 years of dedicated work in poultry farming, during which we have lived alongside these birds, understood their needs, and ensured they live free from disease and suffering. This Crăiești Chicken branded product reflects the company’s commitment to raising healthy chickens without the need for antibiotics. Zero antibiotics used ever means not only that antibiotics were not administered but also that it encompasses the entire production chain, including best practices for maintaining the birds’ health and ensuring all aspects of animal welfare. In conclusion, we can guarantee that the chickens in the Zero Antibiotic range have never been ill,” said his brother, Dr. Ovidiu Oprea, Quality Director and Veterinarian. He added that the biosecurity is vital is fighting against diseases and pests, quoting from a famous saying that “biosecurity must be the biggest capital in the farmer’s book“.
The quality director said they cannot reveal the food recipe for the chicken, but explained it is based on three main components: over two third of grain, protein source based on soy and premixes of vitamins and minerals produced in a facility abroad.
As part of the company’s sustainability strategy, some of the priorities are the promotion of food security, agriculture sustainable and healthy food. At the same time, Poultry Investment aims to reduce the consumption of resources (water, energy) and implement programs for the responsible use of resources and invest in energy green. The company trust reuses 90% of its manure and recycles 65% of its waste as a first step towards the objectives of waste management efficiency until 2030.