Controversial Sale of Romanian Dairy Napolact to Hungarian Interests Raises Security Concerns

Sebastian Burduja, adviser to Romania's prime minister Ilie Bolojan and former energy minister, has raised alarms regarding the sale of major dairy brand Napolact to Bonafarm Group, a company controlled by Hungary's richest man, Sándor Csányi. Burduja has called for an in-depth investigation into the sale's implications on national security, seeking specialist reports and opinions from Romanian intelligence agencies SRI and SIE, as well as an analysis from the Commission for the Examination of Foreign Direct Investments (CEISD).

Burduja's concerns are rooted in the ties between Sándor Csányi and the Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán, suggesting that such business ventures may not operate independently from the government's political agenda. He states that Csányi's investments reflect the government-led model of state capitalism and project Hungary's economic and political power in the region.

This scrutiny parallels the previous controversy surrounding the sale of E.ON Romania assets to the MVM Group, a state-owned Hungarian company, which faced a negative opinion from CEISD, leaving the deal unresolved. The Napolact transaction, part of FrieslandCampina's sale of its Romanian operations, involves significant dairy production facilities in Cluj-Napoca and Târgu Mureș, heightening the strategic significance of the deal.