This paper investigates the state of food security in Romania and its place in the world. We analysed the level of food security indicators for 1990–2012, in Romania, and their average levels worldwide. References are also made to developed and developing countries. The research seeks to answer the questions: Is food security achieved in Romania and, if so, what kind of structural changes can be made towards improving food quality and people’s living standards? As indicators show, the findings indicate that food security is ensured, on average, in Romania. Dietary energy supply is above dietary energy requirements, the ratio of cereals import dependency is below its average level worldwide, and the daily diet is balanced between vegetal and animal origin food. Having solved the quantitative aspect of food security, Romania can look towards improving the qualitative aspects of it. In this regard, organic food may be considered as a direction of developing sustainable agricultural economy.

This article investigates how governmental agricultural R&D expenditure affect economic prosperity and sustainable development, attempting to verify the hypothesis that agricultural research and development expenditures are among the key factors influencing the farmers’ income, as one of the sustainable development indicators. Statistical data were retrieved from European international databases for the period of 2004–2020 and were analyzed using the regression model. The results of the study indicate positive effects for most of the EU member states. The countries where the results validate the hypothesis are Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Croatia, Ireland, Latvia, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, and the United Kingdom, as a former member state of the EU. Further, the model confirms that a significant portion of farmers’ income growth is explained by the governmental R&D expenditure. These findings may change the methods and directions regarding the agricultural R&D expenditure, underpinning the macroeconomic policy and agriculture in rural areas along the pathway to achieving the sustainable development goals.

This paper seeks to analyze the impact of agricultural investments on economic growth in rural communities in Ro-mania. It answers the question: are the investments in agriculture a determinant of economic growth in rural communities , and if yes, what is their impact on economic growth? the objectives are to identify, through linear regression models, the intensity and meaning of the relationships between the value of investments and the main indicators that can express economic growth in rural areas. In this purpose, the level of relationships between the value of investments in agriculture and the value of GDP in predominantly rural areas, the value of GDP in agriculture and the value of the agricultural production are analyzed. The main results show that the variables chosen are influenced by the value of the investments in different proportions, so the hypothesis that investment in agriculture has a positive and medium impact on rural economic growth is true. The most significant relationship is obtained between the value of agricultural investments and the value of agricultural production.

Fair Trade is a global network, a certification system whereby producers meet certain social, economic and environmental standards, with additional funding to improve these conditions and a minimum price set for their products. The literature shows the rapid spread of movements implemented by countries who want fair trade, fair prices and high quality products. The present research demonstrates the need for the implementation of the Fair Trade movement at the level of each country in the European Union and the benefits for the actors involved. At the global movement level, the total number of producer organisations in the FairTrade scheme in 2020 was 1880, of which 950 were registered in Latin America and the Caribbean. The paper is based on the quantitative and qualitative analysis of areas and productions for the 7 main agricultural products: tea, coffee, cocoa, sugar, bananas, cottonseed and plants and flowers, as well as the calculation of the main statistical indicators standard deviation, coefficient of variation and growth rate. At E.U. level there are 16 countries representing national Fair Trade organisations, of which Germany ranked second in terms of retail trade of FairTrade products in 2017. The recognition of certification in Europe is an important asset, as the high living standards in Western European countries mean that they are interested in buying products with this label.

Although it originated from the Slow Food and Cittaslow movements, slow tourism has spread to many spheres of tourism. The purpose of the paper is to investigate what people associate with slow tourism, and how and where they engage in slow tourism. Social media content analysis on Instagram, using hashtag #slowtourism, was performed in the research. The general conclusion is that people mostly associate slow tourism with different forms of architecture and landscape, and to lesser extent with transport and food. Also, there was significant content variation within the architecture and landscape categories, suggesting that people associate different types of architecture and tourism destinations with slow tourism. When it comes to location, the majority of photos were taken in Italy, which is not surprising, considering that Slow Food and Cittaslow movements originated in this country.

Private brands are representing an important vector for retailers, helping them to build sustainable relationships with their customers. Usually, private brands are perceived as products differentiated by lower prices. The purpose of this research is to identify consumers’ trust level in private brands used in food retail and their perceptions about the quality of retailers’ own products. The research question is: What are consumers’ perceptions about using private brands in food retail? Pursuing this question, a survey based on a questionnaire was carried out. Research findings showed that the main reason why people buy private brands’ products is lower price rather than high quality. The interviews showed that the typical private brand user is male, aged between 45 and 65 years old, with middle-level income, and employees with secondary education. These results are useful for retailers in their efforts to decide strategies for their private brands and for building consumers’ trust. The findings are useful for food producers as well, because they should reconsider their marketing strategies in order to adapt themselves to the continuous growth of retailers’ private brands.