EUROPEAN GRANTS The first buffalo farm in the county of Arad is active in the town of Pecica

The first buffalo farm has been built in the town of Pecica, in the county of Arad, near the Natural Park "Lunca Mureşului", following an investment of 600,000 Euros. The money comes from European grants, following a cross-border cooperation project between the town of Pecica and the authorities of the Hungarian town of Mórahalom.

The project has been designed for 10 buffalos (9 females for milking and 1 male). The farm comprises a stable for sheltering the buffalos in winter, a building that would host a veterinary clinic, as well as homes for those working on the farm. The grazing area for the ten buffalos spans 11.2 hectares.

Petru Antal, the mayor of Pecica said: "By implementing this project, it has been proposed to reinsert in Pecica of a buffalo population, which would reinvigorate the original flora of the Lunca Mureşului Nature Park through grazing, and would eliminate the non-domestic vegetation. The area is extremely valuable as a natural reservation and for its landscape, and preserving the species specific to the area and destroying those that don't belong leads to the recovery and preservation of the habitats. The buffalos - which are known as Bos Bubalus Bubalis, is an animal compatible with the needs of the area, biologically as well as economically".

Various machines and tools were acquired to allow the operation of the farm: a tractor, a front-loader, a trailer, a rotating mower, a motor pump, a mill. Also acquired were instruments for the monitoring of the farm and of the livestock.

The project of the farm took part through the Cross-Border Cooperation Program between Hungary and Romania 2007-2013, financed by the European Union through the European Fund for Regional Development. The project is worth 623,017 Euros, of which 28,972 Euros were made available to the Romanian party, for the Natura Pecica Ecological Association and 195,180 Euros for the Local Council of Pecica. The project took place over a period of 14 months. The objectives of the project were to model and initiate a system of long term activities to protect nature, which would lay the foundation for the rehabilitation of the protected territories which have an economic potential which is as of yet untapped, and exploit it by raising species of domestic livestock. The buffalo farm can attract a large number of tourists, especially children, for which watching the livestock would be a great opportunity for practical biology lessons and for spending more time outside.

Raising buffalos is an activity which has nearly disappeared in the county of Arad; only a few families in the Northern part of the county, in particular in the area of Gurahonţ-Hălmagiu, still raise a small number of buffalos.

Buffalo milk can be used for very enjoyable foods, such as various types of cheese: Mozzarella, Cheddar, Karnal, Surati.