In the past thirty years, food supply chains were designed around efficiency and cost benefit. In effect, Production moved to the lowest-cost locations and processing became concentrated. In the last 30 years, distribution networks stretched across continents with the prevailing assumption that lower cost always meant greater competitiveness. Does that still hold relevant today? In our global experience from both our Clients and our market intelligence, it can be argued that assumption is now being challenged.
The food industry is discovering that resilience has value. So does proximity. So does flexibility.
Events of the last decade, from pandemic disruption in 2020, and geopolitical instability since 2022 across to extreme energy price volatility in the last 18 months, have exposed the vulnerabilities of highly optimised supply chains. This before we include labour shortages and climate-related shocks. European food processors are increasingly reassessing logistics strategies not solely on cost grounds, but on operational resilience and sustainable performance. This is creating a profound shift in how businesses think about geography.
Rather than asking where production is cheapest, we see leaders increasingly asking where supply can be protected, where markets can be reached efficiently and where infrastructure can support future growth. South East Europe sits at the intersection of all three questions.
Stretching from Greece and Bulgaria through Romania, Croatia and the wider Balkan region, South East Europe occupies a unique position between the European Union, the Black Sea region, and the Middle East. Historically viewed as a transit corridor, the region is increasingly becoming a strategic logistics platform. The food logistics sector is forecast to reach approximately US$187 billion in 2026 and US$292 billion by 2032. More than 24,000 companies operate within the sector and over 4.2 million people are employed globally across food logistics activities.
At the same time, major logistics hubs are emerging around key maritime corridors. Ports such as Piraeus, Thessaloniki and Constanța are not merely transport assets. They are gateways to increasingly regionalised food systems. The significance of South East Europe extends beyond transport. The region possesses substantial agricultural production capacity, competitive labour markets, growing infrastructure and access to multiple export destinations. As businesses seek to diversify risk and reduce dependence on single supply routes, these advantages are becoming increasingly important.
The most successful food supply chains of the future may not be the cheapest – however they may be the most ‘future proofed’
They may, put simply, be the most geographically intelligent. For decades, geography was treated as a background factor in supply-chain design. Today it has re-emerged as a strategic asset.
The next era of food logistics will be shaped not just by technology or investment, but by location and sustainability. Southeast Europe is increasingly positioning itself as that key part of the future.
