Everything started in the same room, 30 years apart. The founding uncle left the family apartment with an idea and a market that barely existed. Sorin Burcă started from the same point, but from a different generation: waiter, electronics engineer, entrepreneur and, ultimately, Business Manager of the same family company he had refused for years.

Today, Apă și Săpun is a company with over 20 years on the Romanian market, a turnover of nearly 16 million lei and a portfolio built on a deep understanding of on-the-ground needs. A company that chose from the very beginning to operate in industries where hygiene makes the difference between compliance and real consequences — including the food industry.

And professional hygiene is a bigger industry than it seems.

The global market was valued at $17.8 billion in 2024 and is estimated to reach $25 billion by 2030, with an annual growth rate of nearly 6%. A growth driven by reality. By audits, regulations, increasingly informed consumers, and a food industry that cannot afford mistakes.

In a meat processing plant or a dairy facility, hygiene is a chain. Every link matters — from how an employee washes their hands before entering production, to how often a surface is disinfected, the type of cloth used, the positioning of a soap dispenser within the workflow, or how a garbage bag is replaced. A single weak link can cost an authorization, a failed audit, or the health of a consumer. Few know how to apply it correctly. And this is where the difference between a supplier and a partner emerges.

Apă și Săpun — 30 years of experience, one philosophy

Apă și Săpun is a company built on people and on knowledge accumulated over three decades in the field. Founded over 20 years ago, with roots in the experience of a founder who built the Tork brand in Romania from scratch, the company chose a sustainable path from the very beginning: consultancy before product.

Sorin Burcă, Business Manager of the company and representative of the new generation directly involved in the business, summarizes the company’s philosophy simply: “We don’t sell what we have. We recommend what is needed.” This approach has translated into long-term partnerships, loyal clients, and a turnover of nearly 16 million lei.

The company’s portfolio includes carefully selected brands and solutions: Tork, the global leader in professional hygiene and part of the Essity group; Saclo — the Italian continuous bag system that reduces plastic consumption by up to 70% and halves bag replacement time; and Sanimaid, the bristle-free toilet brush that eliminates one of the most overlooked bacterial hotspots in any facility.

What hygiene consultancy really means

A visit from an Apă și Săpun consultant begins with questions. Where is wiping done? With what material? How many times per shift? Where is the dispenser placed relative to the workstation? How many minutes does an employee lose each day simply because hygiene equipment is poorly positioned?

Sorin Burcă provides a concrete example from the Meat.Milk. show: moving a paper dispenser closer to the workstation saved two hours of labor per day in a factory with hundreds of employees. Multiply the hourly cost of an employee by two hours, then by 250 working days. The result explains why consultancy brings real value beyond the invoice.

Romania — high potential, evolving education

The Romanian professional hygiene market is growing, but still far from Western European standards. Behaviors change slowly, and many entrepreneurs treat hygiene as a box to tick, rather than a system to optimize. The pandemic accelerated awareness, but the journey is still long.

Apă și Săpun has embraced this path from the very beginning, as a family mission — passed from one generation to the next, from an apartment in Drumul Taberei to a stand at Meat.Milk. 2026.

Meat.Milk. | AGRO TV • Friday and Saturday – 19:00 • Sunday – 21:00

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