I FROZEN FOOD
Healthy Growth at Ardo Group Having increased sales volume to 780,000 tons and turnover to €868 million in 2016, Ardo Group, the European leader in the production of fresh-frozen vegetables, herbs and fruit, is planning to maintain this growth momentum, which is being driven by rising consumer demand for healthy and convenient products. he family-owned Ardo Group grows, freezes and sells its extensive range of fresh-frozen vegetables, herbs, fruit, potatoes, rice and pasta to the retail, food service and food manufacturing channels in more than 60 markets worldwide. Ardo Group produces both branded and private label products. In line with its objective to preserve the gifts of nature as purely as possible for its customers and consumers, Ardo Group controls the entire production chain, from the selection of seed to packing and distribution. Ardo Group operates 21 production and packing units across nine countries in Europe. The company’s production, packing and distribution sites are strategically located in Europe’s most fertile crop growing regions. The close proximity of the factories to the crops is one of Ardo Group’s key strengths and ensures that only minutes are lost between harvest and locking in the product’s natural goodness in the company’s freezing units.
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Ivica Todoric (pictured left), president of Agrokor Group; with Bernard Haspeslagh, chief operations officer of Ardo Group.
Investment So that it can offer an even wider and higher quality product range, Ardo Group has been investing in new technology, launching new production lines at a number of different sites. For example, at Badajoz in Spain, a new grilling line has been added and part of the production area renovated. At Geer in Belgium, a new spinach preparation line has been installed, and at Violaines in France, virtually a whole new factory is being built to deep-fry vegetables. The spinach line at
Koolskamp in Belgium has also been renovated. Ardo Group is also investing to enhance packaging efficiency. For instance, a new packaging line has been installed for fruit at the Belgian frozen food group’s Ashford site in the UK, while a second industrial packaging line has been added to the Alpiarca site in Portugal. Ardo Group has also commenced work on a new and fully automated distribution centre at Gourin in France.
Pak Choi mix.
Recent new product launches by Ardo Group include sweet potato fries.
Constant Innovation By controlling the production chain, Ardo Group not only ensures the highest quality standards throughout the business but is also well placed to anticipate new trends and consumer needs. Ardo Group continually innovates to help drive market growth. Recent new product launches include sweet potato fries, Pak Choi mix, quinoa vegetable stirfry, smoothie mixes, herbs mix tartare and passion fruit puree. Sustainability Sustainability is at the heart of Adro Group’s corporate ethos. The company fosters long-term relationships with growers, suppliers and customers, which provide stability for all parties and which are necessary to generate the con?dence for sustainable investments. “Several years ago we set out on a journey to grow and freeze our products in a sustainable way, with respect for the planet, our employees, our suppliers, our neighbours and our customers. Not content to simply do the right things ourselves, we felt the need to motivate and
guide our upstream partners,” explains Jan Haspeslagh, managing director of Ardo Group. “On our journey we have reached out to our growers and our suppliers of services and goods, and have worked with them to maximise areas of common interest and develop our shared values, where sustainability takes centre stage. Starting with the seed and the soil and finishing with the freezing and packing of our finished goods, sustainability is an integral part of the food that we sell.” Expansion in Central and Eastern Europe To advance its expansion plans in Central and Eastern Europe, Ardo Group has formed a joint venture with Croatian
FOOD & DRINK BUSINESS EUROPE, MAY/JUNE 2017
Quinoa vegetable stirfry.
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