Retail

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What’s booming for Norway’s BAMA Group

RuneFlaen

 

Health awareness – and huge distances – shaping changes in the country’s fresh produce supply

 

Blueberries, avocados and sweet potatoes are among the fastest-growing products in grocery stores under the umbrella of Norway’s giant BAMA Group, which has seen its turnover rise 9% on 2013 to an expected €1.65 billion this year.

“But the competition is tough,” BAMA Group CEO Rune Flaen says of Norway’s highly concentrated retail sector, which recently shrank from being dominated by four major retail groups to just three.

With news in October that Norway’s large Coop chain will take over the Norwegian operations of Sweden’s ICA chain, that leaves just three main retail groups in Norway: NorgesGruppen (40%), Coop (32%) and Rema 1000 with partners (28%).

NorgesGruppen and Rema 1000 are shareholders of, and supplied by, BAMA.

 

Tough climate makes marketing crucial

High taxes and costs, protectionist food policy, and dominance by just a few wholesalers and retailers are among factors shaping retail in Norway and another key one, as Flaen said at the Fresh & Life berry symposium in Madrid in October, is distance.

Norwegians have the highest concentration of shops per inhabitant in Europe, mainly due to the challenging logistics in a country which measures 2000 km from from north to south.

“A large part of the European industry is struggling,” so marketing is even more crucial, he said. BAMA thus makes sales planning and marketing a priority and among its various initiatives is a large sport sponsorship program, where the aim is to encourage physical activity and a healthy diet through different activities for children especially, and Norwegians in general.

 

Berries, then tomatoes and bananas lead fresh produce value

Flaen – who has spent more than 30 years at BAMA and the last 20 at its helm –

said bananas used to be its most valuable fresh produce category but now it’s berries, tomatoes, then bananas. The berry category accounts for about 3% of Norwegian grocery sales in the summer peak season, far ahead of Coca Cola – something Flaen noted as “really important.”

In berries, strawberries still lead but raspberries have also become an important year-round item and blueberries have had “explosive growth”.

“There’s enormous potential in the berry sector in years to come,” he said.

 

In an interview with ED at Fruit Attraction, Flaen shared more market insights:

There’s been huge growth in BAMA’s berry sales. Where else is demand rising?
We’ve had big growth in avocados (+137 % last five years – volume) and in all root vegetables. For example the sweet potato market has exploded, sales last year tripled in volume after a marketing campaign teaching families how to prepare them. Mashed sweet potato has become a favourite for kids.

What’s driving interest in root vegetables?
More and more people going back to basics and cooking at home. We’re seeing that trend really strongly – sales are up 110 %.  

What other trends are you observing?
Local produce is very popular, people are really interested in the region and history behind their food – that’s a clear trend for the future. Private labels will also grow.
What opportunities are on the horizon for fresh produce suppliers?

The health trend is very strong. We have to find the right products for consumers and inform them about what’s in them nutrition-wise and what they do to their bodies – that’s the big trend.
Are health benefits behind the explosion of blueberry consumption in Norway?
Mainly but also because we now have good quality and availability year-round – that’s the key to growth.

What is one of your priorities in fresh produce now?
We are always working on improvements in the value chain. Shelf life is very important to us and our customers are investing very heavily in coolers. In a country like Norway with long distances, quality and freshness are the highest priority.

What changes have you made in logistics?
One example is that we now have three drivers each on two trucks for our “Berry Express” from Morocco so they can arrive as fast and fresh as possible. From loading in Morocco to arrival in Oslo – before distribution in Norway – takes 3-4 days.

What is the “BAMA Commitment”?
For 15 years BAMA has adopted a dynamic and value chain–based model reflecting its desired holistic approach. Through detailed planning and predictability we aim for long-term, sustainable production and profitability in all stages.

 

Retail in Norway

logistics challenge: 5.1m people, 385,000 sq km

highly concentrated: soon just 3 main retail groups

about 3900 grocery shops, average turnover €5m

60% of grocers are discounters (highest in Europe)

0.8 grocery shops per 1,000 people (highest in Europe)

Norwegians shop 4 times pw

Norwegian F&V consumption (day/person)

2013: 443g

2006: 410g
 

BAMA Group (BAMA-Gruppen AS)

Est. turnover 2014: €1.65b up 9% on 2013)

7 business areas including food service & fast-growing flower business

2 retail customer groups in grocery business: NorgesGruppen & Rema 1000.

NorgesGruppen: 40% of grocery market, Norway’s biggest retailer

NorgesGruppen controls chains such as Meny, Kiwi, Centra, Joker & Spar.

Rema 1000: 28%, no-frills supermarket chain

BAMA also has representatives in Poland, Sweden & Holland

BAMA’s fresh produce

500,000 tons pa, of which:

72% imported (170 suppliers)

28% local production

serves 15,000 customers

BAMA’s fresh produce strategy includes:

Goal of min. 4% more growth pa in F&V than average for all categories

Focus on consumer — flavour & nutrition

Close relationship & long term cooperation with suppliers & customers

Importance of berries

300% volume growth in Norway since 2003

1% of Norway’s grocery sales

10.6 % of value of total F&V shopping basket at BAMA

30% of Norwegians buy fresh berries in a grocery store weekly

BAMA 2013 berry sales (in kg)

total 17 million

strawberries 10 million

blueberries 3.25 million (x12 in value since 2008)

raspberries 1.5 million

Cool chain investment

More coolers at checkouts

+3,000 new berry coolers in last 2yrs

+2,000 more in next 2 years

 

JB

 

SPAR berrie mix in cooler.JPG

 

Read this and other feature articles in Eurofresh Distribution edition 134

 
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Inside Swedish retail giant Axfood

Daniel-Månsson_Axfood

 

Fruit and vegetable trends now and what may lie ahead



Axfood is Sweden’s third largest grocery retailer and also its leading convenience store wholesaler. Here we speak to Daniel Månsson, general manager of fruit and vegetables, about trends in Axfood’s fresh produce sales in what is one of the most affluent nations in Europe and the biggest retail market in Scandinavia.

 

What changes have you seen in your fresh produce sales?

Some years ago bananas were the biggest but now with the wide assortment of tomatoes, tomato sales have increased. Before there were just the vine tomatoes and the normal big red tomatoes, now there are 20-25 varieties in the tomato segment. On average, fruit and vegetables account for about 11–12º% of our total store turnover.



What trends do you see?

In general in Sweden, the biggest thing that is happening is organic – it’s getting really huge. This year we have an increase of about 100% and, for example for bananas, one of our supermarkets, Hemköp, has decided to stop selling conventional bananas so we have converted almost all of them now but officially next year we will do only organic bananas.

Another big trend is we are selling more premium, higher value products.

And In the last three years, the biggest increase has been in organic and berries, and cherries have also been very good.



What is happening with convenience foods in Sweden?

Convenience food is still not so strong in Sweden. I don’t think people are willing to pay for it, I think that’s the problem.

We are good in lettuce but everything else is just starting up. We have the products but we are not selling them, and it’s the same for our competitors. Part of the problem is volumes are low so the prices are high but even in categories like carrots, where prices are not that high, we sell almost nothing.

Even in ready-to-eat salads the only thing we have is the Caesar – we eat quite a lot of that in Sweden.



Five years from now what do you think will be different in your fruit and vegetable departments?

For sure there will be a big focus on social responsibility and organic products.

I also think we will have more convenience items, especially in salad and even pre-cut fruits. Also, berries will continue to grow – we have a big health trend.



What is changing and why regarding root vegetables?

What we see is more not the big root vegetables, like carrots, but mainly smaller ones like red beets, parsnips, that kind of thing, increasing quite heavily. It’s probably due to a lot of recipes and cooks on TV and also I think it’s for health and good taste reasons. The thing is you just need to know how to cook them.



What change have you made in fresh produce that you are most proud of?

I think we have done a good job in berries. We are happy because I think we are growing more than the market. Price is very important but with berries quality is even more important so we are very focused on it.

We also do a lot of in-store promotions and let people taste the berries and let everyone know they are no longer just for summer, you can now find good berries all year round.



What have you done to maximise the shelf life of berries?

We know the volumes of our clients and have been working a lot together on the turnover in our warehouse. We have a very quick turnover, the berries can’t stay long in our warehouse. And we’ve also done lot of education for the stores.



Where do you see opportunities for suppliers?

What is interesting right now is organic. I think it’s there to stay in Sweden and the increase is huge.



Tell us about your buying process

We started our own buying department in 2007. Before then we had wholesalers doing the business for us. Our supply department is not located in the company headquarters but in Helsingborg in the south of Sweden.



What are the advantages of having your own buying department?

We are always aim to be as close to the grower as possible. We don’t want to have a lot of middle hands. This way we get the right info and we believe we get fresher products. Growers and grower organisations are our main focus.

 

 

Axfood:



Store chains:

Hemköp (including Prisxtra): higher end supermarket

180 stores, 69 of them wholly owned

Willys: soft discounter & Axfood’s biggest supermarket

183 stores, of which 48 are Willys Hemma stores

Tempo/Handlar’n: 366 franchise stores



Wholesale

Dagab: 2 full-assortment warehouses, 2 cold storage warehouses

Axfood Närlivs: 3 distribution centres, 20 Snabbgross stores



Sources of Axfood’s fruit & veg (approx., vol.)

Sweden 40% (mostly veg)

Spain 20%

Holland 10%



Top vegetable sales (val)

1 tomatoes

2 lettuce

3 capsicums



Top fruit sales (val)

1 bananas

2 apples

3 berries (over whole year)



Berry sales

Up 300% in 5 years

 

JB

 

Click here to read more such articles in our latest edition, number 134

 

 

AXfood store 11b 11 8 007972 - Edited.jpg

 

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Fruit imports a priority at Wal-Mart China

RETAIL china WALMART (2)

China’s leading retailer aims to raise imported fruit sales from 30% to 50%
 

“We recently started doing direct imports, but our volumes are developing fast,” said Vincent Yeh, chief of the perishables division at Wal-Mart China. “Imported fruit helps us strategically to distinguish us from our competitors; Wal-Mart is positioned as a foreign supermarket chain, so we build our image with imported items.”

 

Based in Shenzhen, Vincent’s team draws on the help of the US-based and global sourcing organization of Wal-Mart. “We aim to import top brands directly and supply our 390 stores.”

 

Established in 87 provinces, Wal-Mart China has become the largest retail chain in the country. The number of stores is growing by more than 10% annually on average, with 40 outlets to be opened by the end of 2014, and at least 40 more in 2015.

 

Since last August all the purchase activities have been centralised in Shenzhen, both for domestic and imported supplies. “Only a few specific local categories are being purchased locally,” Yeh said.

 

The logistics organisation is divided between 11 distribution centres in Eastern China (based in Shanghai), the North, North East, Western, South and South-East China.

 

Imported fruit now represents 30–40% of total sales, but the chain hopes to increase this ratio to more than 50% of its fruit sales within two years.

 

Read the full article online here on page 22 of issue 133 of Eurofresh Distribution magazine.

Author: PE

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How Switzerland’s Coop Leads the Way on Sustainability

Screenshot 2014-10-10 at 11

 

The number two Swiss retailer is ranked by independent agency oekom research AG as most committed chain in the world to sustainable development

 

Coop is the second biggest Swiss food retailer, with 35% of the market. It currently has 1,933 retail supermarkets in Switzerland and posted net sales of €14.9 billion in 2013, up by 1.7% on the previous year despite several waves of price cutting.

 

Coop has long been committed to sustainable development. “Sustainable development is a very important issue for Swiss consumers,” emphasized Raphaël Schilling, Coop’s head of Sustainable Development. “For Coop, it is essential to invest in this field in order to guarantee product availability in the long term”.

 

For fruit and vegetables, the group has identified four main sources of sustainability-related risk: working conditions at source, energy and CO2, water use, and pesticides.

 

On working conditions, Coop’s strategy for produce from developing countries is to expand FairTrade certification. Already 95% of its bananas and a large proportion of its avocados, pineapples and mangoes are FairTrade certified and the process is under way for papayas.

 

To reduce its energy consumption and carbon footprint, Coop gives preference to regional, national and European products, in that order. It also limits the use of air freight as much as possible. For instance, white asparagus used to be imported from Peru by air and now travels by sea.

 

Read the full article online here on page 18 of issue 133 of Eurofresh Distribution magazine

author: VB

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Sainsbury’s sales drop a shockwave for market

sains

Big structural changes behind malaise ‘set to descend’ upon the UK’s Big Four grocers, Planet Retail says

 

The 2.8% fall in sales reported by Sainsbury’s for its second quarter marks a “watershed moment” for both it and the wider UK grocery industry, according to David Gray, retail analyst at Planet Retail. “The sharp decline in like-for-like and total sales at the retailer will send shockwaves across the market. First it was Tesco, then Morrisons, and now even Sainsbury’s is reeling from the effects of seismic structural changes rumbling across the UK food sector,” Gray said.

The shift is akin to long-term climate change rather than the temporary effects of a perfect storm and no one is immune to the effects, he said. “The hard discounters are just one factor driving this change. Shifting shopper habits – consumers shopping little and often at convenience stores, smaller online baskets, households wasting less and evaporating hypermarket impulse spend – are all underpinning this shift. With volumes already dwindling and values expected to hit negative later this year in the face of ever-diminishing price inflation, the situation can only worsen. All this makes it increasingly likely Christmas will be a complete washout for the UK’s major grocers.

“Sainsbury’s is also bruised by the effects of a price skirmish that is progressively heightening in intensity, into which it is fast being drawn through the Brand Match scheme. In the long term, industry-wide margins are likely to come under even more pressure.

“No gaping holes in the company accounts and a slightly less diabolical performance than Tesco are hardly achievements to shout about. Sainsbury’s will need to pull out all the stops over the next few months if it is to escape the worst of the malaise set to descend upon the UK’s Big Four grocers,” Gray said.

Source: Planet Retail press release

Photo: © Copyright Andrew Abbott and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence

 
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How fruit fared in China in 2013

CHINA-market-INTRO-(6)

In 2013, China’s fruit exports still focused on apple, citrus and pear. With 35 nations/regions obtaining protocols from AQSIQ (China’s General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine), it imported more varieties of fruit. Thanks to zero tariffs between China and ASEAN nations, fruit is imported from Pakistan, New Zealand, Chile, and Peru at very competitive prices. The top 10 imported fruits (in order of import value) were durian, grape, banana, cherry, mango, kiwi, citrus, plum, apple and watermelon. The total value of imported fruit increased 10.6% last year – more evidence that China is an increasingly attractive market.

Apples remain an export market
In 2013, apples were still an export market for China. The total export volume reached 994,664 tons, a 1.9% increase on 2012, with a 7.2% rise in total value to $1.03 billion. The peak months were January, March, April, November and December, with each seeing the export of more than 100,000 tons.
Asia and Europe are still the top two destinations. In terms of trade volume, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines are the top three buyers of Chinese apples, while in value, the Philippines topped the list, with more than $20 million, followed closely by Thailand with more than $19 million and Vietnam with more than $11 million. Two other buyers of Chinese apples also stood out: India (with about a 35% increase in volume and 25% increase in value) and Malaysia (30% increase both in volume and value). The Russian Commonwealth remains strong, but buyers have shifted to lower priced apples. Shandong province is the main apple growing region in China, and exported almost half of the total.

China’s apple imports
China imported 38,724 tons of apples value with a value of $67.6 million, down 37% and 26.8% respectively on 2012. In 2013, Chile, NZ and USA apple protocols were temporarily frozen, leaving little choices for importers. Only apples from Argentina, Australia (Tasmania), France, and Japan could be exported to China. At time of writing the bans on New Zealand and Chile had been lifted but the US had yet to regain access. As with apples, apple juice exports exceed imports. In 2012, China exported 750,000 tons of apple juice concentrate, however in 2013 the volume fell 1.7% to 601,000 tons. China imported 1,811 tons of apple juice last year, 75% more than 2012, though the value slipped 20.7% from $1.14 billion to under $0.91 billion. Apple juice from China mainly goes to the US – which bought half the total – and Germany, Japan, the Russian Commonwealth, Chile and Argentina. The average price for exported apple juice last year was $1507.29/ton. 
Citrus: China pays more for imported products
While in terms of volume China exported more citrus than it imported, the good news for suppliers is that exported citrus averaged $1,155/ton, but China paid $1,618.8/ton for imported citrus. At present, Argentina, Australia, Cyprus, Egypt, Israel, Morocco, New Zealand, Pakistan, Peru, Spain, Uruguay, and the US have protocols for export to China. (Though the US protocol was suspended last year, the ban may be lifted in 2014, according to AQSIQ sources.). Year-on-year, China’s citrus imports rose 53.6% last year, to 12,602 tons, while its citrus exports, mainly to other Asian nations, totalled 773,365 tons. The main exporting provinces are Fujian, Guangxi, Shandong, Xinjiang and Yunnan. China’s top citrus buyer, Malaysia, last year took more than 140,000 tons, up 46% on 2012. Malaysia paid $217 million, an increase of more than 72%. Next came Thailand, with more than 62,000 tons (+13%) and $106 million (+50%), followed by Vietnam. Price-wise, Malaysia paid a per ton average of $1588.20, and Thailand $1714.80, while, after a 39.5% increase, Vietnam averaged $685.3. Russia was the top buyer among European continent nations. 

Pears: import price twice that of exports
The top 10 Chinese pear destinations are (in order of value): Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, Hong Kong, the US, the Russian Commonwealth, Canada, the Philippines and Singapore. Border trade accounts for about 18% of the total. Shandong and Hebei are the top growing regions.
In 2013, China exported 381,281 tons of pears, down 6.9%. The total value of exports was $361.75 million, up 11.3%. The average price was $948.80 per ton. Though China only imported 3,766 tons of pears (+51.9%), the average price for imported pears was $1,834.80/ton. The total value of pear imports in 2013 was $6.91 million, up 82.3%.Argentina, Belgium, Japan, New Zealand and the US obtained AQSIQ protocols to export pears to China.

Grapes: export price 9% of import price
Grape exporters to China had a great year. In 2013, they sold 205,301 tons (+21.9%) to China, at a value of $55.23 million (+29.8%). Though China exported 141,128 tons of grapes, the average price was only $249.6/ton while it paid $2,690/ton for imported grapes. The export price was thus only 9% of the import price.
Chile and Peru, with the opposite growing season to China, had a great year. At present, besides these two nations, Australia, New Zealand and US (California only) also have grape protocols.

 

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Système U attracts customers through proximity and freshness

syst-u-rayon

Système U, France’s 4th-largest general food distributor, is a cooperative that comprises 1559 stores throughout France (including the French overseas departments and territories), a 63,000-strong workforce, a national food headquarters at Rungis and four regional headquarters in the West, South, East and North West. The group’s U mark can be found in two discount chains (Hyper U and Super U) and three chains of neighbourhood stores (Marché U, U Express and Utile). Its 2013 turnover, excluding petrol sales, was €18.45 billion (up by 3,5%), with a market share of 10.3%. Système U Ouest (west), with 491 stores and a 29.5% market share, accounts for 48% of turnover. In 2013, Système U Ouest marketed 207,000 tonnes of fruit and vegetables, up by 22% since 2010, giving it 30% of this market in its region. 

Partnerships with growers
One of Système U’s strong points is its support for French, regional and local products. 80% of the vegetables that Système U Ouest markets are grown in France, and local and regional supplies are encouraged. The company is increasingly committed to partnerships with the growers. All the U brand products, which make up 15-20% by volume of the fruit and vegetables, are grown under contract. Système U undertakes to buy a certain volume and the farmers undertake to comply with certain production criteria, particularly cutting down on pesticide use. At the end of 2012 the group signed a three-year contract with Coopérative BCO – SAS France Allium covering 1200 t/year of onions, accounting for 75% by volume of the onions sold by Système U. To meet the retailer’s requirements, the growers have concentrated on a specific variety with good resistance to mildew, enabling them to cut fungicide use by 30% and eliminate the classic use of an anti-sprouting product. In 2014, two new partnerships are under study for carrots and the white portion of leeks. 
Another major thrust, to accompany the plans for 5% yearly store expansion and the strategy of logistics cost-cutting, sustainable development and defence of the local economy, is to set up short-chain fresh produce warehouses. At the end of 2013 the group opened a new fresh produce depot in the Vendée to serve its stores in the Vendée, Deux-Sèvres, Charente, Charente-Maritime and Vienne departments. Its anticipated throughput is 35,000 tonnes of fruit and vegetables. This is in addition to the group’s three existing fresh produce facilities in the west of France, in the Côte d’Armor, Loire-Atlantique et Indre-et-Loire departments. “Previously we had fewer fresh product warehouses but they were bigger”, said Serge Papin, the Système U chairman, at the opening of the new depot. “From now on our trump cards will be short chains, logistic proximity and buying local products”. To cut warehouse running costs, the group has already started to use robots for order picking and wants to develop this further.

New produce section
In 2013 Système U defined a new produce section concept, more labour-intensive but more attractive, that should be rolled out in 80% of its stores by the end of 2014 and in 100% within two years. It is based on a presentation that consists of placing the products flat on the display units, without any crates or boxes. This means they are laid out just one layer thick and are restocked more often during the day. The lettuces and green vegetables are also kept fresher by misting. To make the produce section more attractive and improve its flow, the weighing scales have been removed. Fruit and vegetables are now weighed at the checkout. An assistant is always on hand in the produce section. The range has been extended to include more organic products, heritage vegetables, exotic fruits and prepacks, among others. Another new departure is the creation of a Fraich Découpe section selling packs of fresh-cut fruit and vegetables. Lastly, the emphasis in 2013/14 is on staff training, both in-store and at a test laboratory to be built in 2014 (when the fresh-cut sections are introduced). 

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Metro Group lifts global ambitions

RETAIL metro Emmanuel Langdorf

Emmanuel Langdorf, head of fruit and vegetables for Metro AG and Laurent Renard, trading office manager, provide a comprehensive overview of Metro Cash & Carry’s activities

Metro AG, also known as the Metro Group, is a leading international retail and wholesale company. The Düsseldorf- based group’s food activities consist of wholesale trade and hypermarkets. Metro Cash & Carry represents the largest and most international business in the group and is a leading player in self-service wholesale trade, active in 29 countries in Europe, Asia and Africa. 
Metro Cash & Carry’s main clients are hotels, restaurants, catering firms, independent retailers, service providers and public authorities.

City center locations and delivery services
Our sales lines offer customised assortments and services and are excellent value for money. This offer is complemented by innovative solutions as retail concepts and professional services to optimally support professional customers in their respective business.
The Metro Cash & Carry sales concept is flexible and adapts to meet specific evolutions, conditions and needs of the respective countries. The format of our stores varies significantly, with an assortment depth from 2,500 m2 to 16,000 m2. In addition, Metro Cash & Carry has introduced new sales formats to take into account differing customer specifications. For example, the wholesale company in Poland (under the brand Makro) offers a new store format called Makro Punkt. Targeting the needs of small independent retailers, the stores under Makro Punkt primarily offer beverages, tinned foods, dairy products and fruit and vegetables – exactly those products that a kiosk or small grocery store needs. Meanwhile, Odido is a retail-franchise concept initiated by Makro Poland. These stores are run by private owners.  Small traders who choose to enter Odido’s franchise programme have the opportunity to grow their competitiveness in the market. Makro Cash & Carry Poland supports small independent shops with advice and marketing tools. In return, these retailers agree to include a number of Makro’s own branded goods in their stores. In addition, discounts are available if goods are purchased from Makro’s wholesale stores. Shop owners keep their financial and managerial independence throughout the entire process of the programme. Independent traders – particularly those in emerging markets- are important to Metro Cash & Carry. For this group, our sales lines have been tailored towards trader support programmes to help them modernise and make their business completely professional. Together with the customer, specific store parameters are assessed and measures are pinpointed in term of assortment and layout. We also develop special formats for city centre locations. These have already been successfully introduced in Paris, France, in addition to Madrid, Spain and Italy, Rome. These stores have a selling space of up to 3,000 m2 and address the needs of hotels, restaurants and catering firms, offering primarily fresh foods. Thanks to central downtown locations, Metro France can shorten trips made by customers and contribute towards improving the quality and freshness of the fresh produce offered. Another major development within Metro Cash & Carry is the development of the delivery service. This option has become an integral part of the service and is creating value for customers as it saves them time. Professional customers can quickly place their individual orders by e-mail, fax or telephone and the delivery service guarantees that customers consistently receive high quality fresh fruit and vegetables. Our logistics organisation ensures the cold chain is unbroken and that the principles of HACCP, the internationally recognised quality assurance certification, are adhered to.

Strong emphasis on local producers
As an international retailer, we have considerable strengths. These strengths benefit not only our customers but also the community as we believe growth is created in the regional economy and that we play a significant role in improving the quality of life in these areas.
Indeed, our stores and buying organisations in the 29 Metro Cash & Carry countries secure local supply, create and expand supplier relationships. The fruit and vegetable category is a prime example of this. The ‘De ale Nostre’ programme in Metro Romania supports and offers local products to our customers. The local organization has implemented a specific programme with growers, mainly in vegetable sourcing areas in the country, and provides growers technical support and marketing pointers to better serve the needs of Romanian customers.  Metro Cash & Carry emphasises local products: in general up to 70 per cent of our assortment is purchased from local producers and providers. But local does not mean excluding global!

200,000 tons delivered by the International Trading Office
Metro Cash & Carry is more international than any other Metro Group sales group. It operates on three continents and faces different opportunities in each market. A new global sourcing strategy has been created to identify specific customer needs and exploit market potential.  The international trading office concept was created in 2009 to source and procure fruit and vegetables. Located in Valencia, Spain , the newly created organisation aims to support the group in :
• Developing competence and innovative products for customers
• Increasing quality and freshness of products by shortening the length of product marketing
• Creating synergies and meeting Metro Group’s needs on Mediterranean assortment, overseas products and processed fruit and vegetables
• Developing direct sourcing with growers and suppliers in certain areas based on long term and transparent relationships.
The Valencia trading office accounts for 200,000 tonnes of the volume generated in 2013 by the Metro Group. There are regular deliveries to more than 20 countries where Metro operates. Thanks to the collaboration of the group’s buying organisations, this figure is on track to double within 3-5 years. It is a competitive business but the Valencia trading office focuses on nurturing transparent and progressive relationships and initiatives to increase its percentages of sourcing fruit and vegetables. Sourcing activities are focused on Spain, Morocco, Italy, Greece and Turkey for products such as citrus, tomatoes, vegetables and summer fruits. Other core selected countries are used to source  overseas specialties or dry fruit.

Social and ecological objectives too
Sustainability has many facets. A range of activities and cooperative partnerships are needed, as well as the commitment of each individual who can contribute to achieving predefined milestones. Our commitment is not an end in itself. We always consider social and ecological factors alongside our economic objectives. Metro has developed a group- wide sustainability vision. This provides all employees, not just the fresh produce team, with a solid starting point and framework and starting. The Valencia international trading office aims to provide safe, quality products, implementing HACCP but also using other procedures related to the sourcing of products. These include product specification to elicit technical information about product compliance with safety and legislative requirements, and compositional and packaging information. It forms part of the binding agreement between Metro and the fresh produce providers and ensures clarity and transparency in these transactions.  
Efficient procurement structures, bundling volumes and efficient transport in well-organised logistical chains also reduce the amount of energy required during the various stages of the supply chain. 
PE

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UNIVEG rises to consumer challenges

RETAIL ntw UNIVEG Francis Kint

The solution developed in partnership with the distributors is eating-ripe fruit

“The decline in European fruit and vegetable consumption is a real paradox in view of the consumers’ increasing need for healthier products”, exclaimed Francis Kint, the managing director of UNIVEG Group. This observation is all the more bitter because fresh fruit and vegetables constitute a significantly more sustainable value chain than other food products. “The first thing we have to do is to guarantee a positive eating experience”, he warned. For this reason, UNIVEG has staked a lot on offering its customers pre-ripened “ready to eat” fruit. “We are the largest European fruit and vegetable ripener and can now use this infrastructure to expand our range of ripened products”, he pointed out. UNIVEG ripens nearly 500,000 crates a week of bananas and tropical fruits, approximately 10% of the fruit ripened in Europe according to the group’s estimates. It is the unchallenged leader in Germany and also has its own ripening facilities in Britain, Austria, Spain, France, Italy, the Netherlands and Poland. UNIVEG Katopé UK and Bakker Barendrecht were the first in their respective markets to ripen stone fruit and tropical fruit (largely mangoes and avocados). Each of the group’s subsidiaries has made major technological investments. “Facilities for avocados and mangoes constitute 20% of our total ripening capacity”, explained Francis. On the strength of this achievement, UNIVEG’s eating-ripe tropical fruit clients have more than doubled in 2013, with Germany accounting for 25% to 30% by volume. The group is also increasing its undertakings to farmers and last month announced the renewal of 2000 ha of banana contracts in Suriname following the privatisation of the state-owned farms. The UNIVEG group has around 9000 ha of its own crops, including 3000 ha of apples and pears in Argentina and avocados, apples, pears, grapes and citrus fruit in South Africa “We have sourcing teams in all the main growing countries worldwide. Our latest location is Colombia”.  The group is also pursuing the expansion of its distribution network, particularly in the United Kingdom, where at the end of January it acquired the third-largest pear and apple importer, Empire World Trade, a neighbour of its subsidiary UNIVEG Katopé UK. “We will continue to move forwards in the UK market and achieve our strategic objective of becoming one of the top five British importers”, revealed Francis.
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Choithrams invests in fresh produce logistics centre

The chain plans two new investments in logistics to support its expansion and improve the quality standards of its fresh items. One fresh cuts division of 20,000 square feet, and another facility of 13,000 square feet for readymade food including fresh juices, will be built in Al Quoz. The fresh cuts unit will cover storage and processing of fresh cut fruits and salads with a capacity of 10 containers of products.
Choithrams stores distribute consumer packs of a variety of greens in specially procured breathable bags that help retain freshness. A variety of freshly cut vegetables, freshly peeled seasonal fruit and easy carry bags of popular fruit and vegetables is also available. “We comply with local customs (Halal) and HACCP guidelines. Regular training for the counter staff is organized through in-house training in order to keep up with the latest industry trends,” said the company’s perishable manager Pravesh Sawlani. Choithrams today runs 30 stores in convenient locations in the UAE, with 24 hour shopping at selected stores, and home delivery services. A further 17 stores are in planning in the region. The group operates under the brand names Mega Mart and Shop Right in Qatar, and in Bahrain under Babasons and Macro Mart. As one of the UAE’s leading supermarket and department store chains, Choithrams is both a favorite place for tourists to shop and a feature of daily life for residents.