The Association of Imathia’s Agricultural Cooperatives (ASIAC) is a joint marketing venture with 8 of the largest Agricultural Cooperatives-Producers Organization of Stone Fruits in Greece. The Association, as well as the Cooperatives-Members (AC Ammou 'Neos Aliakmon', AC Meliki, AC Mesi, AC Verias 'Venus Growrs', AC Naousas, ASEPOP Naousas, AC Episkopi, ASOP Episkopis), are all located in the Prefecture of Imathia, Northern Greece, one of the richest and most experienced areas in the production of Stone Fruits in Greece.
“Having been established in 2014, the Association started as a service provider to the farmers of the Cooperatives-Members. It was a matter of time to agree on a common trading policy, to present ourselves as one in the international market” says Theodore Devetzis, the person in charge for the International Business Development of the Association.
“The good thing about it, was the fact that we were able to design and implement our strategy from scratch. It was like having a blank page and we were invited to draw on it as we wanted. Our Cooperatives-Members’ experience helped in that direction. Over the last 20 years, our Cooperative-Members have been, and still are, export focused, with more than 85% of their production oriented toward the International Fresh Fruit Market. So, they know what it takes to make a step forward: A joint marketing venture that will be a one-stop-shop for the International Stone Fruit Buyers in Greece,” shared Devetzis.
"Greece is the 3rd largest European producer of Peaches and Nectarines and the 4th worldwide, having a production power that should not be underestimated. The problem so far was that this production capacity was divided to numerous suppliers. Consequently, international buyers had to deal with a lot of Greek suppliers in order to satisfy their season schedules. This was one of the main reasons why Greece wasn’t that attractive up to now” Devetzis continues.
“We, on the other hand, by joining forces, we are able to achieve production of more than 100,000 tons of only Fresh Peaches and Nectarines. Just to give you an idea of our production capacity, it is enough to satisfy the 2017 importing needs for Peaches and Nectarines of the UK by 117% (85,357 tons: Eurostat, 2017). Thus, concentration of production, ensuring the continuation of loadings and availability are the key points to start with."
Another key point is easy communication. There is no need for the buyer and the various departments of the buyer (such as logistics, IT, quality control, accounting..etc) to deal with each of the Cooperatives-Members. The Association is there to do that on their behalf. Somebody might even say that the Association works as an internal buyer for the buyer.
“The Association receives the customer requests and then spreads the orders across the 8 members. Quality control, compliance with specifications and invoicing is all centralized and carried out by ASIAC. This simplifies the process for the customer, because the Association is the only one they need to contact. The ease and the reliability of our model has proved to be the best way of collaborating with well-known Super Market chains and big importers all around Europe, and it is a collaboration that will continue to become more common in the future. Such a process helps us also to concentrate marketing knowledge and to realize economies of scale, which benefit the Association and its Cooperatives-Members, as well as their customers," Devetzis continues.
“This is only the beginning of a long journey for the Association. We stay humble and we learn each day how to improve ourselves. We still have markets to enter like Scandinavia for example, which is our main target market for this season. The good news though is that united we stand towards the future.”
For more information:
Theodore Devetzis
Association of Imathia’s Agricultural Cooperatives
Tel: +30 6974 068 433
Email: [email protected]
www.asiac.gr