Looking back on EFC's successes, CEO Ilse Hayen proudly expresses her contentment with the past 20 years. The biggest achievement according to her? "The fact that in 15 years, we have grown KANZI® internationally to be the second largest apple brand in the world."
Top brands
EFC is celebrating its 20th anniversary with the achievement of several milestones. KANZI® has been developed into a regular item in the retail assortment by the variety management company. The club apple is offered year-round through EFC's strong global partner network. In autumn, winter and spring, apples come from European orchards, in summer from overseas partners, allowing consumers to enjoy a high-quality apple all year long.
The apple brand Greenstar® specifically serves companies specializing in fresh-cut fruit and convenience concepts. Greenstar apples take a long time to turn brown. In addition, in several countries it has gained the place on the shelves as the local green apple.
Additionally, the Migo® pear was introduced as the first centrally managed pear variety. Global pear consumption is declining, but Migo remains as popular as ever in the selected target markets.
Transnational
The cooperative company EFC was established in late 2002 to provide an adequate response to the increasing internationalization of the fruit industry. EFC had two main objectives. To acquire and license hard fruit varieties by chain management to achieve an optimal price for the fruit growers. To run a Common Market Organization (CMO) program for its three shareholders, all CMO-recognized producer organizations.
The shareholder structure is transnational with shareholders in The Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. This is the foundation for EFC's success, according to Sjors Kruiper, chairman of the board. "This cooperation initially provided benefits in terms of obtaining European subsidies. The fact that EFC has strong shareholders with a large grower base in north-western Europe as well as the fact that EFC has proven itself in the market internationally with the success of KANZI, makes it a desirable company for variety selection and commercial variety management."
The future of new varieties
"Thanks to our network of breeders, our technical team has managed to discover and develop three exceptional varieties. The further roll-out of our new apple variety SunSpark is planned this year. And we continue to search for other new exceptional varieties with great potential. EFC distinguishes itself in the chain and we will obviously continue to do so for the varieties we currently have in our portfolio. By working together within our network of dedicated and professional partners, we will continue to stimulate the market with varieties and brands that meet the demands of tomorrow's fruit industry."
Sustainability will become an increasingly important aspect in the future. Hayen concludes: "If we find varieties in the breeding programs that are resistant to certain diseases, that will be a big plus, because we need to grow more and more sustainably."
For more information:
Ilse Hayen
EFC
www.efcfruit.com