At the beginning of the last century, mushrooms were almost exclusively eaten by the top layers of society. The mushroom was practically as exclusive as caviar and truffles are now. When Dutchman Henk Banken started growing mushrooms in the 1950's, his mission was to make the product available to everyone. This mission resulted in Banken Champignons, a company that has been greatly successful in doing just that. White mushrooms have become an integral part of European cuisine, with Banken Champignons becoming a leading company in the European mushroom industry. Owners Rob and Jurgen Banken show us the ropes and ponder the future of the industry.
Rob, Henk and Jurgen Banken
"My father began experimenting with mushroom cultivation in the late 1950s,” says Rob. “Under the smoke of Nijmegen stood what was then the only compost plant in the region, which incidentally is the reason that many of the pioneers are located in this area. Our start in the mushroom business was experimental, but became industrial as we progressed. In those days mushrooms were a luxury item, and my father had to go ahead and recommend the product in person. He was lucky in a way, as many Chinese restaurants started opening up in the Netherlands at that time. Those outlets traditionally used mushrooms in their food, bringing in a decent amount of clientèle. He generated sales to such a degree that he had to turn to fellow growers to meet demands. Frans Briemen, the former chairman of CNC and Funghi, was one of his first suppliers. Over the years, we have amassed a group of sixty growers, all delivering supply to Banken Champignons.”
Combination of in-house cultivation and affiliated growers
Today, about 30% of the stock at Banken Champignons comes from its own nurseries in Belgium and Poland, 70% being supplied by affiliated growers. "Our vision is to maintain that allocation in the future,” says Rob. “I'm happy with the combination that we have now. There are many specific customer requirements, which are difficult to delegate to external producers. We have growers who have been supplying us for decades, and there is a good working relationship between Banken Champignons and several family businesses. Sure, some of them will drop out, the economy being as it is, but we are confident that there are enough good businesses out there that will survive and want to join us in the future. On our own production sites we employ more than 250 people, the Belgian sites mainly having employees of Belgian nationality."
Local-for-local
Local-for-local is hot, a fact that might prove relevant to the mushroom sector. Rob has nearly completed a Master of Food Management Course at the University of Groningen, and has conducted a study on the emergence of local foreign products. "In some countries, such as Germany, the UK and France the country of origin is really an issue. I can see ourselves increasingly providing our customers with information on origins. However, research shows that the majority of consumers first look at taste, quality, price, and only then at origin. In addition, there are countries, such as Germany and Greece, that will always rely on import. We are strong in marketing and the supply chain, and a Southern European production site isn’t a far-fetched idea at all.”
Commodity instead of a luxury item
Fortunately, there is also plenty of good news to report. Jurgen: "There are more than 3,000 species of mushrooms growing in the world, and the average consumer can name maybe five. We supply twenty varieties at most, so there is still a lot to accomplish. Consumers want to go back to nature, and in recent years have developed a preference for local produce. What we must do is to lower the threshold and to make the product widely available. That was my father’s mission fifty years ago, and it’s our mission today.”
Shifting focus
Banken Champignons currently sells about 65% of its products to retail, and 35% to foodservices. The white mushroom still represents over 85% of the total share. "I see it as our task to stretch volumes of the other varieties to 20-30%,” says Rob. “In ten years, consumers will still want white mushrooms, and we’ll make sure they get them, but returns are marginal. So we do plan to shift our focus to other varieties that are more profitable. In the years to come I see more of our growers cultivating different kinds of mushrooms for us.”
In 2012, Banken Champignons generated a turnover of 111 million Euro. As a result of the sale of Banken Fruit & Vegetables, last year’s turnover will be slightly below 100 million. "We are growing annually by 5 to 10%, and I expect that we will continue that growth in the future. The consumption of fresh mushrooms is on the rise and retailers carry an increasingly wider range of mushrooms. We hope to generate more sales with other varieties and concepts."
More information:
r.banken@bankenchampignons.nl