The fresh produce export company Refresh Fruit from Poeldijk has been declared bankrupt by the court in The Hague today. The company was specialized in the fresh produce export to Russia and the company has finally been ruined by the Russian boycott. "We can no longer trade as we used to," states Pieter Rijk. The company from ABC Westland had 3.5 FTE.
Even though Pieter does not want to give an excuse for the bankruptcy, he is disappointed in the help the government and agencies offered. "I know that the sector does not depend on Refresh Fruit, but we were pioneers in Russia and we have played a part in opening up the export. If you look at what has been done to compensate the growers, it surprises me that no one has come knocking on my door, while my business has been blocked purely for political reasons and we were 100% dependent on this market. The same goes for pear producers who've had a setback more than other producers, but have not been compensated by the government."
"If I look at the budgets that have been secured to stimulate the export to new markets in Poland, then we, as Russia pioneers, have gotten a rough deal in the Netherlands. I really missed the Dutch lobby. We are the ones that opened up the markets, in contrast to the producer organizations that are filling up the market," says Pieter. "The trade has been disadvantaged by agencies such as the KCB. They are always the first to say that a label is not glued properly, but if the market needs a boost they are nowhere to be seen."
It is not easy to start again, according to the tradesman. "We have been trying to take on something else, but most of our contacts are in trouble as well because of the Russian boycott. It is not easy to start up a new market and this forces us to really start all over again."
For more information:
Pieter Rijk
Refresh Fruit
Refresh Fruit
Tel: +316 53404075
Email: refreshfruit@live.nl