Construction of an enormous vegetable packaging platform for the Saint Pol-de-Leon Sica in the Finistère has re-started after being on hold for almost five years. The Sica is known under the brand Prince de Bretagne and is France’s leading French vegetable and horticultural cooperative.
The Sica were granted a construction permit in November 2015, after the first one was cancelled in April 2012 following a plead from a local residents association. Works are expected to continue through until mid-October.
The construction will have almost 7 hectares of buildings and cover 18 hectares of land. The packaging and shipping station will allow the cooperative to optimise their logistics and reduce using lorries between sites by 43%.
The Sica produces 250,000 tons of vegetables per year, of which 40% are exported. The cooperative employs 120 people and has over 900 farms and 1,100 producer members. In 2015 their turnover reached €200 million.