The expansion of the ripening facility of Banafood in Straelen, Germany, is in full swing. “The steel construction will arrive in several weeks, and the building will be finished before the new year,” says Hans Maagendans. The new building of 2,500 m2 will stand next to the existing building of 2,800 m2. This allows the company to extend the current ripening capacity of 35,000 boxes with a maximum of 30,000 boxes to 65,000 boxes. The new building will be operational next year.
Hans Maagendans in front of the existing building
“With this expansion we want to start focusing on the German market. We will take this step after being active on the Dutch market for almost ten years, since 2007. For several years, we received requests for service in the field of bananas, but unfortunately — or fortunately — we did not have the additional capacity,” Maagendans says. The two buildings will be connected by means of a passageway. Some cells will also be used for ripening other types of fruit, such as avocados, mangoes and kiwi fruit.
Logistical hot spot
“We will place solar panels on the roofs to reduce CO2 emissions, and just as in the new building, the cooling installation will be water-cooled,” Maagendans continues. He is facing the expansion full of confidence. “Our location is perfect. Of all of the logistical hot spots, Venlo was chosen as number one last year. We are within one kilometre of the border, on the A40 / A67 Venlo-Duisburg motorway, and with Landgard as our neighbour, we pass a number of fresh produce transporters.”
And the adjacent new building
According to Maagendans, it has been a special banana year so far. “Due to El Niño, supply has been limited. This caused a scarcity on the market, especially during weeks 18 to 28. Additionally, other fruits were also less available on the market. Because of this, the spot market in Ecuador was much higher than last year. It is positive that banana sales have increased all along the line. After a traditional slump during the autumn half-term holiday, the market is now already recovering again.”
For more information:
Banafood Services GmbH
Carl-Kühne Straße 7
47638 Straelen