The cooperative CASI, one of the leading fruit and vegetable traders in the world, is planning an imminent expansion towards the comarca of Poniente Almeriense in order to expand its range of products; a decision that is reinforced by its participation as an exhibitor in the next edition of the agricultural fair Infoagro Exhibition.
According to its president, Miguel Vargas, "we have started with peppers and aubergines, and we believe it is a very good opportunity to get to know the growers of the area of the Poniente. We'll see whether we can make this fair contribute to our development in this region in the coming years." During the agricultural fair, they hope to attract partners and offer their services to producers wishing to join the cooperative.
Although CASI, a cooperative which has been operational for more than 70 years, continues with its traditional business model (auctions), it is immersed in a process of constant innovation; a process in which its new facilities, located next to the airport of Almeria, are one of its greatest strengths. These consist of two fully automated warehouses with two floors each. According to its Marketing Director, Esther Oliva, "the daily capacity of these facilities is approximately 800,000 kilos. The machines sort the products according to their size and colour, and detect any internal or external damage they may have, in which case they are given another classification. Moreover, the stacking up of containers and pallets is done automatically by means of a robotic line. The sorting is not only by size, but also by colour, and even by Brix degrees."
CASI says that these facilities are receiving numerous visits from its customers and the distributors they work with, and stress that "they are impressed by the progress of the cooperative in terms of its ability to innovate and offer new services, as the mechanisms that have been created are focused on allowing us to supply the distributors or customers with the products they need, in the packaging they need and in an optimal way. The technology that exists right now makes it possible to sort by calibres, colours, etc., and for a range of 24 different products, which means 24 different formats. This is all about adapting to the needs of distributors."
The automation of the manufacturing process of the agricultural products from the more than 1700 members of the cooperative, together with the additional 1,200 jobs generated, entails, in the words of its president, "the possibility of obtaining better prices and being able to compete against countries that are not part of the European Economic Community: usually Turkey and Morocco."
The fact is that the products supplied by CASI are characterised by their quality, and they believe that the taste and consistency of their products are the qualities that have allowed the cooperative to remain a market leader and reach not only all corners of Spain, but also, directly or indirectly, the majority of the countries in Europe.
Source: lavozdealmeria.es