Last year, together with their Chinese partner Beijing HongFu Agriculture, Levarht achieved their first major successful project in China by opening a Dutch style tomato glasshouse in the outskirts of Beijing. In 2016 the first plants arrived, and now the facility supports up to 180.000 tomato plants of the company’s Dutch cherry, beef and intermediate tomato varieties. Since a couple of weeks the first tomatoes have been available in supermarkets across the country.
Chinese grown tomatoes by Levarht, sold in local and national supermarkets
Being able to closely cooperate with local producers is one of the company’s major aims globally. “Local partnerships are the pillar of our company’s culture. We aim for horizontal and vertical integration, with the final aspiration to bring the consumer closer to the farm,” according to Claas van Os, Commercial Director of Levarht. “This model is very relevant to roll out in China, where people look for quality, freshness, guaranteed food safety and increased transparency in the food chain.’
Mr Li, GM of HongFu and together with Claas van Os
In China, Levarht and HongFu want to ‘set new standards in the market’. “Chinese production is catching up with international standards quickly, driven by a strong demand for safe, healthy and tasty fruit and vegetables.”
Levarht has invested in the establishment of partnerships with prominent retailers across China, which is part of the company’s long term strategy. “We cooperate with our partners in the retail, online and processing industries to understand the local consumer and to meet their demand. Food safety and traceability are key elements that consumers look for in premium food brands. This is the image retailers want to convey to their customers, and this is also how we distinguish ourselves as a supplier.”
Levarht's glasshouse tomatoes ready for harvest
“The branding and marketing of our new China-produced cherry tomato line highlight these characteristics in our products. The packaging we have designed has a distinct international feel to it, but does show clearly that the product is made in China. It gives explanations about the characteristics and health benefits of our tomato varieties, as well as about the greenhouse facilities in which the tomatoes are grown. The Chinese name of our tomato brand, 乐鲜客, Le Xian Ke, reflects the key aspects that we promote: ‘Nature’s Joy, in every bite. The brand is a cooperative project between Levarht and Hong Fu."
“In addition, we advocate Dutch quality standards, traceability and direct delivery, access to the source of production. Customers can scan individual QR codes that are printed on all the carton punnets. By scanning this code, consumers can trace their tomatoes all the way back to the greenhouse where the crop has been grown. We want to be completely transparent about our production methods, in order to gain trust and appreciation of the audience.”
Levarht's & HongFu’s 乐鲜客, Le Xian Ke, tomato brand, recently introduced in China
In the coming weeks, Levarht is organising a number of product launches and tastings together with retailers in China’s major cities.
For more information:
Claas van Os
Levarht
http://levarht.com/
saleschina@levarht.com