In 2013 the Mechelse Veilingen and Coöbra fused to become BelOrta. A year later Veiling Borgloon also joined the cooperation. BelOrta is now represented in all the main horticultural regions in the country and can offer a 'one stop shop' for fruit and vegetables to their customers. During the Fruit Logistica the company celebrated its 5 year anniversary with its grower, customers and contacts. With, as a mystery guest, the new Miss Belgium: Angeline Flor Pua.
Nicolaas Stevens (Better3fruit) and Sofie Lambrecht take a selfie with Miss Belgium
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"We have continued to grow since the fusion. Our members continue to grow and growers have decided to join us, despite our lack of recruitment campaigns. BelOrta is the largest in Belgium by far and one of the larger groups on Europe, but this was never a goal in itself. The goal is to be good for the members. We are open to new members, but not everyone can join BelOrta. We have a sector responsibility from the scale of BelOrta, that we are trying to take on," said director Filip Fontaine in Primeur earlier this year.
Busy reception
Auction is evidence of health
The director is also clear on the necessity of the auction: "The auction is evidence, of health in a sense. If it's no longer there, it's impossible to get it back and it will be missed. It's crucial for the cooperation to exist. For the big growers too. This added value isn't necessarily the price, but also in areas like logistics or ICT. If we as cooperatives already find ICT a difficult topic, this is even more so the case for growers. Individual growers often look at the short term and this is necessary, but so is the long term."
Pears for the Asian market
Wall of innovations
During Fruit Logistica, BelOrta presented the now famous Wall of Innovations at their stall. From colourful cauliflower roses, to a children's apple line in collaboration with Disney and a football line for snacking tomatoes in 250 and 500 gram packaging.
Organic chicory
Another innovation is the Red Inside line, a product line in which, as the name suggests, products which have a red flesh are offered. An example is the Ruby Red plum tomato foreseen of a clip label to enhance recognisability. Another innovation is the Spring Mix. With these packages of selected vegetables BelOrta wants to inspire the consumer to cook and create an extra experience.
