Florette, which has been devoted for almost thirty years to the production of bagged salads, closed 2017 with a turnover of 188 million Euro, with the prospect to increase this figure to 200 million in 2018.
"The population does not grow, but it ages, and people are looking for a healthy diet to improve their quality of life," explains Fermín Aldaz, marketing and commercial director of Florette Ibérica. He assures that the company will continue "to focus on new concepts; that is, on innovating in order to meet the needs of an increasingly diverse public, with a range featuring all kinds of products, from ready-to-eat salads to packaged fruits and superfoods, like kale."
The company, based in Navarra, invested 12 million Euro last year. Most of this budget went to the Canary Islands, where it has several crops. It also works in Iniesta (Cuenca), Noblejas (Toledo), Torre Pacheco (Murcia), and in Milagro and Arguedas, in Navarre.
Florette is convinced that there is still plenty of ground to explore. According to a survey carried out by the company itself, 75% of Spaniards have made a commitment to eating healthier in the past year. "It seems that this healthy trend that we are seeing across Europe is here to stay." In fact, according to their data, the percentage rises to 86% among the youngest respondents, aged between 18 and 25.
From the supermarket to the restaurant
The Navarre-based company is not only present on supermarket shelves, but it is also increasingly present in the catering industry. Currently, 70% of its turnover comes from the distribution sector; a sector which has remained "more or less the same since the crisis. The formula for the sector to continue gaining ground is to give it added value," explains Aldaz, who insists on the fact that "innovation is essential."
The other 30% of the business is oriented towards the catering sector, to which it sells not just processed products, but also fresh products, including unprocessed fruit. "The idea is to offer them several services in a single order," says the marketing director.
Source: elespanol.com