The offices of Frutas Goostar are located in Roquetas de Mar, a few miles from the cradle of Spanish production. “We are situated at the heart of the Spanish production, which allows us to meet with our producers daily in order to carry out quality controls, but also to maintain our relationship with them and listen to their requests and needs,” explains Iris Gil Mena, head of organic business development at Frutas Goostar. “Thanks to this proximity, we are able to offer a range of quality products and an appropriate and transparent sales service to our clients. It is important, because they are more and more concerned about product traceability and the respect of organic production methods.”
This year, the range “Labella Bio” has expanded greatly. “We have a range of citrus fruits and green fruits and vegetables. Today, due to the large presence on the market, we must learn to differentiate ourselves and offer different arrangements and packagings. This year, in order to give added value to the products, we set up an offer of products with stickers, stored in tray packages.”
The company sells Spanish fruits and vegetables in Europe. For 10 years, it has been distributing two conventional brands: Goosta and Armada. Since 2018, it has been selling organic products under the brand Labella Bio, certified by the European organization Ecocert.
Positive results over 2019
“Generally speaking, we are rather satisfied with the year,” reports Iris. The ratatouille range is at the origin of the Labella Bio. “Overall, the 2019 campaign for the ratatouille product was a success. We do observe less export of Spanish organic tomatoes, but the sale of other products developed well. Eggplants and bell peppers remain the key products of Almeria, like zucchinis and cucumbers.”
“During the last summer campaign, we exported a lot of organic mini-watermelons from Almeria under our brand. Our clients were very happy with them. The campaign of our stone fruits from Badajoz and Murcia was also a success. We will develop new things for the next campaign.”
The start of the campaign is more difficult this year
Since the beginning of the new campaign last September, Spain has experienced significant rainfall, with several floods in Murcia, Alicante and Almeria. “This slowed down the Spanish production, because farmers could not harvest. This week, we are still short on citrus fruits, but temperatures are expected to be back to normal in the coming weeks. We should have a successful holiday season.”
In Murcia, Frutas Goostar works with a producer of organic broccoli, fennel and celery. “We started the broccoli campaign around mid-November, but with low volumes because of the weather. The celery is even more impacted by the weather conditions. We should have started three weeks ago, but the product cannot stand temperature changes so the rains caused some delay. We will start in week 51. This year, its price will be high because volumes are low and the demand is high.”
The organic persimmons, pomegranates, lemons, oranges and clementines are produced in Valencia and Malaga. “We work with a network of producers in Malaga and Valencia in order to always offer the same quality, the same rigor and the same traceability to our clients. We also observed a high demand for persimmons and pomegranates this year. Fashions and trends evolve, and it is necessary to know how to respond and offer the best products to our clients. We differentiate ourselves by our choice of producers, who are selected according to specifications particular to the company. Otherwise, the Labella Bio brand would not have developed into what it is today.”
Frutas Goostar continues to grow and to distribute the Labella Bio brand exclusively on the French wholesale markets, but also abroad. “The consumption of organic fruits and vegetables keeps growing. We are responding to an increasing demand from European consumers. Labella Bio is now sold in Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium and Poland. The Eastern European market offers future opportunities.
For more information:
Iris Gil Mena
Frutas Goostar
Phone: +33 6 69 33 32 44
igilmena.labella@gmail.com
Facebook Page: Labella Bio/Frutas Goostar