In 2017, in the Netherlands, Manon Krijnen received a request from a grower. He wanted her to find a sales channel for his Class III fruit. "This grower was throwing the Class III fruit away. That's, of course, a huge waste. So I went looking and found a customer for the fruit," says Manon. That year, she delivered 50 tons of overripe raspberries, strawberries, and blackberries to a factory in Germany. And Miss Berry was born.
Last year, Miss Berry sold 2,400 tons of Class III soft fruit. That was to the food processing industry. They process this into purees and concentrates. The company's grown significantly. Miss Berry is in contact with over 60 Dutch and overseas growers and traders.
Lean and mean
Miss Berry now sells a considerable amount of Class III soft fruit. Yet, it remains a one-(wo)man show. "I try to stay lean and mean. I keep operational costs as low as possible. And I don't burden anyone with costs. I don't keep stock; everything's delivered directly. The customer can't get it any fresher. The communication lines couldn't be any shorter either. There's one contact person for the growers and one for the clients. That also makes it very easy administratively," says Manon.
The future
“The Dutch, German, and Belgian seasons end in October/November. Then the workload decreases somewhat. In the winter, there's time to evaluate. And to get things in order for the next season. There are plenty of challenges. The food processing industry buys products from other countries too. Like Spain, Serbia, and Poland."
"Operational costs are lower there. Of course, that affects the regional product's price here. Still, farmers are smart. And we must keep lines of communication short. And set up a transparent operation where there's room for dialogue. Then we can compete," concludes Manon.
For more information:
Manon Krijnen
Miss Berry
Tel: +31 (0) 683 774 729
Email: manon@miss-berry.nl
Website: www.miss-berry.nl