"Nuts and dried fruits have been highly popular with consumers for several years. This is due to various trends. One of these is of course 'Healthy Snacking'. Many consumers want to eat healthier and are therefore turning to natural ingredients and snacks."
"Nuts and dried fruit are perceived by consumers as healthier alternatives to replace, for example, the bar of chocolate at the office or the bag of chips on the sofa," says Sven Schenkewitz, marketing manager at Herbert Kluth Ltd & Co. The company was founded in 1928 and focuses, among other things, on importing and processing of nuts and dried fruit. 
Sven Schenkewitz at Anuga 2023. This year, the company received the "Product of the Year 2023" award, for its pistachios.
"The nut and dried fruit market benefits just as much from alternative diets such as 'sugar-free' or vegan. For many recipes of these dietary styles, nuts and fruits are used to replace animal products or conventional sweeteners. Dates are used for sweetening, for example. In vegan recipes, cheeses can be replaced with soaked cashews. At the same time, nuts provide many nutrients, which makes them attractive for a vegan diet," states Schenkewitz.
Worldwide sourcing countries
Kluth's bestsellers include pistachios, roasted and salted, almonds, cashews and dates. "We source our shelled pistachios from California, in the US. The pistachios are roasted at our in-house roastery and will then be refined. We obtain our conventional cashews from Indonesia. We are sourcing our almonds from the US and Australia. For our walnut kernels we rely on goods from Chile and the US. Some of our organic certified goods come from other growing regions. Other classics include our natural nut kernel mix and apricots."
The company also launched 14 new organic products in March 2023. "The organic bulk bags have been well received by our customers. However, since we replaced our conventional GM range with the organic bulk pouches this year, we don't yet have a point of comparison here. The 14 organic bulk pouches represent about 12 percent of our total Kluth brand assortment at the product level, compared to 102 conventional items."
The main customers for its products are end consumers reached via food retailers in Germany. "For this group, we have the broadest product selection. Additionally, there is the wholesale distribution channel for the catering and hotel industry. We do export our goods to several European countries, but our main focus lies on the German market."
Variable packaging sizes
For retail end-users, the company often uses stand-up pouches of 100 gr or flat pouches of 150-200 gr, while larger packets of 500 gr are also offered for "heavy users" or large customers. "For easy use of, for example, a portion of pine nuts, we also have small flat pouches, containing 20 to 60 gr. These small bags are perfect for consumers who only need the relevant kernels for one recipe, for example - whether as a topping or as an ingredient," Schenkewitz says. "In addition to this, we also offer some of our snacks in convenient cups. The contents of the cups vary between 115 and 300 gr, depending on the product and size. For foodservice customers, we also use bulk bags with 1 kg contents."
"Like most food producers, we have had to implement price increases in our products this year, in order to absorb increased costs. For products such as cashews, almonds and walnuts, which are all imported from distant countries, these are of course primarily costs in the logistics area. In addition, we also have to deal with increased energy prices, which are particularly relevant for work steps such as roasting. We have an in-house roastery where we refine some of our products," says the marketing manager.
"There were also many challenges in 2023, and it is likely that 2024 will initially remain just as challenging. Against this background, we are satisfied with our business development in 2023 and we are are looking forward to creating new momentum in the market together with our retail partners in 2024."
For more information:
Sven Schenkewitz
Herbert Kluth (GmbH & Co. KG)
Heidekoppel 31
24558 Henstedt-Ulzburg
Tel.: +49 4193 966 20
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.kluth.com
