In the state of Tyrol, vegetable growing has gradually gained in importance in recent years. However, leased land is extremely scarce and expensive, as Marcus Pechtl, owner of the vegetable growing company of the same name in the district of Imst, tells us. The vegetable grower primarily works with customers in the catering and hotel industries, but also with suppliers to the leading supermarket chains in Austria. With his new export company Europa Fresh GmbH, he now wants to expand to Romania.
At the end of 2023, Pechtl decided to found Europa Fresh GmbH. "We are already exporting selected products such as potatoes, onions, carrots, and, from this year on, red radishes to Germany and offer them, for example, to regular customers at the Munich wholesale market. However, for smaller niche items, too, a supplier is only of interest to the wholesale market companies there if they can deliver goods by the crate or pallet. Unfortunately, due to the high land prices in our region, it is difficult to scale up our production."
Marcus Pechtl has been running a vegetable farm in the Pitztal Valley in Tyrol for many years.
However, due to the difficult conditions there, Pechtl decided to set up a vegetable-growing business in the Romanian region of Transylvania. 'In Romania, land and operating costs are lower, and general production conditions are better.' Negotiations for the required land are ongoing and a local limited liability company is being established in close cooperation with a specialized agency. 'The aim is to start with 50 to 100 hectares and gradually expand our cultivation capacity to 200 to 300 hectares. We would initially start with standard crops such as grains, potatoes, cabbages, and lettuce. But I could imagine that in the future we will also grow niche crops such as sprouting broccoli, red savoy cabbage, and special beetroot varieties that we have already tested in Tyrol. Our existing business would then function as a test site, so to speak, while the main production takes place in Romania,' says Pechtl, whose partner was born and raised in Romania.
Red savoy cabbage and sprouting broccoli
Focus on a broad customer base
Pechtl is primarily focusing on a broad customer base. 'We initially want to offer the goods produced there to our existing customers, such as the catering and hotel industry and the Munich wholesale market. If all goes according to plan, however, it would also be possible to supply Austrian food retailers directly. We already use direct delivery with Billa, for example. The next step would then be to serve the Romanian domestic market as well as customers in neighboring countries, such as Bulgaria. But that's all still a long way off,' he concludes.
Photo credit: Marcus Pechtl
For more information:
Marcus Pechtl
Europa fresh GmbH
Mandarfen 57
6481 St. Leonhard im Pitztal
Tel: +43 664 9224090
[email protected]
