Six months on from establishing direct links with vegetable producers via a handling and packing operation in the Sicilian province of Ragusa, leading Italian fresh produce company Apofruit Italia has revealed strong results for the new venture.

The facility, which is located in the town of Donnalucata, near Scicli, mainly handles tomatoes, as well as smaller volumes of peppers, aubergines and cucumbers.

According to area manager Alfonso d'Aquila, the centre handled a total of 3,800 tonnes of product during the first half of 2008, compared with 1,500 tonnes in the whole of last year, when it was operated by Apofruit subsidiary Moc Mediterraneo.

The cooperative now employs four permanent staff in addition to 107 seasonal workers, in comparison with just 39 seasonal workers last year, the result being a 206 per cent annual increase in the number of days worked at the facility.

'The results achieved during these first six months of activity have largely exceeded our expectations,' commented Mr D'Aquila. 'We are satisfied with our achievements but we want to keep growing and to reach production of around 10,000 tonnes of product within three years.'

Mr D'Aquila also revealed plans to market Sicilian products more actively. 'We intend to market the excellent quality of Sicilian produce, focusing on quality and innovation,' he explained.

Last year the company launched a range of high-quality tomatoes under the Solarelli label, which has reportedly been well received on the market.

Apofruit Italia currently has more than 100 producer members in Sicily, located in the provinces of Catania (citrus), Caltanisetta (late peaches) and Ragusa (vegetables).

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