One of Europe's biggest apple marketers is preparing to expand into berries and cherries, eurofruit has learned.
Melinda, the leading brand for apples sold on the Italian market, will be used to market a a new range of soft fruit grown exclusively in the Val di Non, in northern Italy's Trentino province.
While it remains to be decided exactly how the label will be used on the new products, the range is set to be rolled out later this year and will include cherries, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries and currants.
'Our programme for further expansion in the near future includes a broadening of our portfolio to include the launch of Melinda cherries, strawberries and other soft fruit, all of it grown 100 per cent in the Non Valley,' explained general director Luca Granata.
The Melinda Consortium achieved sales of €282m last year, with exports accounting for more than 30 per cent of the group's business.
The company sells apples to customers in around 50 countries in Europe, North Africa, Middle East and South-East Asia.
While it remains unclear which specific sources of soft fruit production will be marketed by Melinda, it has been suggested that the group could forge a new commercial relationship with Trentino-based soft fruit company Sant'Orsola, which in the past yearhas undergone management changes including the departure of managing director Michele Scrinzi.
Consolidation within the Trentino soft fruit business has been on the cards for some time, with discussions continuing for the past couple of years about the potential to establish Assoberry, a mooted association along the lines of Italian apple industry body Assomela.
No comments yet