Wild gets fruity with farmers in Poland

One of Europe’s largest dairy product additive concerns, the Heidelberg-based Wild group, is launching a fruit production outfit in Poland. Farmers in the Ilawa region there are being contracted to grow several hundred hectares of strawberries, raspberries and cherries. Crops will be used principally for flavouring items such as yogurt.
Wild, which has been taking large annual shipments of fruit from Poland in recent years, has established a large cold storage complex with a fruit processing centre in the nearby town of Mragowo. To ensure reliable supplies of fresh fruit, the company has introduced a system of long-term contracts with local farming interests.
Wild has also involved Polish research and development expertise in planning improved means of harvesting, storing and processing the different dairy additive crops.