At the OGS Südbaden headquarters, tons of asparagus and strawberries are delivered, picked, and dispatched to regional food retailers. In calendar week 16, the first tunnel-grown strawberries were offered to retailers, followed by outdoor-grown produce in calendar weeks 18-19. From now on, the advertising frequency will also be increased accordingly, confirms Benjamin Hintz, who has been working in sales at OGS since the turn of the year. "Although we will not have concrete figures on harvest volumes until later in the season, we expect similar quantities to last year for now. The decisive factors here are ongoing investments in modern cultivation technology, such as roofing, racks, drip irrigation, and variety selection."
Regional strawberries and sweet cherries. Southern Baden is one of the regions with the most hours of sunshine in Germany. This makes the region ideal for fruit growing.
OGS Südbaden was founded in its current form in 1998 and markets the cooperative-grown products of its approximately 120 members. The top sellers include asparagus, strawberries, sweet cherries, and plums. Hintz: "We have also been growing Abate Fetel exclusively in Germany for several years. This luxury pear has been firmly established on the German market for decades, but until now, it has mainly been imported from Italy. Due to changing climatic conditions in Italy and the associated challenges in cultivation, the idea arose to grow Abate Fetel in our region. We have the advantage that we have already found several highly professional pear growers who are willing to produce this pear. We see an interesting growth market here for the future." Cultivation capacities are now being gradually increased, the company adds.
The co-operative is based in Vogtsburg.
Adaptability and competitiveness
A generational change is now taking place within the cooperative and its member companies. At the helm of the young sales team is Andreas Mutter (31), who initially worked in purchasing and sales and as an authorized signatory at OGS before being appointed to the management board at the turn of the year. "We continue to be characterized by a high degree of professionalism and adaptability. As already mentioned, a lot of investment is currently being made, which is also thanks to the many young, innovative producers. In this respect, we are quite positive about the future of fruit and vegetable growing in southern Baden. The cooperative structure will certainly also help us to remain competitive in the future. In general, we believe in professionalizing our existing crops and modernizing our existing portfolio. At OGS, we see ourselves first and foremost as a service provider for our producers," says Hintz.
AI in the fruit and vegetable department
The future of the fruit and vegetable industry will inevitably involve AI-supported processes, believes Hintz, referring to his experience in the food retail sector. "AI is already being used across the board in the dry goods range of many food retail chains. Basically, algorithms based on important parameters are used to analyze sales figures, which in turn helps to optimize orders and the entire process in the store. This will certainly be introduced for fresh products, including fruit and vegetables, in the near future," he concludes.
For more information:
Benjamin Hintz
Obst- und Gemüsevertrieb Südbaden GmbH
Niederrotweil 80
79235 Vogtsburg
Phone: +49 7662 9300 - 61
[email protected]
www.ogs-suedbaden.de