Currently 10 per cent of the company's Polish production is shipped to the Baltic States, but with Poland now a part of the EU market, Podravka sees a key opportunity to tap into the huge potential represented by the 25 markets that make up the European Union.
Besides increasing production of its leading 'Vegeta' seasoning line - a household name throughout Central Europe - the company says it also wants diversity into its other product lines that include processed meats, prepared foods, confectionery, tea and soft drinks. The aim is to push a greater variety of its products onto the Polish market and to concentrate on increasing sales of Vegeta on the EU market.
According to Sandra Kovacic, Podravka spokesman, the company will extend the existing Polish facility In Kostrzyn by investing in new technology and the construction of new production lines.
The expansion plans will give the company the capacity it needs to push Vegeta on to the more affluent EU markets, allowing it to tap into more than 450 million consumers. The company says that ultimately it is aiming to supply 50 per cent of all Vegeta production from the Polish facility to the EU.
Increasing production of Vegeta in Poland is also a good logistical choice for the company. Although the product is manufactured in a number of the its other factories in Central Europe, it is Poland that is the chief source of the dried vegetables used to make the product, with Polish farmers supplying over 1000 tonnes of dried vegetables for Vegeta in all its factories. Further to this Poland is also a major source for a number of the company's other primary ingredients, including poultry.
Turnover in Poland runs at approximately EUR 23 million, against group sales of EUR 439 million in 2003. Although the group's operations in Poland remain relatively small, it is the company's third biggest market and contributed significantly to a 17 per cent growth in sales revenue during the course of last year.