Greenyard Foods announced on September 2 that its equity stake in the Veiling Haspengouw fruit growing and sales cooperative is being divested. The Sint-Katelijne-Waver, Belgium-headquartered company has decided to sell its entire 50% shareholding in H-Fruit and 50.1% ownership of H-Pack fruit to Veiling Haspengouw.
H-Fruit is the sales organization for all top fruit and soft fruit produced by Veiling Haspengouw’s growers. H-Pack is the sorting and packing station of the auction, and is among the most modern in Europe.
Problematic issues such as the ongoing Russian boycott of fruit, vegetable and other food products from Europe and elsewhere, combined with poor weather conditions recently affecting Belgian growers, has prompted Veiling Haspengouw’s board of directors to seek horizontal integration with other cooperatives to enhance efficiencies, according to a statement from Greenyard Foods.
It added: “Joining other players would give the possibility to realize required cost reductions. As such, stepping out of the joint venture was opted for.”
Veiling Haspengouw, which has evolved from a regional auction to an internationally valued organization with cooling, cutting, sorting and packaging operations, has approximately 400 members and has more than 120 employees.
