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Squeezing AheadSqueezing Ahead

www.bolandpulp.co.za

Since 2005, Boland Pulp has been establishing itself as a leader in the South African purees and concentrates business. We spoke to marketing manager Kelly Turner to find out about more about what has been driving their business forward.

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Squeezing AheadSqueezing Ahead

Based in Wellington in the Western

Cape, Boland Pulp specialises in the

production and exportation of

quality fruit and vegetable purees and

concentrates. Since its launch a decade

ago, the company has seen an impressive

rate of growth, and in February this year,

Rhodes Food Group announced their

upcoming acquisition of the company.

“The paperwork is still going through. It’s a

process that will take a couple of months,”

says Turner. In the mean time, she

explains, it’s business as usual — and for

Boland Pulp, that means shipping a wide

range of puree products to both

international and local markets.

“The largest part of our business is the

export of purees and concentrates. When

our CEO started the business, we were just

looking for value-add, and then we

went into the pouch division. We set

up the first pouch packing plant in

South Africa,” says Turner, referring

to the factory built on their

Wellington premises in 2009. “At this

point, we export to more than 30

countries in the Middle East, Europe,

Asia, and America. They’re using our

products in final and finished goods

— from fruit juices to flavoured

beers.”

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www.bolandpulp.co.za

Boland Pulp is known for both the quality

of its products and its excellent

relationship with local farmers. The two

things are intrinsically related. “Without the

farmers, there would be no business, so

it’s crucial that you keep that channel of

communication open. We’ve got agents in

the fields that know everything that’s

happening on the farms. We value

communication very highly, and that’s why

we are where we are today,” she explains.

“It’s something that we feel very strongly

about. We’re involved in various

organisations that look at all aspects of

farming, including the Canners’

Association.”

“ The largest part of our business is the export of purees and concentrates. When our CEO started the business, we were just looking for value-add, and then we went into the pouch division. We set up the first pouch packing plant in South Africa,” says Turner, referring to the factory built on their Wellington premises in 2009. “At this point, we export to more than 30 countries in the Middle East, Europe, Asia, and America. They’re using our products in final and finished goods — from fruit juices to flavoured beers.

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Supply chain

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putting in their bodies,” explains Turner.

“Our core idea is quality products — you

can read everything that’s in them, and you

can see that there are no preservatives, no

colourants, and no flavourings. We’ve seen

an increase in demand from international

markets. South Africa has always been

known for its fruit and vegetables, and

we’ve exported all over the world for years.

But products like purees and concentrates

are definitely in more demand now.”

The South African Fruit & Vegetable

Canners’ Association, or SAFVCA, is a

voluntary group dedicated to protecting

the interests of all involved in the fruit and

vegetable canning process. As a key player

in the industry, Boland Pulp is represented

by the association, alongside other big

brands such as Del Monte and Rhodes

Food.

By taking such a keen interest in its

producers, Boland Pulp is able to ensure

the quality of its products remains

consistently high — and with the current

consumer drive for healthy and natural

products, this knowledge and

understanding is crucial.

“Consumers are a lot more savvy than they

used to be. People are reading the labels,

and they want to know exactly what they’re

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Looking East

Boland Pulp deals with requests from Asian

markets on a daily basis, and Turner tells

us how she’s noticed a definite trend for

organic food in the last couple of months.

Considering exported products are usually

tailored to suit international tastes, this

demand for unaltered products is

surprising.

“If you look at international and globalised

marketing, it’s important how the product

tastes. For example, the United States

tends to prefer sweeter things, so

exporters usually add a lot of sugar to their

products. I think the change is related to

the whole ethos of healthy living — what

you’re putting into your body is what you

get out — and we can see the impact of

that.”

In South Africa and worldwide, childhood

obesity is a growing problem, and this is

leading healthier fruit and vegetable

products to be seen as not just aspirational

goods, but a necessity.

“The demand for products with a health-

conscious aspect has definitely increased.

And as a manufacturer of baby products,

you can’t add sugar, you can’t add salt, and

on top of that, we’ve now got the

convenience of the puree pouch,” says

Turner.

“In the UK and Europe, people are already

familiar with it. The fruit pouch took a

while to get off the ground in South Africa,

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but more and more mums are seeing

how convenient it is to use. We’re

moving away from the standard. South

Africa has always used the same

products – whatever the mum uses,

the grandmother used — but we’ve

definitely seen the uptake of the

pouch, and it’s been very positive.

We’ve even had requests from

overseas for our Squish Baby range.”

While regulations vary from export

country to export country, Boland Pulp

has met this challenge by opting for

qualifications that are recognised

worldwide. “When we went down the

organic route, with the Pure’ Organic

Mini Meals, we wanted the accredita-

tion and the certification that was

recognized worldwide, which is why

we went with Ecocert. We wanted to

create a product that would be able to go

all over the world, and wasn’t just for here

in South Africa,” she explains.

In addition to the acquisition, this next year

will see the launch of a new breakfast

range from Boland Pulp. “Unlike overseas,

the idea of puree for adults is still quite

foreign in South Africa. We want to show

that puree is not just for babies. All over

the world, there’s quite a big drive towards

healthy pureed food. And we’re going to

introduce something new to the South

African market.”

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Physical Address

8 INDUSTRIAL Street,

Wellington, 7655,

RSA

+27 21 873 3165Tel:

+27 21 873 7244Fax:

info@bolandpulp.co.zaEmail:

Contact our office in South Africa

Contact Details

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