A Dutch family which sold its fresh fruit and vegetable trading business four years ago, only for the company to go bankrupt in June of this year, has regrouped to establish a new import operation, news organisation AGF.nl has revealed.
The Bouman family sold Ridderkerk-based importer, exporter and marketer Solfruit – including subsidiaries such as Apollo Fruit – back in 2008, but since then the group lost its way financially, culminating in a declaration of insolvency in June.
'Obviously is was a great disappointment when Solfruit and Apollo Fruit, four years after being sold by the family Bouman, went insolvent,' René Bouman told AGF.nl.
'A nice company, in which many people invested their time and energy and heart, it is painful to see when it goes insolvent.'
Along with his father Henk and brother Peter, René is working to establish Fruit Market International (FMI) as a new and important player on the Dutch fresh produce import-export scene.
The family reportedly retained ownership of the warehouse and office facilities in which Solfruit was based, enabling it to set up new operations relatively quickly.
Joining the Boumans in FMI's commercial team are Wim Bezemer, Medhat Samir and Mirza Husic.
The company will focus at the start on imports from overseas – Middle East, South and Central America and South Africa – as well as from Italy, Greece and Spain.
René added: 'Relationships built up over a number of years are mostly active still and we already have received quite some trade.
'At the moment we offer Egyptian grapes, limes from Brazil, Chinese garlic, soft fruit from Spain and Greece, Turkish cherries, Italian grapes and watermelons.
'It was not an easy time, but we look at the future of FMI with confidence.'
