Fruits de Ponent and Actel Grup join forces

A joint venture between two leading Catalan fruit cooperatives, Fruits de Ponent and Actel Grup, has been formally approved after members voted unanimously in its favour on Friday. The deal is the result of more than a year of negotiations between the two groups.

Each group will have a 50 per cent stake in the new limited company, Novacoop Mediterranea, which will manage the daily operations of the two cooperatives related to fruit, oil, nuts, services to partners and energy. Fruits de Ponent and Actel will continue to operate as separate entities.

A board of directors, made up of members of the two founding cooperatives, will be appointed in the coming weeks.

“This strategic decision arises from a deep joint reflection, taking into account the situation that the sector is currently experiencing, with a high concentration of actors in the agri-food chain that must be addressed, and the determining changes in agricultural production caused by the climate emergency,” the companies said in a press release.

“This collaboration seeks, within the framework of sustainable development, to optimise the profitability of the partners’ farms through more efficient transformation and marketing of agricultural products. Likewise, it proposes collectively addressing the current high investment needs.”

Novacoop Mediterranea will seek to optimise the existing activities of the cooperatives and provide a comprehensive service to members. In addition, it seeks new business opportunities, with special attention to areas such as energy, support in field work with personnel for producer partners, among others.

“The cooperative principles shared between Fruits de Ponent and Actel make this business initiative deeply rooted in the territory and at the service of society in general. It should be remembered that this union does not imply a merger, since the two cooperatives, Fruits de Ponent and Actel, will continue to maintain their own autonomy and activity,” the cooperatives said.