Handling 21,000 tonnes of fruit per year and earning the trust of global supermarket chains such as Tesco, Lidl and Asda is certainly a proud achievement. But for Proto, the family firm specialising in the sale of fruit since 1928, and the leading Greek kiwifruit exporter with 13,000 tonnes in 2018, it is more than that.
It is a dream that has turned into a reality: to keep producing high-quality fruit and delivering them all across the world. That is what makes Proto a company to watch.
Kiwifruit facts and future plans
Proto is already an established kiwifruit brand. Its next chapter involves a huge expansion in production with the acquisition of new lands, cultivation of new kiwifruit varieties and further investments in strong working relationships with its producers and agronomists.
On top of the €2m investment that has already gone into new refrigeration facilities to ensure the high quality of our kiwifruit, an extra €5m will be invested between now and 2020 in order to guarantee a premium product every time.
Cherry success
Proto’s philosophy of producing and offering high-quality fruit is only made possible by investments in new technology. The company’s latest investment – a new cherry calibrator from Unitec – increases our production lines by ten and our production capacity by 6 tonnes per hour, offering an even more precise sorting of fruits (according to parameters such as size and colour) and more quality control options, customisation and camera systems to sort out defected and damaged fruit.
As the leading Greek cherry exporter, Proto managed to handle more than 5,000 tonnes of cherries over the past year, surpassing all previous seasons. These successful figures make further technological investments possible, and these are due to take place soon.
