Retail group Rimi Baltic, a subsidiary of Swedish group ICA which operates grocery outlets in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, has been confirmed as a new member of the GlobalGAP good agricultural practice certification scheme.
The company, which is reportedly aiming to become the Baltic market leader in food retail within the next three years, is said to have made certification of its fresh produce a key priority in terms of achieving further growth in the near future.
According to GlobalGAP, Rimi Baltic's customer base is increasingly demanding not only great-tasting food, but food that has been produced using high quality and safety standards.
To satisfy that demand, the group has been working to identify local and internatinal suppliers that meet its safety, hygiene and labour standards.
Eva Freimane, fruit and vegetable buying and merchandising director at Rimi Baltic, commented: 'We can offer our customers high quality, safe products when we purchase goods from our growers and suppliers with GlobalGAP certificates.'
'We're looking forward to working with Rimi Baltic in the future and learning how GlobalGAP can help their retail operations,' Freimane added.
'We are closest to the end use and, as a GlobalGAP Member, we can give feedback to GlobalGAP about what is important to our customers.'
