Italy's leading apple producer, the Association of South Tyrolean Fruit Growers' Cooperatives (VOG), is preparing to unveil detailed plans for a major reorganisation of its member cooperatives' marketing and logistics structures, it has emerged.
According to Gerhard Dichgans, the producer organisation's managing director, the restructuring will see VOG's 18 existing cooperatives consolidated into four pools – three with four members and one with six members.
From summer 2010, these four pools will cooperate more closely on the logistics and packing side, while also pursuing joint sales strategies.
VOG's markets, meanwhile, will be reorganised into a number of strategic geographical areas, Mr Dichgans revealed.
'What we're going to end up with is four cooperatives that are big enough to make economies of scale and be able to fund future investments,' he told Fruitnet.com.
The proposed reorganisation is set to be officially announced at the start of next week, while consultation with individual growers and cooperative members are also understood to be underway.
Further details of the restructuring will appear on Fruitnet.com and in the January issue of Eurofruit Magazine.
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