wholesale market authorities and traders are being urged to reignite the links between Paris’s prestigious Rungis market and the UK.
Rungis has had considerable ties with the UK in the past and many believe that forging new partnerships between markets could add value to products on UK wholesale markets.
John Piper, managing director of Oakleaf European, told the World Union of Wholesale Markets (WUWM) conference, held in Rungis last week, that harnessing the market’s brand and international status could boost markets’ prominence and profitability.
He said: “We have two trucks that come to Rungis twice a week. It has always opened doors for us and we have built on that with our Rungis: Direct to your Kitchen branding.
“We split our time between Rungis and the UK and have even taken high-end UK supermarkets and Michelin-starred chefs on tours around the market. They were impressed by the level of professionalism on the market.”
Rungis covers 232 hectares, hosting 1,213 companies with a turnover of €7.9 billion (£7.2bn), of which half is attributable to fruit and vegetables.
New Covent Garden Market (NCGM) is at the head of any likely increase in the links between London and Paris. NCGM-based French Garden already specialises in the area and John Fowler, managing director of London firm Personal Catering Company, ran Paris Express for 15 years, bringing produce from Rungis to traders in NCGM. He told FPJ: “It was important to have the variety that French product gave us but, in the end, the costs made it impractical. However, we still take deliveries for ourselves directly from Paris, Milan and Scotland.”
Jan Lloyd, chief executive of the Covent Garden Market Authority, told FPJ: “We can collaborate market authority to market authority and that would prove especially useful. But we believe there are real benefits in trader-to-trader links.”
