Klas and Cooperants Introduce New Domestic Product Frozen Fruit

Bosnia and Herzegovina's food industry Klas d.d. Sarajevo, along with its cooperants, today promoted Klas's new brand "Frozen Fruit": raspberries, blackberries, sour cherries, strawberries, wild blackberries, and blueberries in 350g packaging, reports the BiH news agency Patria.

- This is our support for the development of domestic agriculture, in a way that gives a new value to a domestic product that is 100% made in B&H through professional and financial support for cultivation, processing, packaging, and marketing of the brand in domestic and foreign retail chains. Raspberries are from BiH plantations, industrial processing is done in BiH facilities, packaging is from BiH suppliers, design and marketing are also BiH. The new Klas brand of frozen fruit is an example of how the entire food industry can develop, from primary agricultural production which has material, but also professional support from large systems like ours, through processing, and then marketing strong brands in domestic and foreign markets. There is no great benefit from exporting logs, but when you export brands, then everyone in the production chain, as well as the entire society, benefits and has security - stated Rusmir Hrvić, President of the Management Board of AS GROUP and Director of Klas d.d. Sarajevo.

Last year, Klas had about 800 cooperants-producers of berry fruits, and this year it is planned to cooperate with 1,500 producers, and to purchase and process about 2,500 tons of raspberries and other berry fruits.

- In addition to the cold storage facility in Blažuj, our new cold storage facility in Tešanj with a capacity of 1,100 tons, and the storage capacities of Vegafruit from Gradačac will be available to us. As always, throughout the year, we will assist our cooperants with expert advice, education, and continuous field supervision, so that at the end of the season they have a rich harvest and top quality fruit, all with the aim of achieving high yields and good quality of fruits, without pesticides, and safe microbiological compliance - said Esad Babić, agronomist at Klas.

Producers from Busovača, Travnik, Kiseljak, Sarajevo, Vitez, Donji Vakuf, and Visoko spoke about the new products at the promotion.

- I have been growing raspberries since 2001, when Klas launched this project, and thus I provide a livelihood for my family of six. I have 4.5 dunams of land, but this year I plan to expand the plantation, because I see my security and a better future in growing berry fruits - said Salkan Zlotrg from Vitez.

Munib Isaković from Busovača believes that Klas directly helps the development of domestic agriculture through organized cultivation and purchase of berry fruits. Thanks to raspberry cultivation, the Isaković family of five lives decently throughout the year, but also sets aside some money for investments. To date, they have doubled the area of their plantation, and selflessly educate other producers about the project.

- I have a large plantation. I grow blackberries and raspberries, and on behalf of Klas, I also act as a buyer of other types of fruit. I work according to the instructions of Klas's agronomists and implement all agrotechnical measures, so the quality of the fruit is not lacking - said cooperant Alem Hodžić.

Nedeljko Spaić is also a long-term cooperant of Klas. In addition to raspberries, on his property in the Sarajevo settlement of Briješće, he also grows potatoes and sells them to Sarajevo burek shops. His son Marko, an economist by profession, helps him in the business.

By marketing six types of frozen fruit, Klas d.d. Sarajevo has enriched its offer of deep-frozen products, and has given new value to raspberries, which it has been successfully exporting to the European Union market for years.

- We believe that this brand has potential, it is entirely domestic, and why not mention it, it has an attractive design, and that consumers will trust it. Together with our cooperants, we can guarantee natural taste, richness of vitamins, and product safety. Frozen fruit, like all other food from Klas, is produced in accordance with internationally recognized quality management standards ISO and HACCP - said Dženana Pezer, brand manager of the deep-frozen products program at Klas, and reminded consumers that only by buying domestic products do we build a better Bosnia and Herzegovina.