Interview with Rafał Serek, Export Director of Indykpol

Friday, 19 October, 2018 Food From Poland 32/2018
We talk with Rafał Serek, Export Director of Indykpol on strategies of gaining consumers and methods for staying competitive on the market.
Approx. 45% of poultry meat produced in Poland has reached foreign markets. Which countries are your main recipients?

The products of Indykpol are exported to several dozen countries worldwide. The list of countries cooperating with our company is still expanding. Our main outlets are the European Union countries, i.e. the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, Ireland. We are also interested in non-European markets.

What can be done to have even more of our production exported? What do you do to acquire new customers?

Poland is Europe’s largest poultry producer and one of the largest turkey producers (a runner-up to Germany). The Polish poultry exports are dynamically on the rise, as we offer high-quality products at good prices. Attention should be paid to the fact that the entire industry is strongly investing in the improvement of production effectiveness, which translates into a possibility to provide products suiting the market’s expectations.

I think many Europeans would be surprised to know how many products they buy in their countries include Polish meat.

Indykpol actively searches for new customers. We participate in fairs and meetings where we present the capabilities of our Company. This brings measurable effects. Such meetings allow us to learn the consumer expectations and to acquire new customers.

The building of good prospects for the export of poultry meat was fostered, among other things, by the “European Poultry – Strength in Quality” campaign conducted by the National Poultry Council, aimed at promoting poultry meat produced under the QAFP (Quality Assurance for Food Products) system on the markets of the United Arab Emirates, Vietnam, as well as mainland China and Hong Kong. This campaign has been distinguished by the European Commission during the INFO DAY in Brussels, as one of the best projects promoting European food. This three-year project received 80% of its financing from the resources of both EU and national public administration, which translates into multiplication of its effect in favour of the Polish poultry sector. This year, the National Poultry Council – Chamber of Commerce intends to implement another project promoting the Polish poultry industry worldwide: “Support to the expansion of the Polish poultry sector on assorted third-country markets”.

What builds your advantage over the competitors?

We at Indykpol believe that good food gives good life. We want our customers to eat healthily and safely. This is why we take the field-to-table responsibility. What does it actually mean? We are one of the few companies in Poland to control the entire meat production process in such a way. The Frednowy Turkey Breeding Centre, Indykpol’s property, is one of Poland’s largest turkey poult producers, conducting broods on the basis of eggs from own parent flocks. Frednowy is one of the most important parts of our vertical integration. The poults produced from eggs coming from own parent flocks reach both our own farms and contract ones, and are sold on the free market.

The Indykpol Capital Group includes the Nutripol company producing top-quality feeds composed of natural ingredients. This company provides feed to farms owned by Indykpol S.A. as well as to contractors cooperating with our plant in Olsztyn.

Of course, the chain of our control and responsibility includes slaughter, cutting and packing, meat processing and distribution. Each production stage is subject to constant, strict control. Our plant complies with the most stringent requirements concerning animal welfare  as well as sanitary and hygienic conditions. We guarantee the products have been packed under hygienic conditions and have reached wholesalers and stores in compliance with the cold chain, to ultimately reach the tables and become a part of the good life of our consumers.

Why is it so significant today to carry out production according to the field-to-table principle?

Consumers and their needs change – they pay more attention to the quality of the consumed food. We are able to pay more for a high-quality product. Such a trend is visible across all segments of the food market. Polish customers are increasingly better educated, aware and looking for products fulfilling their needs, but they also increasingly pay attention to the issues of animal welfare. Hence the growing significance of the field-to-table principle – only then are we able to fully control the production process, from the origin of raw materials up to final products, and consequently, to guarantee high quality and safety of our products.

What goals have you set for yourselves for the months and years to come?

Our main goal is constant improvement of quality and production efficiency. The planned investments will anticipate the expectations of our Polish and Western European customers, with a strong emphasis on the issues of animal welfare and the safety of final products.

The currently implemented production level of the Indykpol Group will be doubled over the next few years.

Thank you


tagi: Rafał Serek , Indykpol ,