Poultry specialist Europa Cuisson is spreading its wings
“Our family has always had a passion for poultry”, says Juan Mate, who set up Europa Cuisson exactly 30 years ago together with his brother Julio. Over the years the company has specialized in cooked poultry products. It started off really small but now exports to 22 countries and is a market leader in Europe. Its range comprises ready-cooked poultry meat in every conceivable form (frozen, ultra-fresh in vacuum packs, pasteurized products), as well as pizza toppings, cold meats and vegan products.
Ready to cater to current and future food trends
“In a fast-changing world, we need to be constantly alert to how the market is developing and what our customers want, now and in the future,” says Marketing Manager Manon Mate.“Food allergies, origin, animal welfare, halal, vegan, and so on: our customers come to us with very specific requirements.Nowadays, Europa Cuisson mainly operates in food service and the food industry, but we also want to get closer to end users and expand into the retail sector.We’ve been extremely flexible in terms of our products for many years and now we’d like to diversify even more, for example into vegetarian products.
“Look, we’ve enjoyed tremendous growth in recent years, but we want to expand further.We now have the infrastructure and capacity to put those ambitious growth plans into action.”
In a fast-changing world, we need to be constantly alert to how the market is developing and what our customers want, now and in the future." - Manon Mate, Marketing Manager of Europa Cuisson
- Manon Mate, Marketing Manager of Europa Cuisson
Turnkey service
Juan Mate, CEO of Europa Cuisson, adds:“Our customers know that the products we supply are of the highest quality.And if you work with food, strict hygiene measures are also essential.That’s why only the very best machines are good enough.
“We’ve been working with GEA for the past 30 years, right from the very beginning.The first machines we bought from them were vertical packers.Then we moved on to the cooked product line, installing cutting-edge technology, and from there to the freezing process.
“GEA looks after the production line from start to finish, from creation through to assembly, providing virtually a turnkey service.They come up with ideas, new products, trends, well-conducted market research and material of a very high standard.”
I regard GEA as a partner, not a supplier. GEA is part of our story and are happy to brainstorm with us about how we can move forward." - Juan Mate, CEO of Europa Cuisson
- Juan Mate, CEO of Europa Cuisson
A pretty good team
“We’ve worked with many different technology partners in the past,” CEO Juan Mate continues.“GEA machines are certainly not the cheapest around, but they’re head and shoulders above anyone else’s.They don’t lose their value either, so you can still resell them if you need to upscale.
“But it’s not just the machines that make a difference.I regard GEA as a partner, not a supplier.They’re part of our story and are happy to brainstorm with us about how we can move forward.They give us advice, let us test our own products in their test center in the Netherlands and, crucially, have very good, reliable maintenance engineers we can always rely on.Because if you stand still, you’re actually going backwards, certainly in production.That confidence leads to an even stronger partnership.We now also count on GEA for fast-freezing and cooling.
“GEA also monitors trends in the food market and is constantly developing new machines.They keep us on our toes.But it works both ways, of course.”
