VITALIS, the company from the Enza Zaden group, in charge of research and ecological seed production is offering us produce that stays fresh longer
Ecological foods are winning market share all over the world. The proportion of ecological fruit and vegetable sales is already over 10% in countries like Switzerland, Sweden, Austria, Denmark or the United States. And in countries like Germany, Holland or Spain it is growing fast as well.
To a large extent, the entire food chain depends on plant varieties, and this is where Vitalis has a great deal to contribute, actively working with economic, social and environmental sustainability, as well as encouraging biodiversity. Vitalis invests a high percentage of its invoicing in the research and development of ecological fruit and vegetable varieties.
Vitalis’ goal is to give added value to the farmers, providing resistances, quality and greater yield, varieties with longer shelf life for marketers, and offering consumers the chance to purchase different ecological produce with high nutritional value, which is environmentally-friendly all year round.
Cucumbers that help reduce the use of plastic
Furthermore, Vitalis is no stranger to the current public concern about the excessive use of plastic in the food sector. The EU is starting to fight against excess plastic waste in all its member countries, and some companies are already opting for using laser labelling and avoiding the use of shrink-wrap or flow packs on their produce.
Vitalis is adding high value to these companies in the development of varieties with a longer shelf life, obtaining produce that stays fresh longer, which allows the use of plastic packaging to be reduced as much as possible.
Currently, the seed company is contributing an ecological cucumber programme in the Almeria type segment, with Levantino, Braganza or Poniente among other varieties, which offer an improvement of 10 days in the post-harvest period compared to other varieties already on the market. And we must not forget other types such as the French cucumber type with the Audax variety. Also the EasyQs concept is developing crunchy, ecological cucumbers, with an ideal size for snacks or for a salad without wasting any produce and that have a long shelf life, with the cucumbers staying fresh for longer.
