For the past 15 years, Germinarte has been operating in the edible flowers and sprouts segment, establishing itself as a major supplier for the national hospitality sector.
"I first worked with edible flowers and sprouts while employed as a chef at a 5-star hotel in Benidorm. At the time, the restaurant purchased the products from Dutch and French companies, because there were very few producers in Spain, and my brother and I decided to venture into this sector."
"We started to plant and conduct trials in the family garden, where my grandparents had cut down the orange trees at a time when oranges were not yielding good results, and after much trial and error, we managed to produce a quality product that, in just a couple of weeks, we were already delivering to all the Michelin-starred restaurants in Valencia."
"After the great reception of our edible flowers and sprouts in the province, we quickly managed to supply also the best restaurants in Alicante, and we went on to start supplying great chefs and Michelin-starred restaurants in other major Spanish cities," says Jorge.
"However, Germinarte's real boom came when, after 3 years, we started collaborating with Makro, which introduced our products into its line. This brought huge changes. We needed new facilities and we had to increase our production, but we did so to be able to supply a large retailer with which we have now been working for 12 years in Spain. Now we would like to do the same in the rest of Europe with our live sprouts."
New format designed for all types of restaurants
Germinarte has a very extensive product range featuring microgreens, seaweeds and, for a year and a half now, also more than 100 spices, in addition to the edible flowers and sprouts with which the company started. "One of our best-selling products is the seasonal flower mezclum, as well as the micromezclum, which combines edible flowers with sprouts. Both are ready to use and sold in very convenient formats," says Jorge. "We have seen a lot of interest in our flowers and sprouts in Europe. We have even conducted some trials exporting to France and the UK, but the problem with exporting is that edible flowers and sprouts are very delicate and have a shelf life of only about 10 days."
"That's why, in order to extend the shelf life and go further with our exports, we have launched a line of live sprouts capable of staying in perfect condition for a month."
"We are already marketing them in lots of 4 trays; an adequate amount, designed so that they can be used by both large and small restaurants. At the latest edition of Fruit Logistica, where we presented them, they sparked a lot of interest."
For more information:
Germinarte
Avda. Igualdad 22
4600 Alzira, Valencia. Spain
Tel.: +34 961 044 958
[email protected]
https://germinarte.es