Funded by Citadele, whole-wheat cereal producer MILZU! Ltd. continues expanding its business as it starts producing four types of organic whole-wheat cereals that are to be successfully exported to Scandinavian countries.
"Cooperation with companies that have export capacity, and supporting their production is one of Citadele Bank's priorities. The ability of MILZU! Ltd. to expand its business through our granted loan is a positive development. Significant competition exists in the Latvian cereal market. Some importers are internationally well known therefore the fact that, through employing its expertise and initiative, MILZU! Ltd. has been able to take successful production of traditional whole-wheat cereals to the next level by bringing new added value to its products. People across the world are increasingly paying attention to what they eat therefore organic food certainly has a promising future even if it costs more,” comments Ieva Vērzemniece, Head of Citadele's SME Services Department.
"A year ago, Citadele Bank was the only bank which granted us current assets, and believed that a newly launched family-run business would be able to establish a production unit in a rural area and would find a market for the produced whole wheat cereals. Therefore we are continuing to cooperate now that our products are available at all supermarket chain stores, and even many smaller merchants' shelves, and our exports are gaining momentum,” says Enno Ence, managing director of MILZU! Ltd.
Various types of MILZU! whole-wheat cereals are available at stores now. They have attracted consumers' attention with high quality as well as the attractive design and messages for target audiences. “Previously, children were the key audience of MILZU! whole-wheat cereals whereas now, as we launch our organic rye cereal line, we are going to attract more adults," explains Enno Ence. A new design was launched for organic MILZU! whole-wheat cereal packaging which clearly emphasizes the organic origin.
Whole-wheat cereal producer MILZU! Ltd. set up a production unit in Kuldīga rural district a year ago, and so far, it has been able to launch cooperation with the largest Latvian retail chains, and thus obtain a 10 % market share. The production unit employees eight people, and the currently small company makes use of its key advantages: competence, mobility, flexibility and its ability to adopt decisions promptly.