Pioneer in Organic Vegetables Is Naturally Pro-Environment.

Healthy eating is in vogue -- sparked both by consumer choice and the good doctor's voice. As a result delicious, nutritious, high-fiber vegetables are an increasingly important part of the daily menu. The green wave is rising, and with it Pinguin NV is surfing into new heights of creativity.

Chief among them is found in the foodservice assembly kitchen sector. That's where higher margins are being realized through the use of recently launched fresh-frozen "Vegetable Solution" products represented under the value-added Convenience Cuisine range (See page 2 for more details.).

When it comes to supplying certified organic products, however, Pinguin is hardly a newcomer. It has been active in the growing bio-vegetable field for almost five years now, offering a wide variety of organically-raised items under the Le Pere Andre label.

By 1997 the company was already distributing upwards of 1,000 tons of organic beans, cauliflower, leaf spinach portions and carrots. This year volume of 6,000 tons is anticipated, representing about 5% of total sales. Approximately 90% of the bio-products are presently sourced from Holland and Germany.

"By 2005 we expect that organic products will account for 10% of the entire market for processed vegetables in the European Union," said Herwig Dejonghe, Pinguin's general director. "You can be sure that we will be a major player in this field."

"The choice for Pinguin to go into the organic sector was a natural progression of company philosophy. In pursuit of greater quality control (ISO 9002, HACCP, etc.), it was the next logical step to take. The success of organic farmers has stimulated conventional growers to dedicate a portion of their land to environmentally-friendly cultivation free from the spraying of pesticides, herbicides and insecticides.

Teamwork among Pinguin agronomists and organic growers exists on different planes -- from devising planting stratagems and centralizing administration and coordination, to supporting growers who convert to organic farming, plus the development of ecological harvesting methods and transportation systems.

The result is surely a win-win situation for all involved. The grower is economically rewarded for his efforts; the consumer gets desirable, all-natural products; the environment is not exposed to chemicals.

Food shoppers in Europe readily recognize the "Biogarantie" label found on organic product packaging. Various stamps of approval -- for example: BLIK in Belgium and SKAL in Holland -- are given by independent organizations. For Pinguin's Le Pere Andre frozen vegetables, the EKO label certifies that strict, organic growing procedures have been followed up and down the line.

Inspectors check not only growers' agriculture practices and Pinguin's processing operation, but also each and every other link in the control chain. Their job is to scrutinize everything from the origin of raw material to cleaning, blanching and freezing methods, plus storage handling practices and shipping procedures. Samples are randomly taken to undergo laboratory analysis.

It's interesting to note that demand for bio-crops was relatively flat until 1995, when the BSE crisis in the United Kingdom turned many concerned Europeans away from beef in particular and meat in general. Producers and marketers of vegetables, poultry and fish benefited as a result. Before then much of the available organically-raised vegetable tonnage went into production of baby food. Apparently the mad cow disease scare "stampeded" a lot of adults into the "healthy eating" ranks, where organic products rule supreme.

Supply was barely keeping up with demand when the dioxin crisis hit in 1999, after it was discovered that certain unscrupulous pig farmers were feeding their livestock feed tainted with the carcinogenic chemical. Demand for bio-products then shot through the roof, as consumers scrambled to psychologically if not physiologically secure their food chain from toxins -- real or potential. Imports were dramatically stepped up to fill the gap.

While organic foods were previously sold almost exclusively in health food shops, today they can be found in most supermarkets. Indeed, they are stocked in practically every department of mainstream retail stores -- including the frozen food aisle. Among the products showcased in Belgian outlets are Pinguin's Le Pere Andre vegetables in transparent polyethylene bags.

The notion that vegetables are especially healthy foods to eat has been around a long time. More recently a number of internationally-recognized private and governmental organizations have trumpeted the nutritional value of frozen vegetables and fruits. One such body is the US Food and Drug Administration, which has declared: "In fact, some data show that the nutritional content level for certain nutrients was higher in the frozen version of the food than in the raw version ... This is probably attributable to the fact that unprocessed (i.e. raw) fruits and vegetables may lose some of their nutrients over time under certain storage conditions."

Furthermore, Dietary Guidelines for Americans, issued by the US Department of Agriculture and the Department of Human Services, suggest that consumers should eat at least two servings of fruits and three servings of vegetables per day.

Scientific studies have shown that frozen green beans contain twice as much vitamin C as do their raw bean counterparts. After three days in a supermarket display cabinet and three days in a home refrigerator -- which is a typical duration in the distribution of so-called "fresh produce" -- raw green beans retained just 36% of their vitamin C integrity. Frozen green beans fared much better, retaining 77% of their vitamin C content.

Meanwhile, the World Health Organization's (WHO) International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) maintains that fruits and vegetables -- rather than dietary supplements -- are "the first line of defense" in efforts to prevent cancer.

Be that as it may, Pinguin's mission is, and has always been, to offer healthy food to a broad cross-section of end-users. Its customers range from devout- and semi-vegetarians, to meat eaters who enjoy vegetable side dishes, to folks intent on bulking up their daily intake of fiber for the sake of regularity.

Pinguin's Vegetable Medallions are proof positive of the versatility of value-added vegetarian-oriented items. Made from a blend of cut vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, beans, corn, carrots, onions, peas and peppers), thickened with mashed potatoes and accented with chives and parsley, the product is promoted as an "exquisite vegetarian preparation." Nonetheless, caterers have seen fit to serve it as a full meal accompaniment along with steak and poultry. Containing only 105 calories per 100 grams, versatile Vegetable Medallions may be oven-, pan- or microwave-prepared.

Meanwhile, Pinguin's deep commitment to safeguarding the wholesomeness and nutrition value of its products has led to cooperation with university researchers keen on finding ways to optimize blanching technology. In addition, a project is presently under way to expand the rational use of chlorine dioxide as a technical aid in washing and disinfecting vegetables. Finally, separate research efforts have been launched to determine the suitability of blanching in two stages as preliminary treatment when vegetables are frozen.

On the environmental front, ongoing improvements are being made to reduce the use of water and energy, as well as curtail the production of waste and keep emissions under control.

The company can proudly point to many major accomplishments with regard to the environment last year. Among them are:

* Introduction of an IBC blancher equipped with air cooling, which optimizes the air cooling process.

* Construction of an anaerobic water purifier at the Westrozebeke plant to increase purification capacity and simultaneously reduce silt production.

* A new fuel station was built with a KWS separator, thus replacing underground fuel tanks.

For the folks at Pinguin NV, it is clear that protection of the environment -- an environment in which healthy-eating vegetables grow to nourish mankind -- makes fundamentally perfect sense. They treat the earth and sky as if their lives and livelihoods depended on it -- because they do.

Fruits, Herbs and Potato Specialties Complement Pinguin Vegetable Line

While Pinguin is first and foremost a frozen vegetable processor and supplier extraordinaire, it is also well-equipped to provide customers with fruits, herbs and potato specialties.

A wide range of IQF fruits, much of which is used in further processing by industrial clients, is imported from near and far locations The offerings include strawberries, raspberries, black and red currants, bilberries, morellos, plums, sliced kiwis, gooseberries, apple pieces, black berries and black cherries.

Cooperation with frozen herb specialist Daregal provides a win-win situation for all involved, as Pinguin moves the French company's chives, parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme through its established distribution chain. The same holds true in the potato field, where a special relationship with Aviko gives it access to the Dutch firm's impressive line of spud products.