Sirogojno Co. is one of the largest Serbian exporters of frozen and dried fruit. The company collaborates with around 3,000 fruit producers from western Serbia. The purchase and processing of fruit are performed on 6 production sites. In addition to purchasing and processing locally produced berries, we also import and process exotic fruits so we can offer our customers a complete product portfolio. Sirogojno Co. directly cooperates with small retail chains and markets its products under private labels. More than 90% of production is intended for export to foreign markets – countries of the European Union, Canada, the United States, and Japan. Direct cooperation with small retail chains implies rigorous product quality and safety standards as well as high innovation capacity. We are very proud of our employees and organizational culture, which we nurture together, and which aims to continuously improve all segments of day-to-day business.
Year of establishment:
1991
Location:
Sirogojno
Founder and owner:
Rade Ljubojevic
Business information
| 2021 | 2015 | 2010 | 2005 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full-time employees | 115 | / | / | / |
| Turnover (EUR) | 39 m | / | / | / |
| Export (EUR) | 35 m | / | / | / |
PRODUCTS/SERVICES
COMPANY DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURIAL STORY
The founder of the company, Rade Ljubojevic, had previous significant experience and success in international trade. Sirogojno Co. was founded in 1991 to be a company that will attract customers with its reputation – in terms of product quality, and proper and transparent attitude towards everyone it cooperates with, from agricultural producers, employees, and suppliers, to customers and the local community. In the beginning, it was a trading company, but the first great undertaking was the acquisition of the company Sirogojno, which produced hand-knitted clothes. The model of cooperation with the local population, which already existed in the production of clothing, has been extended to cooperation with the fruit producers from Sirogojno and the surrounding area. The development of fruit growing was accompanied by the investment in a fruit processing factory in Sirogojno. The start of cooperation with the Scandinavian retail chain ICA presented a huge challenge in terms of production organization, quality system, and product safety as well as social standards. On the other hand, this cooperation was an opportunity for learning, progress, and development in both organizational and technological terms and opened the door to further success and new customers.
CONTRIBUTION TO SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
Having in mind that the cooperation with the local population represents one of the foundations of Sirogojno’s business, support for the development of the local community is an integral part of the day-to-day business. Cooperation with the company Sirogojno Co. represents a motivation for further engagement in agricultural production and has a positive effect on migration reduction of rural population to urban centers. Through constant educating of producers and providing favorable loans for the procurement of necessary equipment, Sirogojno Co. affects the increased quality and efficiency of agricultural production. The company is also focused on improving the overall quality of life in the local community, primarily through support for the improvement of health care and education, improvement of infrastructure as well as enriching the cultural offer of the region. An extremely important part of the socially responsible business of Sirogojno Co. is a proper partnership relationship with its employees. One of the priorities of Sirogojno Co. is the constant improvement of working conditions and organization, as well as the possibility for training and advancement of its employees and agricultural producer-subcontractors. The company provides opportunities for young people from the western Serbia region to be employed in the region from which they came (after graduation) and advance rapidly in a clearly defined work system and organization.
