Thank you......
Dear Friends,
The year 2011 has come and gone, and during the past decade we have seen many crises. 9/11, the tsunami’s in Japan and Thailand, the economic crisis which originated in Iceland in 2008……
Yet the world bounces back every time, and through its ability to change it continues to create a new future and new opportunities for mankind.
As companies with its feet planted firmly on the ground, AgroCap Invest and Cool Fresh International have for many years seen change as THE catalyst for creating future success.
We have come to understand that you don’t have to be a specialist advisor in order to bring about change, nor do you need to be in a management or leadership position.
You just have to want to make a difference…..
Making a difference can start with the simplest of actions - asking why or what?
We are continuously challenging the status quo at many levels by asking questions which start with ‘why’ or ‘what’?
‘Why are we doing it this way?’. And …. ‘What can we do to improve our service levels?’.
As a result we have been able to initiate a number of new projects and embrace a lot of positive changes.
During 2011 we have started up a pioneering project in Peru, which will see small farmers being given direct access to world fresh produce markets.
We have invested in a brand new cooling facility on the Orange River Irrigation Project in Namibia, giving local farmers access to state of the art cooling and logistics facilities in this hot and arid country.
We have relocated our head office and warehousing activities to a wonderful new facility, from where we are able to yet again increase the quality of service to our clients.
We have added new members to our ‘Corporate Family’, thereby further expanding our global activities.
Our Stars in their Eyes organisation in South Africa has also broken through more barriers. We have started conducting our leadership courses in a maximum security prison. We have trained more than 450 communities coaches in bringing positive change to more than 175 disadvantaged and impoverished communities. On a weekly basis, we are reaching more than 10 000 children in Africa.
And we have become the first fresh produce company in Europe to receive the Corporate Social Responsibility Performance Ladder certification.
Change does not come easy, but it does come with great rewards!
That being said, the one thing which we will not change concerns our traditional values. Hard work, integrity, loyalty, and having fun as a team.
We thank our all our clients, suppliers and service providers for their friendship and partnership during the past year, and we wish all you a peaceful festive season, and a dynamic, successful and very happy 2012!
Johan in t Veld & Hugo Vermeulen
On behalf of AgroCap Invest BV & Cool Fresh International BV