Media releases

The auditing house Det Norske Veritas executed a certification audit of the quality management system in the strategic business units of the Podravka meals Lino, Dolcela and Kviki in June 2002. One of the most significant activities which preceded this certification cycle was the implementation of Q-Pulse software for the on-line management of the system documentation.

Podravka's Kalnik plant situated in Varaždin reached higher production in July than for the past five years. This positive trend continued in August and in the first few days of September. The figures show that this year's total processing of vegetables will surpass last year's total by more than 40%.

Podravka's acquisition of Ital-ice from Poreč, well known for its ice-cream, is becoming more and more famous for the manufacturing of frozen cakes and bakery products. Daily, 15,800 to 16,000 thirty-five-gram pieces of croissants leave the plant, mainly for the purposes of hotels in Poreč and its surroundings, and in Rijeka.

The Kalnik vegetable factory has achieved record production in the last five years in spite of the disastrous effect of the drought on the pea and green bean crops. This year, Kalnik was to process 9,000 tonnes of different vegetables, and as things stand at the moment, it will process an additional 1,000 tonnes.

At the beginning of July, the Croatian Chamber of the Economy awarded the right to use the mark "Izvorno Hrvatsko" ("Genuine Croatian Product") to Podravka's plum jam with added sugar and no preservatives. Podravka has already received this mark for Vegeta, and plum jam is the second product made by Podravka bearing the mark "Genuine Croatian Product".

The quality management system has now been extended to other business processes and product brands such as Podravka Dishes (soups, semi-cooked dishes, special food complements), and Lino Dolcela and Kviki (children's food, powdered desserts and snacks).

This week in Podravka a new wastewater collector was launched into test operation in the Danica industrial zone, as well as a reconstructed wastewater purification system which applies a technological purification process. The system will be used for the purification of wastewater from Podravka's plants.

Podravka's shares were pronounced the best industrial shares of the previous year. A prize was also awarded to Podravka for the most liquid shares, and a special journalist jury considered that Podravka had the best media and public relations in the previous year.