Patatas Meléndez takes another step forward in its international expansion and lands in Portugal.

he leading company in its sector, Patatas Meléndez, has just announced its entry into Portugal under a new company: Batatas Meléndez. This move towards international expansion will allow the company from Castile and Leon to broaden its business vision on the Iberian Peninsula, adding a new headquarters located in Lisbon.

Patatas Meléndez has just taken another big step in its international expansion strategy. The company, which already has a market share of 20% in Spain and is positioned as a leader in its sector, intends to develop its business model in Portugal following the general lines that characterise its operations in our country.

Thus, Batatas Meléndez is launching an Agricultural Plan in the neighbouring country with the vision of local farmers. This new company will lead the planning of harvests in the Portuguese countryside and will close commercial agreements with producers and distribution chains in Portugal.

“We have detected a growing interest in the neighbouring country to reduce potato imports and to invest in local production. A gesture that also responds to the high per capita consumption rate of this product in Portugal, almost four times the Spanish consumption”, Javier Meléndez, CEO of Patatas Meléndez and Batatas Meléndez indicated.

In addition, the company’s CEO affirmed his commitment to continue increasing its business capacity in other markets in order to continue expanding the company’s philosophy. “At Patatas Meléndez, we are following an ambitious strategy that aims to respond to this trend and demand in Portugal, allowing us to cover a larger share of business in a country so close to our land of origin. With this, we hope to remain faithful to our aim of offering the best product with the highest levels of quality 365 days a year”.

This new international leap comes at a key moment for Spain’s Meléndez. Last month, the company, originally from Castile and Leon, announced its alliance with the French Pom’ Alliance. These two strategic moves highlight the international expansion ambitions of Patatas Meléndez, which will allow the company to develop the marketing of this product in its two neighbouring countries.

The international structure will allow the Valladolid-based company to establish greater access to EU markets, as well as to develop global strategies that will increase its market share in the Iberian Peninsula. In addition, this connection between neighbouring countries will help to guarantee supply in Portugal from Spanish production whenever necessary.

In our country, the company already works with more than 500 farmers and distributes about 180,000 tonnes of potato per year thanks to the efforts of its 370 direct employees and the

12,000 indirect workers. A network that has been extended internationally thanks to its arrival in Portugal and its current French alliance.