Contract growing

Sustainably grown open field vegetables

Apetit has developed the Responsible Farming method through long-term cooperation with its contract farmers

Apetit is firmly rooted in Finnish primary production. Apetit’s approximately 140 contract growers cultivate over 30 million kilos of domestic vegetables for Apetit’s Säkylä frozen foods plant. Apetit is Finland’s largest procurer of contract-grown field vegetables.

Responsible Farming method

  • the cultivation quantities and prices agreed annually with the contract farmers
  • general principles of cultivation, quality and product safety and environmental management
  • crop-specific cultivation guidelines and principles
  • plant protection measures only for identified needs
  • documentation of cultivation measures in the ViRe cultivation system
  • traceability of vegetables on a batch-by-batch basis to the field
  • documentation: cultivation history for varieties, preceding crops and crop rotation, measures taken and soil information, as well as the results of previous harvests to assist in the development of cultivation methods
  • continuous development work at Apetit’s Räpi experimental farm in terms of both methods and varieties