No one would deny that 2020 has been a year we’ll never forget.
It has been a year in which we have all faced considerable problems and challenges, and Aceitunas Torrent has also had its ups and downs. This September brought the sad news of the death of our honorary president, Mr. Francisco Torrent Béjar, who for many decades was the driving force behind Aceitunas Torrent. On a positive note, we ended the year on a high after the launch of Oliva Clan, our new product in snack format, which won prestigious international awards for innovation and filled us all with immense pride.
How was our 2020?
You already know how determined we are that Aceitunas Torrent should not grind to a halt. However, no one could have presaged what 2020 had in store for us, and we kicked off the agri-food fair season by presenting our most adventurous format of olives, Oliva Clan, at two fairs in a row in February, the Supermarket Trade Show in Tokyo and at Gulfood in Dubai. The reception far exceeded our expectations, but little did we know at that time that these fairs would be among the few face-to-face international events to be held that year, as all the other fairs were called off as the Covid-19 scenario worsened.
In mid-March, Covid-19 was officially declared a pandemic, and despite the fact that everyone went into lockdown, Aceitunas Torrent designed an anti-Covid action protocol, with prevention and contingency measures certified by the Ministry of Health, which has allowed the factory and office staff to continue their work safely throughout the rest of the year.
The sales team took no time to adapt to the situation and since April has conducted sales meetings with clients online, keeping in touch with them and attending to their needs at all times. One example of this is when we took part in the online PLMA event at the beginning of this month, in which The Coolives, olive snacks, had its moment of glory (more about that later!).
The milestones we achieved
Aceitunas Torrent has never done things the easy way – on the contrary, going through tough times makes us stronger. Looking back, 2020 was full of important milestones:
Obtaining the Halal Certificate, after passing an extremely demanding audit of our premises and procedures
Being the first company in the Table Olive sector to join the prestigious Spanish Brands with High International Potential (MAPI) club of the Leading Brands of Spain Forum.
Launching Oliva Clan in 5 countries and receiving top awards, which will be announced shortly.
So, as you can see, we have every right to be proud of ourselves for how we have tackled the challenges we have encountered in 2020, but we must remember not to lower our guard and to get ready for an even more promising and thrilling 2021 by your side.
Happy 2021 from all the Aceitunas Torrent ‘family’!