The lands surrounding Almaty, Kazakhstan, include one a large and fertile apple-growing region. The area is so productive that there is often a surplus of fruit which, due a scarcity of pickers, used to result in widespread waste.
The region's fledgling market based economy and supply driven product pricing meant disastrous losses for apple growers and middlemen. " It was natural to search for a way to add vale to the existing crop," says Sergi Ganioukov, one of a new breed of Russian entrepreneurs. According to Ganioukov, the production and marketing of fresh apple juice looked like the most effective way to make reasonable profits under existing conditions.
A large, refrigerated warehouse already in the possession of a small group of investors meant that production could run continuously for at least nine months out of the year. Given the region's population of 1.2 million and appetite for fresh juices, the group had good reason to believe that the risk was worth taking.
Ganioukov agreed to represent the buyers in their search for appropriate technology throughout Western Europe and the United States.
"Selection of the proper pressing equipment was critical to the success of the start-up company," says Ganioukov. "The many options in juice production machinery made for a complicated decision making process. And with price tags ranging up to t$750,000.00 U.S.D. per unit, the cost to output ration was an important consideration."
The Goodnature press was selected for a variety of reasons. Most other company offerings consisted of a "one size fits all approach" concentrating on high volume production. Goodnature was capable of providing machines with a wider range of throughput capacities.
"Goodnature was able to specify the right press size for the volume of juice we expected to produce," says Ganioukov. "The presses were solidly constructed and had a good reputation for holding their value. This was an important consideration in protecting our machine investment because it meant that as production requirements increased in the future, we could purchase higher capacity models as needed, and find a ready market four our star-up equipment."
The operation is currently utilizing one Goodnature SX280 Squeezebox at somewhat under its rated capacity (5 tons per day). No press aids or enzymes are added during production. The finished product is a natural style juice, bottled in two-liter containers, and distributed to stores throughout the region. Twelve people are employed with the plant running one shift per day.
Goodnature was also named general contractor for the plant project. Responsibilities included design and utilization of the existing facility along with specification of ancillary equipment including scrubbers, conveyors and storage and filling equipment. The plant was also provided with plastic blow molding machines, enabling it to make its own bottles.
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