Ceres: Let’s put quality food on the dinner table!

– How did the Ceres story start?

István Mikos
corporate director of Ceres Zrt.

István Mikos: – Ceres has a long history, the company started production in 1953. In 1996 investor groups bought the firm and after this we built a nationwide logistics background, thanks to which we were able to provide retail chains with a standardised product selection. For instance this was the time when we developed our long shelf life, pre-packaged toast breads. The Ceres brand was born in Hungary, in Győr.

– Most people identify Ceres with pre-packaged baked goods, toast breads and sweet breads.

– Toast bread was Ceres’ main product already when our factory was in Pannonhalma. In the early 2000s we installed the first automatic toast bread production lines. Today Ceres has the biggest toast bread production capacity in Hungary.

– You also make seasonal products.

– This is another important direction for us – bejglis (walnut and poppy seed rolls) and other roll products. We have been busy innovating recently and now shoppers can also choose from chocolate, hazelnut, coconut and chestnut bejglis.

– A decade ago Ceres changed owners. What kind of changes did the parent company ask for?

– Since 2010 Ceres has been a member of the Czech group Agrofert. This group is Europe’s biggest bakery product maker. Since the ownership change we have been designating the operating directions together, based on the needs of Hungarian consumers and international trends. As the group is present in many countries, we can rely on lots of data in product innovation and other areas.

– The pandemic has strengthened healthy eating trends very much. What does Ceres do to satisfy this new type of need?

– Ceres has several product lines that serve this type of consumer need, such as New Line, Slimmm (low-carb products rich in protein) and the latest vegan range, called Vegán. During the pandemic demand increased for pre-packaged baked goods, which later dropped a little but the category is still developing fast – in a baked product market that is actually shrinking.

– What are your current innovation projects?

– Ceres has two main directions in its innovation work, one of them is when we build a completely new product category such as New Line, and the other is when we upgrade a product which has been in the market for years. As regards manufacturing, we are going in the direction of automation and modernisation. The workforce shortage is a big problem for us and automation can help solve this problem.

– We can’t avoid talking about sustainability either.

– Ceres is testing biodegradable packaging and plans to start using renewable sources of energy. By 2023 we want more than 30 percent of the energy we use to come from renewable sources.

– Where else would you like to make changes?

– Ceres is the market leading pre-packaged bakery product company in Hungary and we would like to retain this position. This is why we are testing new product categories. We will also start focusing more on export.

– Christmas is around the corner…What characterises the seasonal products of Ceres?

– Bejgli is our top seasonal product and this category offers the usual very high Ceres quality. In general we can say, we have worked and will work very hard to put quality food on the dinner tables of Hungarian consumers. //

This article was also published in 11/2021 of Trade magazin.