Arstiderne

 "Many e-business companies invest large sums in marketing while struggling to generate turnover. In marked contrast, Aarstiderne.com has demonstrated from its inception that growth and profits can go hand in hand. The innovative and well-timed concept is clearly a significant part of its developing success, but equally important is Scandinavia's ideal mix of farming know-how, advanced IT infrastructure and consumer demand, for growing grass roots organic ventures into international commercial successes."

Alexander Schwedeler, Senior Fund Manager, Triodos Bank

Scandinavia offers fertile ground for organic growth

Aarstiderne, a Danish internet-based company which delivers a wide range of organic produce from its own farms direct to the consumer's doorstep, has proved in just 2 years of operation that Scandinavian soil is highly fertile ground for e-business. Aarstiderne has rapidly broken even, and its ability to generate profits while growing a healthy customer base has attracted a substantial cash injection from Holland's Triodos Bank, which controls one of Europe's largest funds for investment in green companies. Triodos has shown its confidence in Aarstiderne by taking a 20% share in the young Danish company, and making € 3 million in loan capital available over the next 2 years for developing the company's natural potential and extending the concept to Sweden and other neighbouring countries.

Aarstiderne.com – an e-business for all seasons

Aarstiderne (which means "The Seasons" in Danish) is the brainchild of organic farmer Thomas Harttung, who together with chef Søren Ejlersen conceived the idea of using the internet to enable families with home PCs to order a weekly box of organic vegetables direct from the farm. The returnable wooden boxes are filled with that week's seasonal produce and delivered to the customer's door together with recipes created by Ejlersen, based on the contents of each week's box. By attracting other organic producers as co-operation partners, both within and outside Denmark, Aarstiderne has extended both the volume and range of its website wares to include bread, meat, fish, fruit and nuts, as well as organically produced wines and delicatessen products. After just 2 years of internet trade, Aarstiderne employs 70 people, has over 16,000 customers, and a turnover approaching € 5.4 million.

Besides growing an obviously healthy business, Thomas Harttung is also aware that the Aarstiderne concept taps into the characteristically health conscious and eco-friendly attitudes of Scandinavian consumers. "Organic food makes mealtimes a place where people and nature can come closer together. Our customers want more fun in the kitchen, healthier bodies, a cleaner environment, a varied diet, new taste experiences. Aarstiderne delivers it, right to the doorstep."

Triodos Bank – backing natural born winners

Based in Holland, and with branches in Belgium and UK, Triodos Bank is a leading European ethical investor. In 2000 Triodos Group’s volume under management grew by 37% to € 880 million, and passed the € 1 billion mark during 2001. As the name suggests Triodos Bank is founded on a trio of investment values – in their case economic, social and environmental. Aarstiderne was thus perfectly positioned to attract the attention of the bank and its Senior Fund Manager Alexander Schwedeler, who was quick to notice that the basic ingredients of the Aarstiderne concept, organic food production and direct internet ordering from a home PC, were an ideal recipe for success in Scandinavia.

From an early date, Scandinavia has shown strong interest in organic food, with Denmark and Sweden being the world's first to have organic food entering mainstream marketing channels. The region also benefits from high penetration, use and familiarity with the Internet (82% according to EITO October 2001); in fact Denmark has more PCs per capita than any other country in the world. This makes it an ideal test market for consumer e-businesses targeted towards the organic segment, as well as being strategically placed at the crossroads between Europe and the Nordic region for subsequent roll-out to neighbouring countries.

"The Scandinavian market for organic products is substantial, and increasing" says Alexander Schwedeler. "Denmark especially offers an optimal e-business climate and provides both the production know-how and mature market conditions for organic ventures to be started up and successfully extended across borders."

The Øresund region - a hothouse of organic production

The Øresund Region, which encompasses virtually the whole of Denmark and stretches across the Øresund bridge to include the fertile lowlands of Skåne in Southern Sweden, is already well on its way to becoming a hothouse of organic production. Just 10 years ago, organic farming accounted for less than 1% of its cultivated land. Today the figure is nearly 8% and rising rapidly; the Øresund Region has Europe's largest per capita consumption of organic products and market revenues for fresh organic vegetables are forecast to double in the coming years as consumer demand for organic food continues to rise strongly in the region.

Denmark has long been a major food exporter, producing around five times more than the domestic population consumes. The trend towards organic foods was identified at an early stage and exports already account for 10% of Danish organic production. Targeted R&D efforts in institutions and companies are now resulting in a continuous flow of new organic products for the international market. Combining know-how in organic farming with the Danish food industry’s experience in product development and exports, the
Øresund Region offers outstanding business opportunities for the growing world market in organic products.

Text: Invest in Denmark