Vicente Miñana set up the worker cooperative ACTIVIAL more than 20 years ago with his children. In the last year it has completely transformed the way it works, and EDYPRO has had a lot to do with it.
What does ACTIVIAL do?
Since 1998 we have been advising farms, carrying out treatments, irrigation installations, supplying products to sales outlets and cooperatives… A company of the time.
But in recent years this type of work did not motivate us, we were not excited about what we were doing. The market had become a commercially aggressive sector, where we worked with very little margin and there was a lot of disloyalty.
A market that does not value work and everything depends on getting the best price.
Is this what prompted you to change the focus of your activity?
Yes, we have reconverted to do only technical advice and commercial distribution of the products we recommend, which are EDYPRO.
We wanted to distance ourselves from this market with such unproductive marketing. It has been a brutal change because we have had to leave sales outlets and dedicate ourselves to finding end customers.
How do you work now?
We are looking for clients on farms that need advice. People who value our work and our visits, our advice and that this means that in the end they trust in our work and they bet on our products, because we give them results.
We are looking for clients of a minimum size, although we continue to provide services to smaller clients who want to work with us because they know our references.
In what geographical area and for what types of crops do you work?
Our usual area of work was Marina Alta, some of the north of Marina Baja and some of Vinalopó. We have been expanding to Vall d’Albaida, Fontanars and some of La Ribera, especially in the area of royalty crops where the quality and effectiveness of the treatments are highly valued.
In terms of crops, we work with citrus, avocado, persimmon, loquat and some vines. In the last year we have also taken on farms that grow vegetables. We have also taken on fruit trees that we did not work before, such as cherry and apricot.
We have intensified the vineyard area. This type of cultivation is always two steps ahead of other crops and is at the forefront of organic farming. With EDYPRO we have a very important tool to work in this field.
What has it been like to carry out this change, and what is your assessment of this first year?
It has been a very hard year because we have had to change many things, both in the way we work and in the mentality of the people who demanded our services. But sometimes you have to make changes in order not to die commercially. We have done so and it is starting to pay off.
A large part of the activity is based on the results offered by EDYPRO products, which are the most successful?
Personally, one of the products that surprised me the most and confirmed the success of the change was ENDOFOSFITO. We visited a farm in Tango that was in a terrible state and only twelve days after the application it was already starting to improve.
But in general they are all spectacular and offer excellent results: MAX QUALITY, FECUNDATOR, AMINOPLUS, HYDROCAL, ALGATRON… We have practically worked through the entire catalogue because we are 100% committed to EDYPRO.
MELASTOP is also exceptional. Once people try it, they realise that it is a great product.
And what is the perception of your customers?
Customer perception is very good. The citrus we have grown this year has been excellent, the best Tango in the area.
In leek, despite the low winter temperatures, the results have been spectacular in terms of size and weight. In some crops we have achieved 30% more weight than the previous season.
We have also obtained very good results in a project we carried out in vineyards for organic vinification. We lengthened the bunches and set the grapes, among other things, and it went very well.
If they let you work and they let you advise them, you can see the results. Now when a customer comes to us they don’t ask for the price, they come because they want quality and organic products. And if anyone doubts that they are going to work, I tell them that if they don’t respond in the field, they shouldn’t pay me. They all pay (laughs).