ORSHA DISTRICT, 23 May (BelTA) – There should be no discrimination against domestic producers in the retail networks, Belarusian Prime Minister Andrei Kobyakov said as he visited the Sladkaya Strana subsidiary of the state enterprise Vitba Confectionery Factory as part of the visiting session of the Presidium of the Council of Ministers on the development of Orsha District, Vitebsk Oblast on 23 May, BelTA has learned.
Andrei Kobyakov asked the company's representatives to explain the underuse of the production capacities of the enterprise. Initially, the factory was designed as an import-substitution project. However, Sladkaya Strana's products so far account for around 10% of the domestic market. The rest of the market is occupied by Russian and Ukrainian competitors. The company's management believe that the difficulties with the sale of the products via the retail networks represent one of the reasons.
Andrei Kobyakov pointed out that there should be no discrimination against domestic producers in the retail networks. However, every enterprise should work hard to win consumers' trust. “You should understand that trust is to be earned. We will make sure that there is no discrimination against you. There should be no discrimination against our producers on market shelves. However, you should be recognizable and meet the requirements of the market,” the head of government stressed. Andrei Kobyakov said that without a well-deliberated marketing campaign and an elaborated marketing strategy, Sladkaya Strana will not be able to boost its sales significantly.
The Sladkaya Strana subsidiary of the state enterprise Vitba Confectionery Factory was commissioned in 2014. The plant has a line for the production of sponge-cake goods, which allows for making up to 2,700 tonnes of finished products per year. The factory manufactures sponge cakes, rolls and mini-rolls. Sladkaya Strana plans to purchase equipment for making sponge pastries. Other plans include designing new recipes, expanding the product lineup, and exploring the markets for confectionery coating.
