Irida sees vast potential for carp at home and abroad

Mr Zdenko Čoban, Director of Irida, Ms Jelena Lukič, and Mr Slavek Holeček both technologists.

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Established in 1979 in the Daruvar region of Central Croatia, Irida was the first and the largest fish processing plant on the Croatian mainland. Initially occupied with primary processing, branding, and freezing of freshwater fish, Irida in the past decade has expanded into processing marine fish, cephalopods, crustaceans, molluscs and other fish and seafood products. In 2002 Irida became part of Ledo, one of the biggest frozen food manufacturers in Southern Europe. Ledo is now the main brand of the company along with Irida, KPlus and others. The owner of the company is the Agrokor Group, one of the largest privately held companies in Croatia with 40,000 employees.

Irida was the first company to implement HACCP as well as ISO901 and 14001 standards in the Croatian fishery industry. Annual production of the company varies between 3,500 and 4,000 tonnes, and marine fish and seafood comprise the bulk of the production. Patagonian grenadier (Macruronus magellanicus) from Argentina accounts for 70% of the company’s production. For example, two headed fish are frozen in a package of 500 g. Patagonian grenadier fillets and breaded products are new product variants available to Croatian consumers.

Freshwater fish production is estimated at 5% of the company’s total output and is based on local rainbow trout and common carp. Production of carp is currently 4-5 tonnes per year, and the main product is frozen carp steak. Packages of carp steaks of 150 g are distributed to the Ho-Re-Ca sector, while the retail sector is supplied with packages of 500g. “Although the level of freshwater fish consumption in Croatia is low, we feel that carp has huge potential both on the local market and abroad,” says Mr Zdenko Čoban, the director of Irida.