[1]Crimean Soda Plant, part of Group DF, started production of iodized salt in 0.5 kg packages. The major Ukrainian producer of edible salt enters a new segment of consumer market – small retail.
Crimean Soda Plant has been producing salt in large packages for wholesale. “The consumer demand for high-quality iodized salt is growing, so we have launched a new packaging line. With the retail segment, we expect to increase our share in the domestic market from 10% to 15%,” said Vladyslav Shmelkov, Chairman of the Board of Crimean Soda Plant, PJSC.
The capacity of the new packaging line will allow the company to produce additional 20 tons of salt monthly for retail sale. Therefore, the company plans to produce 120 tons of salt in the new 0.5 kg packages by the end of the year.
The quality of salt depends on the production technology and the raw material from which it is produced. Today the two main types of iodized salt available in the Ukrainian market are rock (mineral) salt and heat-evaporated (vacuum) salt. Crimean Soda Plant produces edible salt using the second method. Andriy Marchevsky, Commercial Director of Crimean Soda Plant, is confident that the competitive advantage of iodized salt produced by the company is the seawater from Sivash Lake used as the raw material and a two-phase production technology. “The water is first kept in special tanks, exposed to the sun, where unnecessary sediment settles and excess moisture evaporates. In the second phase, the brine goes through secondary treatment to purify it from calcium and magnesium salts, unfavorable for the human body. This technology improves the chemical composition and quality of salt, while the rock salt, popular in the market, can’t boast such quality composition,” says Marchevsky.
Kateryna Kyryliuk, medical endocrinologist from Dobrobut medical network, commented: “The use of quality iodized salt helps the human body replenish the necessary amount of iodine; therefore, its consumption prevents the development of certain diseases. Furthermore, the use of this salt has a positive effect on pregnancy and childbirth. Also, the consumption of iodized salt is helpful in preventing atherosclerosis and premature aging of the human body.”
Crimean Soda Plant produces tableted edible salt and edible salt of class Extra, including salt with iodine and anti-sticking additive. The plant produced 27,000 tons of edible salt of class Extra (packed in bags of 50 kg and 1,000 kg) and 900 tons of tableted salt (packed in bags of 25 kg) in 2012. Crimean Soda Plant exported more than 13 thousand tons of salt last year, mostly to Moldova, Russia, Romania and Hungary.
According to Crimean Soda Plant’s commercial department estimates, the capacity of the Ukrainian market of edible salt is UAH 50-60 million per year. Production capacities of Ukrainian companies allow producing up to 5.9 million tons of edible salt per year.