For five weeks, Kolja and Ruslan, two graduates of the Illintsi Agricultural College in Ukraine, will be gaining practical experience at the Pfalzmarkt für Obst und Gemüse eG in Mutterstadt, Rhineland-Palatinate. This is to prepare them for their future roles of responsibility at the refrigeration, training and further education complex in the Vinnytsia Oblast, which was established as part of the DUALOG project.

Operating a cold store requires considerable technical and organisational expertise. That is why, thankfully, the staff at Pfalzmarkt are supporting the two young Ukrainians during their work placement and familiarising them with all areas of the business, ranging from assessing the quality and quantity of produce in the field, through to incoming goods checks and quality management, refrigeration technology and marketing, right through to order picking and goods dispatch.

Since the last harvest, the DUALOG cold storage, training and further education complex in Ukraine has been operating on a trial basis. This year, it will be open to interested fruit and vegetable suppliers from the region. They will also be able to make use of the services offered there, such as cleaning and sorting. The cold store and warehouse is an infrastructure project funded as part of the DUALOG project by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Regional Identity (BMLEH) to support the reconstruction of Ukraine and the sustainable development of the fruit and vegetable sector in the Vinnytsia Oblast.