To be and remain the "First Dairy"

If the price tag of a dairy product says "Made in Belarus", few people have even a shadow of doubt about its quality. For such a product, consumers in neighboring countries line up! Holding "First Dairy" is one of such enterprises, known not only in Belarus.

"First Dairy" knows how to surprise both the buyer and competitors. He was the first in the post-Soviet space to produce soft cheese with blue mold. Back in the years of the USSR, MINSK Dairy Plant No. 1 - now the management company of the First Dairy Holding - was again the first to please the consumer with glazed curds. And he was the first in the country to master the production of soft cheese "Fetu" and pickled cheese "Brynza".

These are just three examples, and there are many more! - says Tamara Chichiro, General DIRECTOR of Minsk Dairy Plant No. 1 - the management company of the First Dairy holding. - Our company is one of the largest suppliers of whole MILK products, hard and soft cheeses, known under the trademarks "Minsk Marka", "Dairy Country ", "Slavic Traditions", "Aristaeus", "Depi", "Molodeya", "Viennese Breakfast", Yoguru. Our activities are based on unchanging principles: relevance, usefulness and high quality.

What does it mean to be the "First Dairy" in the most highly competitive market of the country - the capital? What are the features of the strategy and tactics of the holding and, in particular, one of the leading enterprises in the industry, Minsk Dairy Plant No. 1 OJSC, the management company of the First Dairy holding?

– A task of national importance: daily, year-round and uninterrupted supply of two million people in the capital and the Minsk region with dairy products. We are talking about its supplies not only to retail chains, but also to schools, kindergartens, hospitals and other institutions, - emphasizes the general director. – It is also important that in the assortment list of our products there are without fail goods of a social group that are available to everyone. The most important component of the enterprise's EXPORT policy is the formation and management of the export assortment of goods. The main task of the team is to timely offer a set of goods that correspond to the profile of production activities and most fully meet the requirements of both domestic and foreign buyers.

2018 was a landmark year, when Molodechno Dairy Plant with production sites in Volozhin, Naroch and Vileyka became part of the management company of the First Dairy holding.

- Exporting enterprises face serious competition in the foreign market, including specific ones. At the same time, goods designed to meet a specific need may differ in significant parameters. To avoid this, we offer the market new trademarks, - notes Tamara Pavlovna. – Minimalism, elegance, restraint, lack of unnecessary details are the key values ​​of our brands. This applies to both performance and content. The company is working not only to expand the range of whole-milk products (more than 180 items), but also to expand the range of semi-hard, hard, soft and curd cheeses. Premium Cheeses - Parmesan de Luxe, Edelweiss, Maasdam, blue cheese, white cheese, soft mozzarella, soft feta and pickle

Why cheese??? We demonstrated the naturalness, quality, and safety of our products at meetings with partners, inviting buyers to our place - we worked out the recipes. This allowed the team to set up the production of a not wide, but popular line of semi-hard and hard cheeses.

The main advantage of the "Pervogo Molochny" cheeses is naturalness. This is extremely important for winning over the consumer, especially the sophisticated one.

– Due to high-quality raw materials and original technologies, our cheeses have acquired what today marketers call the basis of the brand. However, it soon became clear that new technologies were needed for the full-fledged work on the production of elite cheeses, says Tamara Chichiro. – The embodiment of this idea was the modernization of the workshop for the production of hard and semi-hard cheeses. It is also gratifying that the company's technologists are not afraid of mistakes, they work miracles: the installed equipment does not allow deviating from generally accepted standards, combining the best Belarusian technologies with advanced European ones. There are many real achievements behind these words. In particular, this year at the Vileika production site, a cheese with a European taste, new for our company, was produced - soft cheese with white mold "Camembert" and, of course, our noble "Maasdam".

The team continues to gradually master the production of new types of whole-milk products, taking into account who and in what markets will consume them. Two new types of glazed curds appeared on the shelves - in caramel glaze with hazelnuts and in caramel glaze with peanut paste, as well as kefir drink "KefirOk" and a curd cocktail, which have no analogues on the Belarusian market.

In addition, a number of innovations have also touched upon packaging technologies that emphasize the advantages of products. Eco-friendly packaging is being used more and more. On the one hand, it has become an additional degree of protection for the finished product, on the other hand, it is an opportunity to interest the buyer even more.

The company has implemented and certified a quality management system in accordance with the requirements of STB iso 9001-2015, a food safety management system in accordance with the requirements of STB 1470-2012, a food safety management system in accordance with the requirements of FSSC 22 000 (certification scheme for based on the requirements: ISO 22000:2018 "Food safety management systems - Requirements for organizations involved in the food chain", ISO /TS 22002-1:2009 "Prerequisite programs for food safety - Food production", additional requirements of the certification scheme FSSC 22000 v.5).

An important task of business is the formation of a positive image, increasing the fame and recognition of its brands. This, in particular, is the aim of the marketing strategy of OJSC "Minsk Dairy Plant No. 1". The company actively participates in national and international exhibitions and competitions, which contribute to increasing the popularity of its trademarks, building consumer loyalty to the brand. The products produced by the enterprise are multiple winners of national and international competitions held within the framework of the exhibitions "Prodexpo", "Agrorus", "Choice of the Year", "Brand of the Year", "People's Brand", the republican tasting competition "Champion of Taste".

The consumer has always had a demand for Soviet quality traditions. Marketers began to create legends, draw quality marks "Made in the USSR" on products that began to be produced several years ago.

“We didn’t have to think of anything. The history of our products on the market is a story of great success. After all, Minsk Dairy Plant No. 1 is more than a dozen years old: 1929 is the year of its birth! Tamara Pavlovna emphasizes.

An important component of the company's commercial success is product quality control.

“Without this, it is difficult to maintain consumer confidence in the domestic market and consumer confidence at the global level,” emphasizes the CEO, “and it is for this reason that the plans for 2021-2022 include certification of production and obtaining a Halal certificate, obtaining permission for the right to sell dairy products JSC "Minsk Dairy Plant No. 1" to the EEC countries.

The main task for 2021-2022 remains the modernization of production, the release of new types of dairy products and the expansion of the geography of exports.

– To be the first means to be the best, to earn a good name and the trust of customers! - CEO Tamara Chichiro is sure.

The plant's products are represented in the trade network of RUSSIA, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, Moldova, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, CHINA , the usa and other countries. There are active negotiations with representatives of commercial structures of Singapore and the United Arab Emirates.

For seven months of the current year, exports of the holding "First Milk" amounted to 59.6 million US dollars. A very wide range of natural dairy products is supplied abroad. Of course, such products will be entitled to respect, profits and awards not only in our country.

The holding "First Dairy" processes milk - raw materials from 15 districts of the Minsk region. The specialists of the enterprise, together with the heads of farms - milk suppliers, are constantly working to improve its quality. As a result, for seven months of the current year, 78.7% of the total volume of incoming raw materials was received.

The company has implemented and certified a quality management system in accordance with the requirements of STB ISO 9001-2015, a food safety management system in accordance with the requirements of STB 1470-2012, a food safety management system in accordance with the requirements of FSSC 22 000 (certification scheme for based on the requirements: ISO 22000:2018 "Food safety management systems - Requirements for organizations involved in the food chain", ISO /TS 22002-1:2009 "Prerequisite programs for food safety - Food production", additional requirements of the certification scheme FSSC 22000 v.5).

An important task of business is the formation of a positive image, increasing the fame and recognition of its brands. This, in particular, is the aim of the marketing strategy of OJSC "Minsk Dairy Plant No. 1". The company actively participates in national and international exhibitions and competitions, which help to increase the recognition of its trademarks, the formation of consumer loyalty to the brand. The products manufactured by the enterprise are multiple winners of national and international competitions held within the framework of the exhibitions "Prodexpo", "Agrorus", "Choice of the Year", "Brand of the Year", "People's Brand", the republican tasting competition "Champion of Taste".

Tamara MARKINA, photo by Pavel Orlovsky