Peka Kroef to Improve Production Planning and Reduce Waste with RELEX

Dutch chilled food producer to strengthen demand forecasting, manage shelf-life constraints, and scale operations with end-to-end planning

Peka Kroef, Western Europe’s leading producer of chilled potato products, has selected RELEX Solutions to strengthen its production planning and supply chain operations, marking an important milestone for RELEX as it expands its Food & Beverage manufacturing customer base running end-to-end supply chain planning processes in the Benelux. Supply Chain Company will support the project as prime partner, bringing local expertise in both the solution and the food and beverage sector.

Peka Kroef has grown from a local potato trading operation into a major food manufacturer with around 450 employees, serving customers in 15 countries and generating annual revenue of approximately €200 million. While the company remains deeply rooted in its home region, with around 90% of its potatoes grown within a 60-kilometre radius of Odiliapeel, it now supplies chilled potato products across Western and Eastern Europe as well as North and South America. This combination of local sourcing and international distribution has increased planning complexity across its high-volume product portfolio and multiple production sites. To support continued growth, Peka Kroef needed a more precise approach to managing shelf life, capacity, and waste reduction.

Peka Kroef will deploy unified planning capabilities from RELEX spanning demand planning and sensing, promotion forecasting, and master planning, alongside production scheduling. This will give teams a clearer view of demand and production across the network, helping them respond more quickly to change, manage shelf-life considerations more effectively, and coordinate decisions across sites. The rollout will cover a supply network of four production sites and ten distribution centers, strengthening the foundation for establishing and running the S&OP process and enabling faster, more informed decision-making through scalable scenario planning.

“Managing a fresh product portfolio at this scale requires precision in both planning and execution,” said Willem Sanders, Supply chain director at Peka Kroef. “We were looking for a system that helps us respond faster to demand changes, make better use of our capacity, and reduce waste. RELEX gives us a more connected way to plan across our operations while supporting our long-term growth.”

“Digital supply chain transformation is now essential in the food sector, where balancing freshness, availability, and efficiency has never been more demanding,” Olav Pannenborg, CEO, Supply Chain Company. “Peka Kroef’s decision to invest in RELEX demonstrates a clear commitment to data-driven planning, and we’re proud to support them in building a supply chain that can keep pace with the complexity of their operations.”

“This project reflects a growing need among food manufacturers to connect demand, supply, and production planning in one environment,” said Stefano Scandelli, General Manager, Manufacturing, and SVP EMEA at RELEX Solutions. “Peka Kroef operates in a complex setting with shelf-life constraints, multiple sites, and close links to retail demand. RELEX helps bring these elements together, so teams can manage capacity, handle expiry limits, and plan with greater confidence.”