History

It was 1947 when a new kid on the block arrived in the vinegar industry. That was when Cees Bakker acquired the vinegar factory Groenland en Zn. and changed its name to De Burg.

History

It was 1947 when a new kid on the block arrived in the vinegar industry. That was when Cees Bakker acquired the vinegar factory Groenland en Zn. and changed its name to De Burg.

 

In the subsequent decades, the company experienced turbulent growth, partly due to its hunger to expand and the extension of the product portfolio. In 1948, Bakker launched its syrup production, adding the natural vinegar production in 1980 under the inspiring leadership of Piet Hein Bakker, Cees’ son, who took over at the helm in 1969. While he was director, the company continued to grow autonomously and there were more acquisitions, Renco (1989), Gulpener Azijnfabriek with subsidiary Koninklijke Tromp & Rueb vinegar factories (1992), Azijnfabriek St. Martinus Belgium (1995), Herschi and Hero syrups (1995), All-in Drinks Nederland (1997), Vinaigrerie Fuchs France (2002), Essigfabrik Poiger Germany (2006), OKL Bzenec Czech Republic (2007), MFM Czech Republic and Aromka Czech Republic (2008), Vinaigrerie Etoile Belgium (2010), Van der Graaf Nederland (2011) and the acquisition of Bakker Havu Nederland (2013) respectively. In 1998, he also entered into a joint venture with Maasfood Nederland

Piet Hein Bakker

Patricia Surendonk

In 2012, Piet Hein Bakker’s wife, Patricia Surendonk, became CEO of the international family business. With her unbridled passion and entrepreneurship, she moved developments in the company up another gear. Burg embarked on a large-scale refurbishment of the Heerhugowaard site where the head office is based. The brand new park with its 47 shiny tanks was opened in 2017. The world’s biggest fermenter is a prominent feature in the glass brewery and that was just the start of an impressive process. In 2020, the factory on Marconistraat will be unrecognisable: hypermodern, future-proof and sustainable. But the production capacity will also double, also thanks to the fully automated warehouse.

Heerhugowaard is not the only site undergoing a makeover. Work is ongoing at other production sites to extend and improve processes and the machine park.

Burg Group is thus making sure that it is ready for the future, a future for today’s and future generations. As a result of all these developments, we strengthen our position as market leader in Europe in natural vinegar as well as the leading role of the wide range of syrup products, particularly for the Dutch and Scandinavian markets.