To respond to the growing market of mushrooms compost in Eastern Europe, Karel Sterckx Ltd will soon start to operate from Hungary. Therefore Sterckx found suitable partners in Tony Verhulst and Davy Vanneste. They have extensive experience in domestic and foreign real estate projects.

The newly founded company Sterckx-Verhulst acquired the site of Champignon-Union Kft, a Hungarian compost yard that ceased operations due to lack of succession. The site of 30 ha. currently has a capacity of about 10,000 tons of mushroom compost per year. The group will invest to expand capacity sharply in the coming years.

The plant in Hungary will soon employ app 20 people. Johan Lesage, a former Belgian compost man, and Davy Vanneste will lead Sterckx Hungary as plant manager.

Sterckx also wants to grow at its home basis Roeselare in Belgium in the coming years. Some major investments are planned on the existing site, that currently accounts for 5,000 tons of fresh compost, 2,000 tons of spawn run compost and 1,200 m³ of casing soil per week. One of these days the replacement of the 4 old polyester tunnels by 5 brand new panel tunnels will be completed, what gives an extra 250 tons of phase III compost.

Click here for an interview of Bart Sterckx with the business channel Kanaal Z