Business Outlook 2025: Valeria Lucinschi, General and Operations at Kuipers Food Processing Machinery, Shares Insights

The "Key Business Outlooks 2025" series continues with insights from Valeria Lucinschi, General and Operations, Kuipers Food Processing Machinery, who offers a clear vision for navigating the complexities of the potato processing industry. From policy changes to innovation, this interview explores how Kuipers is poised to thrive in 2025 and beyond.

Considering the market volatility, supply chain disruptions, energy costs, and workforce scarcity, what does this past year look like for your company when you draw the line?

Valeria Lucinschi, General and Operations at Kuipers Food Processing Machinery:

"Similar to other organizations, we were affected by these disruptions, however, not as much as in previous years. It seems like the world is adapting to disruptions and most important learning to remain resilient in the face of continuous changes."

"This year has been surprisingly fruitful in terms of vital additions to our team. We have doubled our engineering department and are welcoming new members in engineering and service in January. It feels almost like pure luck to have found these experts. Overall it has been a year of significant internal changes which as a result will positively reflect our company’s long-term performance."

What are your expectations for next year, keeping in mind the legacy of 2024, but also the current challenges?

Valeria Lucinschi:

"At Kuipers, we are very excited for 2025. Having now properly settled into our new headquarters and with a fully formed team, we are looking forward to tackling new customer challenges and developing new solutions together. I do think the personnel issue will remain, at least in the Netherlands."

How do you estimate the market will evolve and what is your priority list for 2025?

Valeria Lucinschi:

"We see an increase in local production, especially in developing economies. This gives Kuipers a great advantage as we can supply small to medium-capacity lines and support local firms with our process knowledge. I think the demand for such lines will further increase in 2025."

"The requirements of the end consumers are also changing. There are several new snack innovations and more to come. As an equipment manufacturer, we try to innovate together to ensure our technology can cope with these new products. This means that our focus will remain on R&D as well as food technology."

Where did the growth opportunities come from, and what is the most important lesson you have learned in recent times?

Valeria Lucinschi:

"We see great opportunities in the US and expect more success within the American market. We plan to strengthen our position in the US in 2025 by establishing a local base and becoming a known player not only among the multinationals but also the smaller and medium size producers."

"A lesson that we learned last year is the importance of having at least a birds-eye view of the global market. Sometimes opportunities can be missed by focusing too much on historic success and not enough on the present and future possibilities."

What strategies are you implementing to maintain a competitive edge in an increasingly saturated market? How do you prioritize your investments versus your R&D efforts?

Valeria Lucinschi:

"I believe strong partnerships with experts in a specific field can always bring a competitive edge. No company can be a leader in all areas, it is important to focus on your core technology and find your niche. It is also important to acknowledge the market’s needs and accept that you might not be able to serve all markets. If you strongly believe in the need to supply in a specific market, sometimes you might have to come up with a completely new offer."

"For example, in 2024, we invested in creating a new brand for the Indian market. Together with our strategic partner SV Agri, we began Krispfood Solutions. Krispfood offers a combined solution from SV and Kuipers to the Indian market specifically. These are cost-effective plants powered by the resources of two industry experts from different sides of the world."

What was unexpected in 2024 and how did it impact your business?

Valeria Lucinschi:

"For Kuipers, there was nothing extremely unexpected."

Which are the most important drivers of change for your business in 2025? How do you plan to prepare for them?

Valeria Lucinschi:

"We anticipate political-related matters to affect business in the same way or more than in previous years. We will try to remain as flexible as possible but also accept that some things are out of our hands. I also believe consumers will continue to place a strong emphasis on health and transparency in the food supply chain."

"This will push our customers to be more strict when choosing a machine supplier. We are prepared to invest time and resources in product testing to ensure our clients can operate sustainably and cater to their consumers’ needs accordingly."

"What would you like to see happening in 2025 for your stakeholders and business environment (in terms of policy, regulations, and market) in order for your business to thrive more? We hope for further government support, especially for small businesses and fewer political disruptions."

"We are also expecting to see our customers demanding 'greener' technology, in our case in terms of energy efficiency and water usage. Kuipers has already solutions to these challenges and we are ready and excited to be pushed into innovating further. Most importantly, we hope that our clients have a positive outlook on the market."

What is your vision for the industry over the next five years, and how does your company plan to contribute to its growth?

Valeria Lucinschi:

"I believe in a steady growth in demand overall and a more accelerated growth from the emerging economies. Internet and social media will further affect consumers’ choices in what they eat as they become more empowered to share their experiences and knowledge with the general public. This as a result will push governments to implement strict policies on food safety and quality."

"We have already noticed the food industry becoming much more strict in all aspects, for example, transparency in food labeling or the required safety features within factories. Although a challenge for many businesses, I truly believe this is a necessary change for a sustainable future."