Rimi hopes to restore cooperation with Dairy Production Company Straupe / Day

She stressed that Rimi is currently in talks on restoring cooperation with « Straupi » on the basis of the Food and Veterinary Service’s decision on products and their safety produced since April 14 at 5 pm.

Bite emphasized that « Straupes » products are niche products that make up a very small sales part, and « Rimi » has a wide range of local products, so buyers have the opportunity to buy products from other Latvian producers.

At the same time, Bite said that any product recall causes losses to all parties involved, as the costs are caused by withdrawal products and unpaid revenues, as well as administrative activities to be carried out by employees in the office and shops, utilization costs and other costs.

LETA has already reported that the Food and Veterinary Service (FVS) has allowed the dairy cooperative society to completely resume the production and trade of manually packed dairy products.

At the end of last week, the FVS temporarily suspended the work of one « Straupe » package line for precautions, as the Center for Disease Prevention and Control (SPCC) received information that the presence of pathogenic microflora, or pathogenic E.coli, was found in the analysis of several employees of the company.

Given that the company has carried out cleaning and disinfection work, re -trained in hygiene issues and committed to preventing sick employees from participating in production processes, the FVS allowed the company to restore the suspended pre -packaging line.

The service emphasizes that the products produced by Straupe so far have been in accordance with the requirements. Laboratory testing of several products is still ongoing.

LETA has already announced that the company was suspended in the company, where the products were manually filled with reusable containers.

The company provided these products at 14 educational institution, when several students of these institutions became ill with E.coli intestinal infection in different regions of Latvia. During the tests of pre -school educational institutions, the FVS took samples of various foods, including dairy products, meat, fruits and vegetables, as well as prepared food for laboratory examination.

The product packaging line work, in which the product is automated, was not stopped because at this stage the products do not come into contact with the employees.

Similarly, Straupe previously informed that by April 11, the presence of E.coli bacteria in the laboratory test was not approved in any form of production, as well as samples taken from production equipment, Tara or employee hands

Meanwhile, retailers SIA « Elvi Latvija » and Rimi Latvia Ltd. immediately stopped the sale of « Straupe » products immediately after the FVS announcement.

The SPCC explains that all people and animals in the gut have bacteria called Escherichia coli (E. coli) or intestinal stick. They are part of human normal bacterial flora and usually harmless. However, there are specific strains of E. coli, which are able to form toxins or poisonous substances and cause serious illness.

These strains are called Stec/VTEC (E. Coli, a toxin or Verotoxin). They can cause severe, bloody diarrhea, which in some cases causes acute renal failure, which requires intensive care.

The main reservoir of these strains is herbivorous animals, especially cattle. The cause is excreted from the animal or from the human body with feces. A person can become infected by consuming infected foods, under -heat -treated beef, uncooked milk, unwashed or raw fruits or vegetables. Transfer of infection directly from person to person is also possible.

The SPCC reminds food to be treated with a thermally, rinse under running water, and in particular products that will not be heated before consumption. If the symptoms of infection occur – cramping abdominal pain or bloody diarrhea should be contacted immediately.

Straupe had a turnover of EUR 9,637 million in 2024, which is 6.6% more than a year ago, while the company’s profit was 334,459 euros, which is 1.3% less than a year ago, according to Firmas.lv.

The cooperative « Straupe » was registered in 1993. Straupe produces and sells milk, buttermilk, yogurt, cheese and other dairy products.

Rimi Latvia had a turnover of EUR 1,076 billion in 2023, which is 4.7% more than a year ago, while the company’s profit increased by 5.8% to EUR 29.09 million. Rimi Latvia was registered in January 1992 and its share capital is five million euros.

The sole owner of Rimi Latvia is the Swedish ICA Gruppen -based company Rimi Baltic. However, the Swedish Group « ICA Gruppen » has agreed with the Danish retail company « Salling Group » on the sale of Rimi Baltic. The transaction price is 1.3 billion euros, not including debts. The transaction has yet to obtain the permission of the competitive authorities.