A passion for wheat

What do high-quality adhesives for corrugated cardboard, animal feed and vegetarian alternatives to fish and meat have in common? The answer: all these products contain wheat products.

At Crespel & Deiters Group, they know all about the almost unlimited possibilities that wheat offers. Crespel & Deiters Group, headquartered in Ibbenbüren, Germany, is one of the leading manufacturers of wheat starches and wheat proteins in Europe. “Working with the renewable raw material wheat is fun and fascinating,” says Philipp Leugers, Project Manager in Supply Chain Management at Crespel & Deiters Group. “We have been working with this universal natural product for more than 160 years. For us, wheat is the basis for developing all kinds of products. Wheat offers us unlimited application possibilities. We break down wheat flour into its constituent parts of wheat starch, wheat proteins, wheat fibres, and wheat extracts and refine it into customised products. This enables us to reduce the use of and even replace conventional raw materials for our industrial customers (non-food/food). We also add value in the process.  Our solutions increase the quality of our customers’ products. our products improve our customers’ sustainability and increase our customers’ economic efficiency.”

Potential of wheat
“Responsibility, progressiveness, and perseverance. These are three key values that aptly describe our family company, the Crespel & Deiters Group, yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Our lived values are derived from these characteristics. They shape our behaviour within the company and when it comes to our dealings with customers, business partners, and our environment.”

“We are convinced that the status quo of industrial processes – that is, the current state – may always be questioned. This is why we have specialised in providing highly functional solutions, helping our customers succeed at breaking new ground. We are happy to find customers, partners, and employees who recognise the potential of wheat as a natural renewable raw material and who are passionate about pursuing new paths in production and production processes.”

Working towards a sustainable future
The products of Crespel & Deiters Group find their way into many applications (see box). Sustainability is an important pillar in everything Crespel & Deiters Group does. Leugers: “Ultimately, it is our mutual goal to have products that reduce or replace the use of classic fossil raw materials in the non-food sector on the industrial side, and we also wish to offer more functionality, nutritional value, and plant-based alternatives in the food sector. At the Crespel & Deiters Group, we see it as our social responsibility to work towards promoting more sustainable production of industrial goods and food in line with a circular economy.”

Reducing food waste
Crespel & Deiters Group fulfils this ambition in many ways. A striking example is the role that wheat can play in feeding the world’s growing population. It is expected that there will be almost 10 billion people on earth by 2050. How can they all be fed? “The question is not easy to answer, the answers are complex and multi-layered. One important point is certainly the reduction of food waste. Wheat-based starch products can help extend the shelf life of food, which helps to reduce food waste. At the same time, large parts of the world’s population have inadequate access to nutritious, protein-rich food. By contrast, industrialised and emerging markets are struggling with the environmental and health consequences of excessive consumption of animal protein. The vegetable protein in wheat is a key to balanced, sustainable nutrition. Textured vegetable proteins make a valuable contribution to a globally sustainable diet.”

Challenges
Crespel & Deiters Group also sees an important role for logistics partners in serving its customers. “A logistics partner is part of what determines Crespel & Deiters’ image with the customer,” says Leugers. “Reliability, good performance and quality of service are very important to us. When our logistics partner delivers good quality, that is also positive for us. We also find trust and openness to be important. That means solving challenges and finding improvements together.”

Crespel & Deiters Group has been working with Nijhof-Wassink since 2019. “That actually came about a bit by accident. I was looking for a partner that could help us with our BigBag service where products are packed and prepared for shipment. When I was driving through Europark Emlichheim-Coevorden, Nijhof-Wassink’s large and impressive silos caught my eye.”

That turned out to be spark that started a comprehensive partnership. “Nijhof-Wassink now provides us with silo transports, BigBag service, and loads containers for our overseas activities. Silo storage is also an important part of the partnership. The Nijhof-Wassink silo storage facility in Coevorden also provides us with variable buffering of our products. This enables us to anticipate fluctuations in our customers’ demand effectively and to respond optimally to both increased demand and temporary dips. The silo storage in Coevorden means that production for our Ibbenbüren factory stays constant. With Nijhof-Wassink, we also have a strong partner for the rapid handling and transport of the ‘backup material’ for our production. If there’s an emergency, we need to be able to respond quickly, and Nijhof-Wassink has the equipment that makes quick transport to Ibbenbüren possible.”

Hands-on
Leugers is very happy about its partnership with Nijhof-Wassink. “In addition to transports - with first-class truck and trailer equipment - Nijhof-Wassink also offers silo storage and customised warehouse services. The service Nijhof-Wassink provides is characterised by high quality and flexibility. They can respond quickly and competently to new requirements and special orders, and have a strong hands-on mentality. Taking things on, trying them out, evaluating, doing, and then executing them together. Nijhof-Wassink delivers first-class performance in every area. We also have the same philosophy towards our customers. We both put an emphasis on ‘team play’ and being open and honest in how we relate to each other. That is the basis for good cooperation, now and in the future.”