Omer-Decugis & Cie partners with Semmaris for fresh fruit platform in Dunkerque
Omer-Decugis & Cie announced on October 26, 2026 a partnership with SEMMARIS, operator of the Rungis International Market, to develop its future fresh fruit platform at the port of Dunkerque. The site is expected to increase the group's ripening capacity for bananas, mangoes and avocados from 174,000 tonnes currently to 324,000 tonnes upon opening, scheduled for late 2027.
First achievement of the Rungis-Dunkerque alliance
The partnership covers a storage, conditioning, ripening and preparation platform for fresh fruit located at the port of Dunkerque. It is part of the agro-logistics hub project linking the port of Dunkerque and the Rungis International Market. This project stems from the partnership agreement signed on July 8, 2026 between SEMMARIS and Dunkerque-Port. The agreement with Omer-Decugis & Cie, a company based at the Rungis Market, represents its first achievement, according to the press release. The group justified its choice of site by the port's facilities for temperature-controlled products, including the Flandres Terminal, by the presence of state services responsible for customs and phytosanitary inspections, and by its connections to road, rail and inland waterway networks. The press release presents Dunkerque as France's leading port for fruit and vegetable imports.
€37 million for SEMMARIS, €10 to €12 million for the group's equipment
The structure divides investment between the two partners. SEMMARIS will handle the real estate component and will invest a total of €37 million through its 100% owned subsidiary. Omer-Decugis & Cie will lease the platform and manage its operations. The group will directly finance the technical installations and equipment necessary for its activities, for an investment between €10 million and €12 million, phased over the coming years. This budget will be entirely financed from the group's resources and from the syndicated credit concluded in July 2026.
25,000 m² with 55 ripening chambers and a fresh-cut facility
The platform, covering a total area of 25,000 m², will include a ripening facility with 55 chambers with a total capacity of over 200,000 cartons per week. It will also feature a temperature-controlled storage area for 4,000 pallets, also dedicated to contract packaging for the group's customers, as well as a fresh-cut facility of 6,000 m². For this latter activity, Omer-Decugis & Cie has partnered with PrepWorld, a subsidiary of BerryWorld. According to the press release, approximately 60 million fruit trays are expected to be produced annually for distribution to the French market. The Dunkerque site will complement facilities in Rungis and Sorgues. As a reference point, the group achieved revenue of €284.8 million as of September 30, 2025, distributing over 185,000 tonnes of fresh fruit and vegetables. "This key infrastructure will support our ambition to double our volumes," declared Vincent Omer-Decugis, Chief Executive Officer.
