At the facilities of YAKA IKE in the property zone of Dymi, in Komotini—built and equipped according to strict specifications and with support from the Development Law—we were welcomed by Onur Mustafa Ahmet (General Manager), who spoke to us about the company, its current operations, and its future plans.
In the area of Yaka (meaning “collar” – referring to the slopes along the sides of the Rhodope Mountains), at the foothills of the Rhodope range, where the company also gets its name, crispy and sweet cherries of various varieties have been cultivated for over 50 years, thanks to the region’s unique climate.
YAKA began its operations in 2017, focusing primarily on the processing, packaging, and export of cherries grown across approximately 3,000 stremmas in the Yaka region. At the same time, it offers support and advisory services to producers to ensure the required quality of the cherry fruit. Currently, the company collaborates with over 200 certified cherry producers who cultivate 20 different varieties.
From the very beginning, the three founders of YAKA—Levent Sadik Amet, Baris Mustafa, and Mehmet Tsavousoglou—placed particular emphasis on developing the right infrastructure and obtaining the most important certifications for their sector. A significant portion of these certifications was acquired with the support of the Development Law.
YAKA is currently one of the few packing facilities in Europe to have achieved a 100% score under the International Featured Standard (IFS). The company is also certified according to the BRC Global Food Safety Standard, ISO 22000, and the general Global G.A.P. regulation (Fruits & Vegetables).
Mr. Mustafa Ahmet emphasized the importance of these certifications in ensuring the quality of YAKA’s products and services, as well as in building the company’s specialized client base—which includes supermarket chains with stores across Europe, such as Lidl, Aldi, and Edeka.
The company’s contribution to cherry cultivation in the Yaka region—and beyond—has been significant. Since its first year of operation, YAKA has guided dozens of growers through its team of specialized agronomists in planting more resilient varieties and caring for them using new methods that result in higher and better-quality yields.
“We brought in agronomists to train us from the very beginning, along with expert consultants from abroad—and that’s how we became cherry specialists.”
The company further promotes regional development by offering employment opportunities to local residents. It currently employs 11 permanent staff members year-round, including agronomists who provide guidance to partnering producers and contribute to YAKA’s own Research & Development efforts. Additionally, during the cherry packaging and standardization season—which runs in the Rhodope region from mid-May to late July—around 100 seasonal workers are employed.
YAKA IKE submitted an investment plan under the support scheme "New Independent SMEs" of Development Law 4399/2016 for the establishment of a fruit and vegetable sorting, packaging, and standardization unit in the Dymi area of Komotini. The application for inclusion in the Development Law, as well as the implementation of the investment plan, was undertaken by the Business Development and Development Law Department team: Nikos Charalampogiannis, Giannis Kaltsas, and Dimitris Firmpas.
“We would definitely submit investment plans to new programs— they helped us tremendously in laying the right foundations from the beginning and growing at a faster pace.”
YAKA has also successfully submitted and implemented, in collaboration with ena Development Consultants, an investment plan under the action “Competitiveness Toolbox for Small and Very Small Enterprises” of the ESPA EPAnEK 2014–2020. Through this program, the company received funding to upgrade its operations with the acquisition of production and other equipment. More specifically, YAKA was supported with the addition of two extra cherry sorting lines, an automatic carton box forming machine, and a cherry portioning system based on weight. According to Mr. Mustafa Ahmet, these investments enabled the company to increase its production speed by 30%. The application and implementation of the investment plan were carried out by the SME Competitiveness Department team of ena Development Consultants, led by Evi Voivatopoulou.
“We are very satisfied with our collaboration with the team at ena Development Consultants. We would definitely choose the company again in the future to join new programs, and we would, of course, recommend them to others—without a second thought”
The company has already expanded its collaborations with cherry producers beyond the Yaka region and has also extended its activity to the packaging and standardization of other fruits such as pomegranates, grapes, kiwis, and apricots.
YAKA’s future plans include increasing the volume of fruit it packages and standardizes, as well as expanding into the processing of additional crops, such as blueberries. As Mr. Mustafa Ahmet points out, the company possesses the necessary expertise, appropriate infrastructure, and a strong client base to successfully support these new ventures.
“We have now invested in blueberries, after 2–3 years of trials. Blueberries are the crop of the future—there is very high demand for them across Europe. Our goal is to become the largest blueberry exporters in Greece, something we have already almost achieved”
The creation of this Business Story was a collaborative effort by Giannis Kaltsas, Development Consultant for Development Law Services, along with Christos Pitiakoudis and Sofia Argiriadou from the Marketing Department of ena Development Consultants.
We warmly thank YAKA IKE for the collaboration and gracious hospitality, and Mr. Onur Mustafa Ahmet for all the valuable information he shared with us and the highly engaging tour of the company’s facilities.
YAKA IKE
Website: yaka.gr
Dymi Land Zone, Komotini
T. 253 10 828 00
