German-Namibian farmers expand to Europe using Saloodo!

July 11, 2022
Janine Wolff

Two brothers. One is a farmer in Namibia, the other sells the goods in Europe. But how can the products be transported on to Europe and over the continent efficiently so that the family business can also expand on this continent? This is where Saloodo! comes in.

The view wanders into the shimmering expanse of the Western Kalahari, over the hills of deep red earth, past the endless pastures of the cattle. In the shade of the acacia trees, the animals graze the African steppe for food. It is a peaceful sight, full of tranquility and originality. Here, 180km southeast of Namibia’s capital Windhoek, in Springbockvley, far from all factory farming, pesticide and antibiotic culture, the German-born Külbs brothers run a 3rd generation cattle farm.

“While sitting on the terrace of our farm in Namibia, I was looking for an efficient solution for the onward transport of our biltong within Europe. That’s when I discovered Saloodo! With just a few clicks, the optimal transport service providers were booked and during the entire transport process I always had only one contact person. For me, the flexible service with complete transparency was another plus point: the response times on the platform were really great,” says Valentin Külbs, Managing Director bei KÜLBS^TM Original Namibian Biltong, about his first experience with Saloodo!

Digital platforms have fundamentally simplified access to logistics

The completely digitized processes save users time and money, regardless of longitude or latitude. And the intuitive, simple user interface of the Saloodo! platform ensures that even customers with little logistics experience, such as the Külbs brothers, have uncomplicated, fast access to the right freight forwarder for their needs.

The plan is working: Europe-wide expansion

Biltong is air-dried beef and, apart from vinegar, salt and a few spices, is free of additives. In Namibia, “the steak for the road” has been a healthy, traditional snack for over 100 years, but it is also finding more and more sales in Germany and Europe. Tourists find the dried meat in the minibars of game lodges in southern Africa, but also at rental car companies for the small hunger in between. Selected German supermarkets are grateful buyers of African biltong in the wake of the “low carb” and protein food trend, and Europe-wide expansion is also becoming increasingly easy for Valentin Külbs thanks to the uncomplicated transport options via digital marketplaces.

Biltong, the “steak for the road”

Especially for our colleagues behind the wheel or colleagues in everyday stress, healthy nutrition is not easy. Those who want to save time reach for sweet or salty snacks that contain a lot of sugar and trans fats. A healthy and quick alternative is biltong, the small “steak for the road”. It not only fills you up for a long time, but also contains a lot of nutrients due to the gentle drying process, yet only a few calories.

Two brothers – two continents – with a partner like Saloodo!

The Külbs family has been sustainably breeding cattle on their farm “Springbockvley” since the late 1950s. After the brothers Valentin and Jonathan Külbs lost their father in a tragic accident at an early age, the young men decided to preserve the family farm. While Jonathan continues the actual farm business with his wife Svenja, Valentin serves and expands the market in Germany and Europe. The goal is to leave more revenue with the farmers and in Namibia through first-class quality of products and services, as well as the reduction of intermediate trade stages in the medium term.

Successful with the right partner

Saloodo! has created an innovative, digital logistics marketplace that offers particular advantages to the needs of small and medium-sized companies, such as cattle farmers in Namibia. The platform is the right partner for full loads, part loads and general cargo transports based on competitive offers – worldwide! Because since the foundation of Saloodo! in 2016, the company has continuously expanded, also outside of Europe, into growth markets such as the Middle East, Africa and South America. Today, Saloodo! already counts more than 30,000 shippers and over 12,000 transport companies among its customers. The platform is available in more than 50 countries on 4 continents.

For the Külbs brothers, this means an efficient, simple solution for their planned expansion in Germany and Europe – whether from Namibia or Germany.

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Biltong or beef jerky?

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Drying meat is one of the oldest and most traditional ways of preservation of mankind. Many cultures around the world have methods and recipes for drying a wide variety of meats with the addition of salt and spices. In the past, this was mostly done for the necessary need to make the perishable meat last longer.

On the American continent, the Quechua Indians already dried the meat of their cattle (here origin of the word from “Ch’arki” – dried meat) . This has developed into a very popular product, especially in the USA; the so-called beef jerky. In southern Africa, especially in Namibia, “biltong” has a long tradition and tastes more natural compared to beef jerky because it contains fewer additives.

Janine Wolff

Janine Wolff is a business economist and design enthusiast, has a passion for blogging and logistics and is our Social Media and Content Manager at Saloodo!.