OurHistory
1947
Menken Orlando has a history that goes way back. In 1980, forerunner Peter Menken B.V. was founded with the motto ‘Noten Op Maat’. The attention and passion of those days can still be seen today at Menken Orlando, a company that builds on old traditions and innovates at the same time.
1995
In 1995, Peter Menken B.V. took over the nut company Orlando PNZ and the current directors Robert and Peter-Paul Menken joined their father in expanding the family business. In the following years, relationships with Asian partners were built with a focus on direct communication and intensive cooperation. Menken Orlando also developed new private label concepts to capitalise on the growing market of rice snacks. Investments were also made in increased production capacity, including the opening of the Osaka factory in 2003.
2011
2011 was the year of growth. Menken Orlando acquired Enoch Foods and Foodlink to improve its market position in Asian Snacks in Europe. The acquisition of Foodlink also enabled more and more effective ‘Business 2 Business’ delivery. Menken Orlando also acquired Chocoplus to gain a position in nut and dried fruit chocolates. So 2011 was not only a year of growth, but also of diversification.
2015
In 2015, together with Marleen Basart, Menken Orlando founded BitesWeLove, a brand focusing on healthier snacking with an emphasis on sustainability. Menken Orlando obviously attaches importance to this as well. If you want to read more about our sustainability strategy, take a look at the sustainability page. Through cooperation with Menken Orlando, BitesWeLove has been able to benefit from a large network and today its products can be found at over 1,800 retail outlets and over 2,000 food service outlets.
2017
In 2017, Robert Menken and Peter-Paul Menken received the Industry Distribution Award for ‘Best Private Label Supplier of the Netherlands’. The various Industry Distribution Awards come from surveys where retailers and manufacturers judge each other. Menken Orlando has always invested in its relationships with clients and partners and the Industry Distribution Award is a nice recognition of this. In 2021 and 2023, Menken Orlando was awarded the prize again, a token of continuous attention to relationships and striving for quality.
2018
In 2018, Menken Orlando came up with a relaunch of its ‘fancy label’ brand Mitsuba. The rebranding of Mitsuba brought a focus on ‘Asian inspired snacks’ that bring the taste of Asia to Europe. In doing so, Menken Orlando started targeting younger communication audiences with Mitsuba.
2019
In 2019, Menken Orlando broke its own record: the 100 million sales mark was crossed! Due to the growing market, sales increased, but production capacity also had to be increased. Construction of the new production site in Hazerswoude-Dorp therefore started in 2020. The focus was on updated production techniques, streamlining the logistics chain and increasing production capacity.
There was also a major focus on sustainability during construction. There are 1,900 solar panels on the roof and the storage of raw materials at logistics partner Windhorst is located opposite the factory and connected to it by an air bridge. This saves several thousand truck movements a year. A total of three production sites are united in Hazerswoude-Dorp. The official opening was in 2022.
2020
In 2020, not only was the construction of a new production location started, but Menken Orlando UK ltd. was also established. Menken Orlando set up this sales organisation to continue doing business in the UK efficiently after Brexit. After all, the UK is an important snack market.
2023
In 2023, Menken Orlando acquired ChocoSupport to strengthen its position in the chocolate category. This gave Menken Orlando two new production sites, in Leerdam and Geldermalsen.
Today
Menken Orlando has grown considerably over the years and has become a major player in the Signature Snacks, Chocolate Specialties and Whole Foods categories. Today, Menken Orlando has three production locations, over 3,000 products, over 400 employees and is an internationally operating company where family values still play an important role. If you want to read more about our values, read more here. From the very beginning in the 1980s, Menken Orlando has developed into the Tastemaker in the food market and has grown into a company that provides consumers with healthy and tasty products all day long.
