In-house production line for canned fish producer

Crown Food Europe, a business unit of Crown Holdings, has installed an aluminium can production line inside the Rabo de Peixe plant of Cofaco, the leader in the Portuguese canned fish market. Located in Cofaco’s plant on São Miguel Island in the Portuguese archipelago of the Azores, the in-house line serves to meet a growing market demand for canned tuna while also enhancing the operational efficiencies of the company’s entire production process.

“A passion for the sea has always been a symbol of the Portuguese people and canned tuna forms an essential part of the Portuguese diet. The canned tuna market represents our core business,” says Antonio Luis Tavares, administrator of Grupo Cofaco.

Crown trained the can line operators at its facility in Alcochete, Portugal, from where Cofaco sources its easy-open ends and the line has now been operational since July 2013. “Our two companies have worked together for over 20 years, and Crown is committed to supporting Cofaco as it continues to reinforce its established leadership in the Portuguese canned fish market,” explains Didier Sourisseau, senior vice president, Crown Food Europe.

Cofaco has operated its Rabo de Peixe plant for over 25 years, running three production lines exclusively for tuna fish and producing various styles, including fillets and slices, in olive oil, soya oil and brine. In addition, Cofaco operates a second plant in Magdalena on Pico Island in the Azores archipelago.