Sociedade Conserveira Açoriana Lda. (SCA) was established in 2022 following an international public bid for the Santa Catarina Indústria Conserveira factory award in São Jorge.

Rogério Veiros has been the promoter and leader of the project since then and is also the manager. It’s been just over two years of hard work right from the start.

“The immediate challenge was replenishing stocks of finished products, fulfilling contracts to supply the market and optimizing and improving the efficiency of the manufacturing operation. Then, and above all following the inflation caused by the Ukrainian crisis, all the difficulties of supply and managing alternatives to the escalating prices of metal, sunflower oil, paper and all the others,” says the company, which adds that everything has been possible with ‘optimism and resilience’ due to the ‘capacity and dynamics of the SCA team.’

Even so, the biggest challenge of all has been the shortage of manpower: “In 2022 it was the transition with the transfer of the Santa Catarina operation and the immediate challenge of the transition in continuity and also the consequences of the worldwide disruption of sunflower oil; in 2023 and 2024 the biggest challenges were the lack of available manpower in São Jorge, transversal to the entire regional market, and the dramatic increase in the price of olive oil of more than 100%”.

The solution for labor was to use human resources from Cape Verde. As for olive oil, an average of 120 tons is used in tuna canning each year.

The increase in the price of olive oil due to the poor harvest in 2023/2024 has led to yet another obstacle to overcome. “We can’t reflect this increase in consumer prices, so we have to sacrifice our small margins. There is the challenge of greater control at reception so that food quality and safety are never compromised,” they emphasize.

Despite everything, the positive results are visible: “Production and growth levels are consolidated and our sales and exposure to the national and international markets are growing at a good pace and at double-digit annual rates. Our investment plan aimed at increasing productivity, optimizing production processes, training our human resources and also the no less important aspect of innovation and sustainability with a view to a ‘greener’ future, is underway, never forgetting the compromise between the resources of the present and the uncertainties of the future.”

They have 130 employees and a wide range of products: canned tuna in olive oil, sunflower oil, tomato, natural, and others, in the brands Santa Catarina and Mestre Saul, the “premium” brand, with the famous “Ventresca,” Bonito dos Açores, Bela Aurora, and Petiscada.

They are launching pâtés on the market ” that stand out from the competition for their unique taste and texture” since we have developed our own technology to make a pâté like the one we make at home—it has been launched in its normal and spicy versions. What’s more, we’re always working on new products, new presentations, and image updates because market dynamics demand it.

Impact of international markets

Looking to the present and future, one major concern is “the potential uncertainty/unavailability of tuna from the Azores, as this origin is one of the differentiating factors of our brands, especially in international markets.”

The company has a strong presence on several continents—more than 30 countries, including Canada, Japan, Mozambique, and Lithuania—but it still desires to reach Oceania.

Sales abroad account for 35% of total earnings, with the favorite being “the tuna fillets in olive oil delicately seasoned with ground pepper, raw sauce, oregano, Graciosa garlic, fennel, etc. wrapped as if it were a gift and also the glass jars with our elegant tuna fillets in olive oil cut into beautiful squares by the skillful hands of our employees, especially the women who make up 80% of our team”.

Products that pay homage to the islands

The “greatest ambassador of the Azores Brand in the world” maintains a focus on differentiating products from those already on the market and adding value to “a can of tuna.”

“Today, we are launching ‘premium’ products with delicate flavors, with an even more careful presentation, in order to reach consumer segments that aspire to greater indulgence in the act of consuming a can. We are also launching special editions with cans wrapped in watercolors in homage to the island where we were born, various presentations illustrating four iconic places in São Jorge and, more recently, a collection dedicated to all the other Azorean islands; this product is already responding to the new reality of Azorean tourism.”

The Santa Catarina factory processes around 1900 tons of whole tuna a year, with no less than eight to nine tons produced daily; around 120 tons of olive oil and many other sauces are also processed, producing more than eight million cans a year.

From Made in the Azores (Marca Açores) in Açoriano Oriental-Paula Gouveia, director

Translated to English as a community outreach program from the Portuguese Beyond Borders Institute (PBBI) and the Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures Department (MCLL) as part of Bruma Publication and ADMA (Azores-Diaspora Media Alliance) at California State University, Fresno, PBBI thanks Luso Financial for sponsoring NOVIDADES.