Marktgemeinschaft Bodenseeobst

What Marktgemeinschaft Bodenseeobst does

Marktgemeinschaft Bodenseeobst eG (MaBo) is a registered German agricultural cooperative founded in 1970 and headquartered in Friedrichshafen on Lake Constance. It aggregates and markets table fruit — predominantly apples and pears (95% of volume) along with cherries, plums, and berries — produced by approximately 396 small-to-medium family farms across 4,235 hectares of cultivation area along the northern Lake Constance shore. MaBo has been formally recognized as an EU Erzeugerorganisation since December 2001, making it one of the largest German producer organizations for table fruit.

The cooperative's core operations bundle member production for coordinated marketing through eight contracted wholesale markets (Obstgroßmärkte) and two sales offices, primarily the jointly controlled Obst vom Bodensee Vertriebsgesellschaft. Conventional fruit is sold under the long-established regional brand 'Obst vom Bodensee' to German food retail chains and export markets; organic fruit from Bioland- and Demeter-certified members is routed through a partnership with ÖKOBO into natural food specialty retail. MaBo supplements this marketplace-aggregation model with an agricultural supplies business (planting stock, hail protection systems, framework materials), cultivation advisory, and centralized QS-GAP quality and residue management. Production follows the Baden-Württemberg Integrated Production standard, with 80,000 tonnes of cold-storage capacity enabling year-round delivery.

MaBo is governed as a one-member-one-vote cooperative with a seven-member Vorstand (Board) — including two full-time executives and four honorary farmer-representatives — and a 12-member Supervisory Board chaired by Bernd Sprissler. Staff headcount at the Friedrichshafen office is approximately 7–20 people. The revenue model combines marketplace commissions on aggregated produce, transaction fees from the agricultural supplies business, and recurring member-administration services including subsidy program management. Pricing is negotiated bilaterally with retailers and not publicly disclosed.

Name

Marktgemeinschaft Bodenseeobst

Legal name

Marktgemeinschaft Bodenseeobst eG

Website

https://mg-bodenseeobst.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1970

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

MaBo is a German fruit-producer cooperative aggregating apples, pears, cherries, and berries from ~400 family farms across 4,235 hectares of Lake Constance orchards for coordinated marketing to German food retailers under the 'Obst vom Bodensee' brand.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Fresh Produce (Table Fruit)

NAICS

Apple Orchards (111331), Fruit and Tree Nut Farming (1113)

SIC

Agricultural Production-Crops (100), Wholesale-Groceries & Related Products (5140)

akta.pro primary industry

Pome Fruit Orchards (Apples, Pears, Quinces) (AFAGACAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Organic Fruit & Tree Nut Farming (Orchards) (AFAGAKAB), Fresh Fruit Wholesale (AFAIACAA)

Keywords

• Table fruit production
• Fruit producer cooperative
• Apple and pear marketing
• Integrated fruit farming
• Organic fruit distribution

Headquarters

HQ city

Friedrichshafen

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Fruit Production Aggregation and Marketing: MaBo bundles the fruit production from approximately 400 member farms and coordinates marketing through eight contracted fruit wholesale markets. The cooperative steers and controls the marketing and is responsible for revenues. Fruit is stored, sorted, packaged, and distributed through specialized regional companies.
2. Bedarfsartikel (Agricultural Supplies) Business: MaBo operates a supplies business providing fruit growers with materials for establishing new modern orchards including planting stock, framework materials, hail protection systems, and other articles.
3. Member Administration Services: Central administration including subsidy program management for quality promotion and environmental and species protection, fruit accounting with marketing and producer operations.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

MaBo aggregates and markets high-quality table fruit produced by approximately 396 member farms across 4,235 hectares along Lake Constance. The offering centers on apples and pears (about 95% of production, ~80,000 tonnes stored up to eight months), plus stone fruit, berries, and certified organic fruit, sold under the "Obst vom Bodensee" regional brand to food retailers across Germany and other countries through contracted wholesale markets and the joint sales company Obst vom Bodensee Vertriebsgesellschaft.

Product overview

Marktgemeinschaft Bodenseeobst (MaBo) is a fruit producer cooperative offering an integrated fruit production and marketing platform. The core offering consists of high-quality table fruit (predominantly apples including major varieties and club varieties like KIKU, Cameo, Evelina, Kanzi) produced by ~400 family farms across 4,235 hectares along Lake Constance. Supporting services include organic fruit production (Bioland/Demeter certified), quality management and certification services, cultivation advisory, and an agricultural supplies business. The cooperative markets its products under the regional brand 'Obst vom Bodensee' through specialized marketing and distribution partners including Salem-Frucht, Veeser, and the Obst vom Bodensee Vertriebsgesellschaft.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Pome Fruit (Apples and Pears)

Quantifiable outcome

• 80,000 tonnes of fruit can be stored in controlled atmosphere for up to 8 months, enabling year-round supply to customers
• +2 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• WOG (Wirtschaftsgemeinschaft Obst)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWOG (Economic Community for Fruit) is a partner in joint marketing and branding. Together with MaBo, WOG co-manages the Obst vom Bodensee Vertriebsgesellschaft and the Obst vom Bodensee Marketinggesellschaft for regional brand promotion and quality certification bundling (QS-GAP). Their produce is jointly marketed under the Obst vom Bodensee brand.
• ÖKOBOcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorÖKOBO is the organic fruit marketing partner for MaBo's organic producers. Through this cooperation, MaBo has access to natural food specialty retail via ÖKOBO's established connections. This partnership allowed MaBo to retain organic producers who had converted to organic production and provided them access to the logistics infrastructure developed over decades.
• Obst vom Bodensee VertriebsgesellschaftcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorA joint sales company in which MaBo participates, coordinating the distribution of fruit from MaBo and WOG members to food retail chains. The company bundles sales efforts and manages the regional brand distribution.
• Salem-Frucht GmbH (Verkaufsgemeinschaft Salem-Frucht)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSales partner managing the distribution of MaBo fruit through one of the two bundled sales offices. Operates an orchard market with apple variety information.
• Obstgroßmarkt Georg Veeser GmbH & Co. KGcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOne of eight contracted fruit wholesale markets handling storage, sorting, and packaging for MaBo producers. Operates as a second-generation family-owned business.
• Obstgroßmarkt EspasingencoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOne of eight contracted fruit wholesale markets handling storage, sorting, and packaging for MaBo producers in the Espasingen area.
• Obstgroßmarkt MarkdorfcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOne of eight contracted fruit wholesale markets handling storage, sorting, and packaging for MaBo producers in the Markdorf area.
• Obstgroßmarkt SchauggcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOne of eight contracted fruit wholesale markets handling storage, sorting, and packaging for MaBo producers in the Schaugg area.
• Obstgroßmarkt SpanagelcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOne of eight contracted fruit wholesale markets handling storage, sorting, and packaging for MaBo producers in the Spanagel area.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Landgard eG: Large German producer cooperative for horticulture with marketing and logistics operations. It serves as both a competitor and complementary marketing partner in the German fresh produce distribution chain.
• Blue Whale: French apple producer cooperative representing a large share of French apple production. Comparable in scale, cooperative structure, and club variety marketing to German food retail.
• BayWa AG: Large German agricultural cooperative and trader with significant fruit trading and marketing operations. Overlaps with MaBo in wholesale of fresh produce and provides a broader-market reference point.
• VOG - Verband der Obstgenossenschaften Südtirols: The consortium of South Tyrolean fruit cooperatives in Italy, representing thousands of apple producers under brands like Marlene and Pink Lady. It is the largest European apple producer organization and a direct competitor on German retail shelves.
• Zespri International: New Zealand kiwifruit cooperative with a comparable single-commodity producer-owned marketing model. While kiwifruit-specific, it is a structural peer in cooperative fruit marketing at scale.

Regional players

• Bayerische Obst und Gemüse Vermarktungsgesellschaft (BOV): Bavarian fruit and vegetable marketing organization operating in southern Germany adjacent to MaBo's territory. Comparable Erzeugerorganisation model serving food retail with regional pome and stone fruit.

Direct peers

• Elbe-Obst Erzeugerorganisation GmbH: German apple producer organization in the Lower Elbe region, comparable in structure and size to MaBo. It aggregates member fruit farms, coordinates marketing, and supplies German food retail with pome fruit.
• Wirtschaftsgemeinschaft Obst (WOG): WOG is MaBo's direct partner cooperative in the Lake Constance region, jointly managing the 'Obst vom Bodensee' Vertriebsgesellschaft and Marketinggesellschaft. It is a peer producer organization operating the same pome fruit model with overlapping member farms.
• Veos Südbaden: Marketing organization for organic fruit and vegetables from southern Baden, adjacent to the Lake Constance region. Comparable in Erzeugerorganisation structure with focus on organic produce distribution to natural food retail.
• OGA / OGA Nord GmbH: North German fruit and vegetable producer organization with similar Erzeugerorganisation structure. Comparable in bundling member farms for collective marketing of apples and other fruit to retail.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/marktgemeinschaft-bodenseeobst

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Marktgemeinschaft Bodenseeobst