Gerhard Ströck: My concern was always quite simple to preserve the original recipes of our family coming from Burgenland. And we have managed to do that until today. As a company, Ströck, we do not consider feasibility or non-feasibility. If a machine is not enough to produce a product for us, then we still use our hands.
Through our very close Alte Donau we came into contact with the young coxless four rowers at the time. And they came to us for product sponsorship. Then with the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, the breakthrough actually came, and then came swimming, and then came table tennis, and actually quite a few other sports. But we simply made sure that we are always in the field of competitive sports, strength, endurance, because that is simply a good connection between carbohydrates, nutrition, competitive sports, endurance.
Mirna Jukic: So when it comes to training and also competitions, bread is also a very important part of the diet. Carbohydrates are very important. Depending on the sport you are doing, how short or long the exertion lasts, you eat a lot of carbohydrates, because they simply provide the energy you need for much longer, to simply perform, not to drop off, and simply give your best.
So I enjoy my piece of pastry most with my family. Unfortunately, that happens far too rarely, because they are in Croatia, meanwhile my brother and my dad are now also in training camp. And then I'm happy, when I can enjoy my piece of pastry with Mr. Ströck in the office at six in the morning, so to speak, with my second family.
Philipp Ströck: We ensure the quality of our products through high standards in hygiene and in quality assurance in our company. We have five people in quality management internally, and we meet several standards, for example, the IFS, the International Food Standard. We also have the organic certificate. We work according to HACCP, as it should be in Austria.
Since 1995, we have been producing organic baked goods. In the beginning, only a very small part, but in Austria, it is in high demand and has grown a lot. And meanwhile, we actually process 30% of our flour in organic quality. And I also believe that it will continue to grow.
Christoph Ströck: The question "Why organic?" doesn't really arise. The question is rather, "Why not organic?" It is, as the name suggests, the natural way to produce something. And we believe in that and stand behind it.
Philipp Ströck: We had our CO2 footprint measured by the Federal Environment Agency. And it turned out that organic grains, in particular, have much lower CO2 emissions than conventional grains. And that's why we will promote the organic sector even more.
Gerhard Ströck: If you lead employees from the beginning in the company, and they are active in leading positions today, and the trained apprentices stay with us and simply help us, to continue to grow and become stronger, I believe that it is always a subjective impression, coming from such a question, are you a good entrepreneur or a bad entrepreneur? We try to develop employees, to promote them, to retain them, to go into retirement with them.
Christoph Ströck: The Ströck philosophy is actually very simple to explain. The customer is king, and the customer decides what happens. The customer is our boss, and we try to live by that. Another point that is truly a pillar of our company is certainly artisanal production.
Philipp Ströck: We still employ many people in our production who have also learned the profession, namely bakers and confectioners. Simply because through artisanal production and artisanal manufacturing, a better quality can simply be achieved. And that's why we live craftsmanship.
Gerhard Ströck: The journey hopefully goes to a healthy retirement, so my personal journey. My destination is to grow old healthily and to have fun and success and a healthy family. I think that's the most important thing in life. And if the basis is right, then everything else comes naturally. That is my life experience after 54 years. You have to contribute something, then a lot comes back.
