In the village of Genisea Xanthi, the Social Cooperative Enterprise (Coin.S.Ep.) of the same name is active. It was created by the Women’s Association of the region and since 2006 has revived the traditional cultivation of sugar cane, as well as the processing of the primary product for the production of petimezi.

Sugarcane was cultivated in the area in the middle of the 20th century by Pontian refugees, who wanted to continue traditional crops of their ancestral areas. Gradually, the cultivation of sugarcane in the area was abandoned, but it was revived thanks to the efforts of the Women’s Association who found a suitable variety and procured propagating material to produce petimezi.

The cultivation and processing of sugarcane presents many peculiarities. So it took a lot of effort and research to acquire the necessary knowledge. In the early years all work was done manually, resulting in the unsustainable combination of high production costs and low productivity. However, with the same means and personal work, the ladies of the Genisea Women’s Association managed to build the first machine for cleaning the cane stalk – a development that helped them immensely.

After being urged by university professors like Harokopio about the rare nutritional value of petmezio, the need to establish a social cooperative business arose since this form was close to our own beliefs, seven women putting all our savings believed in it and we are fighting all this the years to make it known.

Petimezi, i.e. sugar cane syrup, is a product of high nutritional value, rich in polyphenols, high antioxidant activity and zero content of heavy metals. The high quality and characteristics of the product have been confirmed by relevant studies and analyzes of the Institute of Agricultural Products Technology (I.TE.GE.P.) and Harokopio University.