Chapter 229: Full Throttle
Trieste.
Entering June.
Shiploads of grain from East Africa began to be unloaded at the docks of the Port of Trieste and then transported via a dedicated railway line to the Vienna Food Company's factory on the outskirts of Trieste.
"Everyone needs to work harder in the next two months. We want to increase our production capacity by 60 percent," said the supervisor in the factory.
It is dark now, but the lights illuminate the entire factory, allowing the night shift and the day shift to connect seamlessly.
It was summer and the weather was extremely hot, and the baking ovens were emitting heat that spread to every corner of the factory.
"Francis, keep refueling the boiler."
"Mars, organize the people to take the finished products out of the oven immediately, dry them quickly, and then package them."
"Larry, clear out the warehouse for me and make sure it's kept dry."
…
At the same time.
Factories in Hechingen in the German region are stepping up production, especially in military supplies, grain processing, and beverages.
Even the factory that specializes in producing monkey-version East African militia uniforms has begun mass-producing the exquisite Prussian uniforms. They are now being stockpiled and will be shipped directly in two months.
Prussia was deliberately planning to go to war with France, especially the bold and reckless people like Bismarck and the Prussian Army.
The Franco-Prussian War was closely related to these gamblers, namely the so-called Ems Telegram incident. Bismarck arbitrarily modified William I's reply to Napoleon III, which caused the French people's anger to soar and eventually triggered a war between the two countries.
If this kind of thing happened in East Africa, Ernst would definitely let these self-righteous people know what the iron fist of dictatorship is. From an Eastern perspective, Bismarck's behavior was tantamount to seeking death.
However, this was an internal affair of Prussia, and there was no need for Ernst to expose this matter. At the same time, the Prussian Prime Minister deliberately instigated the war, and the even larger Junker aristocratic military group probably thought the same.
This was the will of the entire Prussia, so the Franco-Prussian War was bound to be fought sooner or later, it was just a matter of time. Coupled with the blind confidence of the neighbors in getting third place, the two sides really achieved mutual success.
In order to fight this war, Prussia had mobilized nearly one million troops. With so many people, all of them young and strong, their sudden conscription would inevitably affect the autumn harvest of that year, so Ernst decided to fill this gap himself and help find more markets for East Africa's grain.
The Franco-Prussian War was launched very hastily, and both countries were actually not well prepared. However, after the reform, Prussia had a very complete mobilization system and a faster reaction speed than France. Coupled with the perfect railway transportation, its advantages were even more obvious.
Mobilizing a million troops greatly increases the chance of victory, but things like food and consumables needed on the battlefield will still put pressure on the Prussian government to mobilize a large number of troops in a short period of time. At this time, the Hechingen Consortium, which has stockpiled a large amount of goods, can dump its own products to the Prussian military.
There is no need to raise prices, just sell at the usual market price. The Hexingen Consortium has been working at full capacity two months in advance, so as long as there is enough supply when the Prussian military starts purchasing supplies, it will be a victory.
With the help of massive raw materials from East Africa and the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and two newly built integrated grain industry zones, costs can be reduced to the lowest level.
At the same time, a war lasting half a year will also drive the development of related industries, which is a good time to make money from the war.
In fact, Prussia won in the end, and no matter how much it lost, it could make up for it from the French, so the industrial and agricultural losses caused by the war were completely negligible.
…
"Your Highness, this is the compressed biscuit military ration we developed according to your requirements. However, the taste of East African flour is a bit bad. In order to improve the taste, we added cornmeal and ghee to it, which will make it more fragrant. But I don't know if this thing can be sold."
"It's OK as long as it's edible. The most important thing is that it's easy to carry and has a long shelf life. It would be even better if it can improve the taste."
Ernst picked up a piece and put it in his mouth to try it.
"Well, it tastes good, but the saltiness is a little bland."
"Too salty is definitely not a good thing for the military. The salt problem is easier to solve. It doesn't take up as much space as dry food."
"Well, how do we solve the packaging problem?"
"We wrapped them in oil-wrapped paper and then put them in wooden boxes filled with desiccant. The wooden boxes can be recycled and are easy to stack, so they can be quickly transported to the front line by rail."
"Very good, I wonder how your other products are doing?"
"Your Highness, look here. These are our latest research results. They are all cooked food products, especially meat. They can be stored for up to half a year."
"What's in this jar?"
"Beef stewed with potatoes. This can is enough to feed a whole class. When you open it with a can opener, you'll find beef, potatoes and butter inside. It smells delicious and can be eaten directly without heating."
"What's this jar?"
"This one contains green beans and ham."
“What about the cost of these cans?”
"Don't worry, Your Highness. A lot of minced meat and scraps are used in this, so the cost won't be too high."
Ernst then began to inspect wine production.
"We want the cheapest Wrangler Vodka. Cheapness and alcohol content are our biggest competitive advantages. When it comes to the battlefield, what the soldiers drink depends on what the quartermaster purchases. So a low price can reassure the military, and a high alcohol content can satisfy the soldiers."
"Well, we've also increased the production of lime soda. Sweet water is very tempting to soldiers, especially in July and August, which is the height of summer. The dry and refreshing taste of lime will definitely make them like it."
"Your Highness, this soda does have good sales in the market, but I'm afraid it can't compete with wine and coffee."
"It's summer now, and the power of this sweet water has just begun to show. Last year, we produced this drink in late summer, so the effect was not obvious. However, its sales have skyrocketed in the past two months, especially the taste after being chilled, and the market response has been very good." said a sales manager.
"Okay, you still have to keep working hard, especially on the convenience of eating food, taste, and cost-effectiveness."
"Yes, Your Highness. Our R&D department will definitely make more products that are convenient for people's lives and are of high quality and low price according to the needs of the market."
"Not only that, we still need to advertise more, especially to grasp the public opinion and not let others lead us. Although industrial food has low cost, large quantity, convenient and fast, it may not be recognized by everyone, especially those housewives, who are the most picky, so you should also promote our food in terms of nutrition."
Although Ernst said this, in fact, the next few months were all about logistics for the Franco-Prussian War. Ernst even thought about how to have the best of both worlds and how to transport military rations to France.
If you want to do business with the French, you have to plan ahead. First, set up a shell company in France, then buy a few warehouses, and when the French react and start mobilizing the whole country, you can sell these things through the French nobles who have connections with your family. Hmm! It seems feasible. Ernst plans to think about it carefully after returning.
(End of this chapter)
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