Hamburg Tradition
in the third generation
From a Two-Person Delicatessen Business
to a Major Organic Importer
Experience and Passion
Since 1960 Bode Naturkost has stood for a reliable partner in the organic raw materials trade. Horst and Gisela Bode founded the company in Hamburg’s historic Deichstraße, and it has remained so to this day steadily grown.
Over the decades, the company developed from a small family business with a focus on high-quality spices and delicacies into a modern, high-performance organic raw materials importer with extensive logistics capacity and a clear commitment to quality.
Now we are writing a new chapter: In 2025 the the third generation joins in taking on responsibility.
The twins Benjamin and Daniel Bode, the children of Gabriele Bode, take on key leadership roles—Benjamin as second managing director alongside Frank Bode, and Daniel focusing on warehouse and production processes. The family team is completed by Sophie Siefert, Frank Bode’s daughter, who contributes her expertise in quality assurance. With this step, we secure continuity, bring fresh momentum to our core business, and unlock new potential.
What drives us is more than tradition: it is the conviction that a true family business like Bode Naturkost will be there for its partners tomorrow as well, with passion and foresight.
Our owner family, the Bodes
Frank Bode
Managing Director & Owner: “Since 1960, we have enjoyed promoting delicious, preferably natural, organically produced food.”
Gabriele Bode
Advisory Board Member: “We trust in the abilities and outstanding expertise of our dedicated employees—a fantastic team.”
Benjamin Bode
Managing Director: “Through close communication with suppliers and customers, as well as securing reliable quantities and high quality, I want to steadily advance our company in the organic market. Customer satisfaction is always our top priority.”
Daniel Bode
Logistics & Production: “Together, we are sending a clear message: Bode Naturkost remains a vibrant family business that combines tradition with visionary execution. For you, our partners, today and in the future.”
Sophie Siefert
Quality Assurance: “For me, quality means products you can rely on blindly. I do everything I can to ensure that this remains our hallmark in the future as well. The tradition of the family business remains my focus too!”
Our History
Founded
Horst Bode founded the family business in the famous Deichstraße in Hamburg, now a lane that feels like a museum; goods were traditionally hoisted into the upper floors of the brick-and-timber houses with a block-and-tackle pulley. The founders dealt in conventional delicatessen foods and spices. These came from Germany and Europe and from the spice exchange.
Switch to organic
The move to Wentorf near Hamburg follows. Organic food is still in its infancy, but the organic idea is flourishing within the family, so changes are made in both private life and business. Customers include health-food stores and any kind of “health shop” and “health processor.” Until 1985, only Horst and Gisela Bode, together with a few temporary helpers, worked in the business. After that, they also hired a full-time office employee.
Move to Hamburg
The company moves to the Hamburg district of Lohbrügge. In the east of Hamburg, on the city’s green belt, the business has an ideal location close to the Port of Hamburg.
Bode grows
Their son, Frank Bode, now leads the successful organic trading company in its second generation. When the now 55-year-old takes over the small business in 1993 at the current location at the age of 23, with three employees, a 300-square-meter warehouse without pallet racks is still sufficient. With a car and trailer, and later a small van, he delivers the ordered goods to customers in the surrounding area.
Investment in the Warehouse
For the first time, the warehouse is expanded by a modest 180 square meters compared with today’s storage capacity.
The construction costs of 150,000 Deutsche Marks were a significant but necessary investment in order to follow the service philosophy that still applies today: shipping as many orders as possible on the day they are received.
Second Warehouse Hall
A second hall is added. As turnover grows, storage requirements increase as well.
First Packaging Line
The first packaging line is put into operation, both for BODE NATURKOST brand bags and for the private-label business. A separate organic store opens on the factory premises. A few years later, it has to make way for new offices, as more employees are hired due to rising sales and responsibilities.
First Online Shop
Customers can place orders through the first online shop. New priorities are raw food ingredients, and a Fair Trade line is added as well.
Experience Our Current Shop
In our modern online shop, business and private customers can shop conveniently 24/7.
Choose from over 1,500 organic products!
Expansion of Capacity
Warehouses have to be rented or purchased in the surrounding area because the capacity in Lohbrügge is not sufficient. More warehouse buildings follow, and cold storage and deep-freeze storage are also added.
New Production and Administration
New production rooms and a more modern, automated packaging line are now complete. The employees move into a new office building, because the company’s success has also led to more staff. Around 80 employees are now working at the growing company headquarters. The management team is supplemented by two authorized signatories. This leaves the company well positioned for steady growth.
12.5 million investment
The largest warehouse hall, No. 12, is completed. It meets the most modern logistics requirements. The hall is 65 m long, 35 m wide, and 16 m high, and has a volume of 36,400 cubic meters. This adds capacity for 7,000 pallet spaces. Frank Bode: “At 12.5 million euros, this is the largest investment since the family business was founded. Our customers benefit from the expanded storage capacity, as even more products are ready for immediate dispatch.”
Bode grows
With 400 containers per year plus a large number of truck arrivals, Bode Naturkost is one of Germany’s largest organic importers. Further professionalization across all stages of the trade chain and the higher volume of imports lead to raw materials that are increasingly safe, reliable, fresh, and even more affordable. Bode now ships more than 12,000 pallets to customers each year, and the number is still rising.
External crises
Even in this difficult year, the company remains on course and now employs more than 100 people.
Second Warehouse Hall
New challenges such as the war in Ukraine, inflation, and shortages of raw materials also shape everyday operations at Bode Naturkost. Climate change is omnipresent. Bode tests plastic-free packaging, a film that is 100% compostable in the garden. Due to rapidly rising prices, the film was replaced again. Instead, from 2024 onward the company will focus on larger 1 kg consumer packs and replace plastic with paper wherever possible.
The third generation
The third generation of the Bode family joins the company: twins Benjamin and Daniel Bode, the twin sons of Gabriele Bode, take on leading roles. Benjamin Bode becomes second managing director, and Daniel Bode focuses on the processes in the warehouse and production. Frank Bode’s daughter Sophie Siefert contributes her expertise in the quality assurance department. This positions the company for the future, focuses on its core business, explores new paths, and unlocks potential.
