According to Polish media outlet Fakty Kaliskie, Ushmaiev sold the vegetable processing plant Calfrost, located in the city of Kalisz. The enterprise was part of Nordis Chłodnie Polskie, a company purchased by the Ukrainian entrepreneur two years ago. The buyer is Polish businessman Jan Podlasiński, owner of a hotel and transport business.
The deal was finalized on October 27, 2025, with a purchase price exceeding PLN 5 million (approximately $1.36 million), according to the epoznan portal.
Before the final agreement was signed, a conflict arose between the parties. After the preliminary contract, the previous owner — Calfrost Kalisz, controlled by the Ukrainian side — signed a separate agreement to dismantle the refrigeration equipment. The new buyer claimed he was not informed of this and alleged that the equipment had been effectively destroyed. Despite the disagreement, the deal went through, although the sale price was reduced by PLN 300,000 (around $81,500).
Calfrost, which specialized in vegetable processing, ceased operations in 2024 due to unprofitability. The plant occupied an area of nearly 3 hectares, including production facilities, warehouses, and an office building. The new owner is considering repurposing the site into warehouse or modern production space.
For Ushmaiev, the acquisition of Nordis was his first foreign business venture. Previously, he had spent 25 years developing Tri Vedmedi, a Ukrainian producer of ice cream and frozen foods.
“Expanding abroad was a logical step for us, as the European market is well-developed and continues to grow,” Ushmaiev said in 2024.
At that time, Nordis included two factories — one in Zielona Góra for ice cream and frozen food production, and the other, Calfrost in Kalisz, which, according to Ushmaiev, “came as a package deal” with the acquisition of the entire group.
The purchase price of Nordis, according to analysts, was estimated at between $8 million and $10 million. Head of Research at Concorde Capital, Oleksandr Parashchiy, assessed the deal within this range, while BrightOne Capital partner Roman Ivanyuk suggested the value could have been €20–25 million minus debts of around €10–15 million.
After Calfrost halted operations, it was put up for sale. According to Business Insider Polska, the facility covered about 4,000 sq. m, with a land plot of 29,000 sq. m. Due to a lack of buyers, the price was halved to PLN 5.8 million. In September 2024, Ushmaiev stated that a buyer had been found and the deal was nearing completion, adding that a Polish company had shown interest but declining to reveal details. He emphasized that the plant was a non-core asset that had been nearly bankrupt even before acquisition.
At the same time, Ushmaiev stressed that he has no plans to exit his second asset — the ice cream and frozen food production plant in Zielona Góra. The facility continues to operate successfully, and, according to the businessman, there are no plans to sell it.
Thus, the sale of the unprofitable Calfrost plant for $1.36 million represents a strategic optimization of Ushmaiev’s Polish assets, while the core Nordis business continues to expand.
