Peru Onions business updates
Herndon touting branded greens
L.G. Herndon Jr. Farms Inc., Lyons, Ga., is experiencing rapid growth of its Super Fit Greens-branded line of greens, which include kale, collard greens, turnip greens, mustard greens and blends.
“That business is really growing,” John Williams, director of sales and marketing, said of the line, which launched last fall.
The packaged greens are available year-round with both conventional and organic product.
Karpinski adds cooler space
Karpinski Trucking & Produce, Sunbury, Pa., has added a cooler to its Deerfield Beach, Fla., facility. General manager Ralph Diaz said the addition will give the company capacity for 400 more pallets.
Diaz said the company also plans to support Susan G. Komen and Breast Cancer Awareness Month with special packaging and promotions in October.
Keyperu gains certification
Lima, Peru-based Keyperu South America has achieved Rainforest Alliance certification, said Marty Kamer, president of Keystone Fruit Marketing, a Greencastle, Pa.-based division of Progressive Produce LLC.
Kamer said Keystone’s South American partner has met the Sustainable Agriculture Network’s standard for production of onions, promoting the ideals of conservation and social well-being basic to sustainable development, providing fair treatment and good working conditions for employees.
“As leaders in the sweet onion industry, we’ve worked very hard over the years to be environmentally friendly and socially responsible wherever we grow,” Kamer said.
OSO Sweet to pack onions at Portfresh
Mark Breimeister, sales director with Saven Corp., a Detroit-based affiliate of Savannah, Ga.-based onion grower-shipper Oso Sweet, said the company’s onions now will be repacked at Portfresh, Savannah, the cold storage and repack facility that opened last year.
“This facility allows us to reach about half of the country with overnight delivery and allows us to improve packing quality,” Breimeister said. “In the past we have been 80% to Philadelphia and 20% through Savannah. Now we will have much more cargo moving through Savannah.”
Breimeister said Sept. 6 that the company would start packing at the facility within the next few weeks.
Shuman planning cancer promo
Shuman Produce Inc., Reidsville, Ga., plans to again turn things pink — bags, boxes and bins — in October to raise awareness and support for Breast Cancer Awareness Month, president John Shuman said. The company has partnered with Susan G. Komen for an annual donation since 2010.
In other news, Shuman said the company has nearly doubled the size of its packing facility in Peru in order to “more effectively cure and grade onions we are importing into the U.S.”
Kyle Henderson has joined the company as a new logistics coordinator.
Henderson previously was employed with ZIM Integrated Shipping Services.
