Fall has been bustling for Montreal produce suppliers

As fall rolls on, there’s a lot of activity underway at a number of Montreal-based produce suppliers.

Courchesne Larose Ltd. has a new CEO who will guide the company through its future strategy and expansion plans, Capespan North America is promoting its attractively priced easy-peel soft citrus, and banana distributor Equifruit Inc. is expanding its reach into the U.S.

Courchesne Larose

Courchesne Larose, an international importer and distributor of fresh fruits and vegetables, announced the hiring of Michael Aucoin earlier this year.

Aucoin has extensive experience in the Canadian food industry, said Guy Millette, executive vice president. His experience includes roles at Smuckers and Hershey.

The company is a one-stop shop and carries a full line of fresh fruits and vegetables, including bananas, citrus, grapes, stone fruits and melons, Millette said.

Its goal is to offer fresh product sourced as close to its consumers as possible, he said.

“As the season passes and local products are available, we follow Mother Nature,” Millette said. “We buy local, make sure we offer a solution that includes [as little] transportation as possible, and we make sure to keep the carbon footprint as low as possible.”

Courchesne Larose also serves the foodservice industry through its wholesale division that provides more than 3 million cases annually to foodservice distributors.

Ordinarily in the fall, vegetables like onions, carrots, cabbages, potatoes, parsnips rutabagas, hard squash and others are stored to be consumed all winter long, he said. “But this year, Mother Nature has decided otherwise.”

Most of Quebec’s crops and much of Canada’s have suffered from drought, rain, heat and cold. The projections for winter vegetables storage volume are not optimistic, Millette said.

Products that usually are available into May or June will finish several weeks and probably months earlier than normal.

“We will then import from the U.S., Mexico, Central America and most probably Europe,” he said.

The transition from local to imports can be hard on consumers, with prices rising 20% to 40% in a few weeks, Millette said.

Sales, though stronger than usual in June and July, were down during the end of August and September due to economic pressure on consumers, he added.

But sales of organic produce have been on the rise with the integration of the organic line from sister company Bercy Foods Inc. last October.

“Twenty years ago, most of the organic fruits and vegetables were grown by farms who were growing exclusively organics,” he said. “Today, an important part of the organics supply comes from farms growing both conventional and organic, and supply options are now more abundant.”

Capespan North America

Capespan North America does just about as much business in the U.S. as it does in Canada, said Paul Marier, senior vice president.

The company works with several major U.S. supermarket chains and also does some wholesale and foodservice business in the U.S.

Citrus and table grapes account for most of the company’s sales, with volume tilted toward citrus, he said. The company also offers some apples and pears.

Capespan North America, which also has an office in Philadelphia and two employees working out of California, is promoting its Outspan Gems easy-peel citrus, which Marier says is comparable to the two brands that dominate the soft citrus category.

“We say we’ve got something that’s equivalent, nicely packaged, and it’s not going to be quite the same price,” he said.

Marier said Capespan North America is trying to grow the Outspan Gems label “one customer at a time” in the U.S. and Canada.

Outspan Gems are primarily imported from South Africa and generally are available from May through mid-November.

The company’s grapes are available from November through April.

The firm recently added limes from Peru and Colombia and vanilla persimmons from Spain. Limes are sold in Canada and potentially to U.S. customers. Vanilla persimmons are available in Canada.

Equifruit

Fall is a busy time for Equifruit as banana bidding season commences, said Kim Chackal, co-owner and director of sales and marketing.

Equifruit has been in growth mode in Canada for the past 15 years, and now the company has launched sales in the U.S. market with a program with Costco Wholesale in the New York City area this summer.

“We bring our bananas into ports on the East and West Coast and intend to grow a national program in the U.S.,” she said.

In Canada, the company partners with companies like Costco Canada, Sobeys in Quebec, Longo’s, Farm Boy and many independent retailers, Chackal said.

Most of the firm’s bananas are organically grown, and they’re sourced from Ecuador, Peru, Colombia and Mexico.

Equifruit is gearing up to exhibit for the second time at the International Fresh Produce Association’s Global Produce & Floral Show, set for Oct. 19-21 in Anaheim, Calif., Chackal said.

“This is a key part of our U.S. expansion strategy as we expect to continue discussions with buyers in person,” she said.

“Our team will be suited up in our Banana Badass jumpsuits and yellow Crocs and ready to share the good news about how our 100% Fairtrade-certified bananas are helping improve farmers’ lives and their communities,” she added.