Habelman Bros., L&S Cranberry unite for cooperative

The owners of Habelman Bros. Co. in Tomah, Wis., and L&S Cranberry LP in St. Lucien, Quebec, formed the Cranberry Cooperative of the Americas.

These fresh cranberry suppliers have united to leverage their experience and knowledge in the growing, handling and packaging of fresh cranberries to best serve retailers worldwide, according to a news release.

“As a cooperative committed to and focused on the fresh cranberry segment, we believe that the CCA model will bring an entirely new level of value to our buyers as well as to the farm,” president and CEO Mike Dubuc said in the release. “Ultimately, fresh is the reason our members farm cranberries.”

The cooperative has commissioned The Cranberry Network LLC of Wisconsin Rapids, Wis., and Graystone LLC of East Wareham, Mass., to serve as its marketing team and managers of the cooperative. The owners of these two marketing teams have more than 50 years of combined experience in the fresh cranberry space.

“In combining the Habelman family’s resources and experience with those of the L&S team, we now represent the geographically diverse supply solution for the fresh cranberry market,” Bob Wilson, vice president of sales and chief operating officer, said in the release.

“These two vertically integrated players now provide complimentary services to one another with multiple and diverse packaging capabilities.”