Mann Packing Co., Inc., a subsidiary of Coral Gables, Fla.-based Del Monte Fresh Produce N.A., Inc., has added a fresh-cut fruit area to its new facility in Gonzales, California.
This new section of the facility will allow Mann Packing, a big supplier of packaged vegetables, to grow its fresh-cut fruit and organic fresh-cut fruit business and provide a new space to help the brand continue to meet consumer needs, according to a news release.
Apart from the value-added vegetable part of the Gonzalez plant, the fresh-cut fruit area will allow for added retail convenience, as fruit will be cut to order, according to the release.
This will allow for the elimination of inventorying and for deliveries to be made directly from the Gonzalez plant, the company said.
The new area of the plant, according to the release, can utilize vertically integrated products such as pineapples, melons and grapes.
“As a trusted Fresh Del Monte brand, we are excited to now be processing our fresh-cut fruit in a brand new, state of the art plant,” Parker Javid, vice president of sales at Mann Packing, said in the release. “Our team is always working to find new and innovative solutions to meet the needs of our consumers and we are excited to offer our customers greater freshness and efficiencies by combining both fresh-cut fruit and vegetables on one truck and in a direct shipment from our plant.”
In addition, the Gonzales facility has a state-of-the-art sanitation and cleaning protocols, allowing for a high focus on food safety for cut fruit, according to the release. Beyond face masks, hair nets and constant hand sanitation, the new facility has separate processing and raw material areas. Additionally, the release said the facility also boasts a 260-foot-tall wind turbine to help Mann Packing continue its mission of sustainable processing. Wash water from the facility will also be reclaimed into industrial waste systems for use on local golf courses and city landscaping.
