Editor’s note: The following profile is from the 2025 Packer 25, our annual tribute to 25 leaders, innovators and agents of change across the fresh produce supply chain. (You can view all honorees here.) This feature has been edited for length and clarity.
Ignacio Caballero — Director of marketing, Frutas de Chile
Earlier this year, when table grape producers from around the world united to drive consumption and raise awareness of the fruit’s nutritional benefits, flavor profiles and versatility with an aim to collectively position grapes as the go-to healthful snack, Ignacio Caballero took center stage as champion and spokesperson of the newly formed Global Grape Group.
This was an important year for grapes with the launch of the Global Grape Group (GGG), which you were instrumental in bringing to life. What did its launch mean to you, and how does this group add value to the grape industry?
It has been a very important goal to bring this to life at a high standard, but we are at the very early stages of what we need to do. We haven’t reached our goal yet, and there is a lot of work that still needs to be done, but without a doubt, it’s a very important milestone to have officially launched GGG.
I want to thank the Chile team; our members; Luis Miguel Vegas, general manager of Provid, Peru’s Association of Table Grape Producers; and Sergio Lugo, general manager of Table Grapes from Mexico, because together we’re stronger, and they helped make this vision possible.
GGG is focused on the need to increase consumption of grapes worldwide — that is the main goal. And we believe grapes are the perfect snack with this balance of being healthy but also flavorful. We also think the market for grapes is huge because we can compete with other snacks that aren’t as healthy.
We hope to be a game changer for the industry, and we plan to grow each year and add more players. We believe we can have big success in changing the trend in the grape industry right now from excess supply to greater demand.
What do you see as the single most important message to convey to retailers and the fresh produce industry about Chilean fruit and agriculture?
Chile is special. Our history and geography define us. Chile’s most important assets are, without a doubt, our people, our geography and everything we have lived; it creates people that are entrepreneurial.
Since a decade ago, we have built a grape and fruit industry in a very tiny country in the southernmost part of the world. We’re pillars of innovation. We have made mistakes, but we’re fast learners.
We’re also changing the model. We’re putting the consumer first. In the past, the model was, “I want to the most beautiful apple or grape or whatever fruit.” Now the consumer is changing at the velocity of artificial intelligence, so we have to start getting above the wave of this new trend to find the right route, the right product, the right format, the right channel for this new model.
We’re looking at how to do this, but it won’t be alone. There are a lot of people in this stakeholder chain who want to collaborate including retailers, importers, members of the value chain, logistical members, breeders and marketeers. The bottom line is Chile wants to differentiate by being your partner in increasing consumption.
How do you define success in the fresh produce industry?
Sustainability is everything, and [that’s] sustainability in three ways: environmentally, socially and economically. People usually say sustainability is all about the environment, but to be sustainable socially, you also need to be sustainable economically.
That is very important. But for me personally, and for us as an industry, if I have to choose one thing that defines success, it’s repeat purchase. If we have one consumer who buys our product again, we did something good, and that is our goal.
What’s your favorite fresh produce item and how do you like to enjoy it?
This is like you’re asking me, “which is your favorite kid?”
I represent all the fruit from Chile, but if you force me to choose something as a consumer — as a Chilean — I have to say avocados. I think every day in the last year I ate avocado. I love all the fruit, but I eat a lot of avocado — with bread or toast, in salads, with barbecue and rice. Avocado is one of the most consumed items in my diet.
