Citrus shipper Seald Sweet International of Vero Beach, FL is expanding into avocados with a partnership with Mexican grower Valvilla Produce.
Valvilla is a third-generation company in Uruapan, Michoacan, which has over 900 acres of conventional and organic avocados.
“Our initiative is to develop and strengthen our business by offering direct programs with the growers while adding value and supporting a transparent relationship that benefits all parties” Mayda Sotomayor, managing director of Greenyard USA/Seald Sweet, said in a news release.
Seald Sweet merged with Greenyard in 1998, to form Greenyard USA.
The partnership will focus on weekly retail and program business, with year-round imports; shipments begun crossing at McAllen, TX, in August, according to the release. Shipments could potentially arrive at Greenyard Logistics USA’s Swedesboro, N.J., cold storage and repack facility.
“We want to offer retailers product according to their needs, with flexible packaging and ripening options that adapt to their customers,” Michael Walsh, commodity manager at Greenyard USA/Seald Sweet, said in the release.
Luis Valencia, Valvilla Produce president, said the two companies share values.
“At Valvilla Produce we are convinced that the biggest sources of opportunities are collaboration and partnership, and we need to expose ourselves to that in order to succeed in our businesses,” he said in the release.