Chilean Honeycrisp Orchards Provide Long-Term Strategy for Retailers Seeking Fresh Fruit Year ‘Round
Elgin, Minn. – Honeybear Brands, a leading grower and marketer of premium conventional and organic apples, pears and cherries, is delivering a fresh-picked crop of apples and pears to retailers nationwide beginning in March thanks to its Chilean operations. Honeybear Brands is the leading apple importer from the Southern hemisphere, ensuring retailers have premium conditioned fresh fruit to offer shoppers during the spring and summer months. This fresh, new crop provides exceptional flavor on shelf which helps drive repeat purchase of products at retail.
“Incorporating imports in the fresh fruit mix is a smart long-term strategy as many domestic apples begin losing flavor and that crisp eating experience after months in storage,” says Don Roper, vice president sales and marketing, Honeybear Brands. “Quality trumps quantity. We recognize that it is important to keep strong apple sell through at retail and one of the most impactful ways is to make sure the consumer is purchasing the freshest fruit available. With so many summer fruit options, it is critical that consumers have a great eating experience in order to keep apple demand strong all summer long. We are having a superb growing season in Chile this year. With near perfect weather in Southern Chile, Honeycrisp fruit sizing and quality this year should be terrific.”
Honeybear’s Chilean Honeycrisp crop will be harvested in early March and will begin to arrive by April into its East Coast facilities. In addition to Honeycrisp, organic and conventional Gala, Pink Lady, Granny Smith, Fuji, PazazzÔand pears will be available. With operations on both coasts, Honeybear maintains its leadership position in providing retailers with premium fruit, executing 100% supply assurance and ensuring lowest landed cost apple and pear programs.
With its broad array of orchards in Washington and the Midwest plus its import production in South America, Honeybear Brands provides a turnkey apple and pear program for retailers all year round.
About Honeybear Brands
Honeybear is a leading grower and developer of premium apple varieties. Family owned and operated for more than forty years, Honeybear still employs the same hands-on, personal attention to each, and every apple variety produced while holding to responsible sustainability practices. As a leading vertically integrated, dual hemisphere grower, packer, shipper, Honeybear offers supply of premium apples and pears on a year-round basis. Honeybear Brands is a wholly owned subsidiary of Wescott Agri Products. For more information about Honeybear, visit www.honeybearbrands.com and follow us on Facebook.
Honeybear® is a trademark of Wescott Agri Products.
