Page 59 - January_2019

ENDURING PROSPECTS IN POST-NAFTA MEXICO: PartII
Continuing the discussion from December’s Part I article, industry experts call out expansion of seasonality as well as continued invest- ment in protected ag and social responsibility as key trends for Mexico’s future.
BY JODEAN ROBBINS
Over the past two decades, Mexico demonstrated signi - cant advancement in produc- tion methods. e most notable trend in Mexico,
according to Jerry Havel, director of sales and marketing for Fresh Farms in Nogales, AZ, is the stretching of seasons. “More and more companies o er product in mid-Sep- tember and are going later each year,” he says. “Some producers of vegetables in Baja go all summer long; there are bell peppers in southern Mexico and grapes in April.”
Supply from Mexico remains crucial to retail produce, maintains Mike Melendrez, produce manager with Food King in Little- eld, TX, with 18 stores. “Mexican avail- ability makes product more a ordable for our customers and allows for a better price point,” he says. “Without Mexico, our nation wouldn’t really be able to fully supply our demand for produce.”
Ronnie Cohen, principal with Vision Import Group in Hackensack, NJ, says increasing U.S. population contributes to rising consumption and demand for Mexican produce. “Add to the equation urban sprawl, natural disasters, water issues in major U.S. growing areas and labor challenges, and you get a push more and more south for produce,” he says.
Innovation, according to Elvis Obregon, chief executive of Orbis Innovation in Produce of Pompano Beach, FL, is crucial for Mexico’s future. “To survive and prosper, it will be all about value-added, technology, eco-friendly, organic and avor,” he says. “We
are returning to a priority of eating quality and see buyers looking for higher brix and nutrient density.”
Longer windows of availability from Mexico in uence future opportunity, asserts Christopher Ciruli, chief operating o cer for Ciruli Brothers in Rio Rico, AZ. “Seasons will continue to expand to keep up with U.S. demand,” he says. “We are expanding our grower base into central Mexico to meet customer demand.”
EXPANDING PROTECTION
Mexico continues to be a world-leader in greenhouse growing, a trend that will
PHOTOS COURTESY OF CIRULI BROTHERS
continue, according to Allison Moore, vice president of Fresh Produce Association of the Americas (FPAA) in Nogales, AZ. “It helps maximize e ciencies in growing and harvesting high-quality produce,” she says.
Ciruli notes a signi cant amount of product is being grown in protected environ- ments, resulting in bene ts demanded by retail and consumers. “ is provides price stability and consistent year-long supplies,” he says.
e Mexican protected horticulture industry is mainly comprised of the produc- tion of three products in a wide range of vari- eties, explains Alfredo Diaz Belmontes, chief executive of AMHPAC in Culiacan, Sinaloa,
PRODUCE BUSINESS / JANUARY 2019 / 59