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MOTREAL MARKET PROFILE
Gaeten Bono: Michel Lavorato, Salvatore Lavorato and Joe Lavorato
“We are very service-oriented, and that’s even more crucial with foodservice.”
MC Produce’s Cavazos works with specific items to ensure supply all year-round. “The customer can call us to find out what is feasible,” she says. “We know the business and we have the relationships to meet specific customer needs.”
Relationships play a key role in expanding local options as well. Morison reports always keeping an eye open with current local growers for new products to offer to
customers. “When I begin working with a grower on one item, I find two or three more toofferthemaswell,”shesays.“Sometimes,a customer asks me for something in particular and I come to realize it has been growing in my own back yard.”
EXPANDING THE BUSINESS
Though various factors have reduced the number of players in the Montreal produce scene, those who remain are staying strong. “There are less players on the market, but the players who are here are major players,” says Ferrarelli. “That may result in more control over the products and quality.”
Family business Botsis Fruits & Vegetables opened in 2010 and will be expanding for the third time. “We are adding 11,000 extra square feet, for a total of 41,000 square feet,” says Botsis. “This will include 14 dock doors. We attribute growth to good, honorable business principles and an overall increase in consump- tion of fresh fruits and vegetables.”
Food safety is another major expansion area for companies. “It’s become a pre-requi- site at this point,” says Botsis. “Our company is CanadaGAP-certified, and we’re already working on SQF to protect our customers further. We’re putting in re-grading equip- ment as part of our expansion. This will allow us to offer our customers a better box of produce. We’ll be washing and grading and be able to offer consistency. If someone wants Color 4 tomatoes and another wants Color 6, we can give them that.”
Food safety and traceability are major influencers during recent years, agrees Isabelle. “We were one of the first growers/ packers to receive the CanadaGAP certifi- cation in Quebec,” he says. “Now with our computer traceability program, we are able to follow all our deliveries.”
Cavazos maintains if companies don’t comply with new food safety regulations they get left behind. “I think this is what has happened with a lot of smaller brokers or traders,” she says. “They just couldn’t, or didn’t, take the steps to keep their business updated.”
Isabelle notes it’s important to invest every year in the company’s packing plant. “This results in better products, bigger volume and the lowest cost possible,” he says. “Packaging has changed, too. Twenty years ago we were only packing 50 and 10 pounds regularly. We now have added 3 and 5 pounds. We put a lot of money into marketing to be able to have aesthetically pleasing packaging and are proud we have made potatoes ‘sexy’ again.” pb
80 / MARCH 2019 / PRODUCE BUSINESS
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