U.S. company Taylor Farms has entered into an agreement to buy a minority stake in Crunch Pak sliced apples, an industry leader in the category.

The investment will give Crunch Pak regional distribution to retail and foodservice customers nationwide. In return, the partnership provides Taylor Farms with fresh fruit slicing technology and industry expertise. 

The majority stake in Crunch Pak will be retained by Dovex Fruit Co. and its partners, which will provide Taylor Farms with access to organic and conventional raw fruit product.

The Crunch Pak sales, marketing and management teams will remain in place and Taylor Farms CEO Bruce Taylor will join the Crunch Pak board of directors.

Financial details of the transaction were not provided in the news release.

“The fresh cut industry is rapidly changing; customers are requiring deliveries seven days a week.  You have to be national but with regional delivery across the country,” Crunch Pak president Mauro Felizia said in a release.

“We bring leading edge technology in slicing the best quality fruit to the table, but we need faster distribution to market.

“In today’s business environment, logistics, innovation and collaboration are important; our partnership with Taylor Farms will give us that synergy.”

Bruce Taylor said the investment in Crunch Pak gave Taylor Farms the "fresh fruit slicing technology we need to move into that category."

"We look forward to working closely with Crunch Pak as we explore new ways to deliver an unmatched quality of fresh sliced fruit products across a variety of channels," he said.

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