Curry and Company looks to Chile for berry expansion
In response to growing demand for blueberries, Oregon's Curry & Company announced it will expand its reach into South America with the opening of Curry Fruit Chile SA in Santiago.
Ernesto Pino, founder of Curry Fruit Chile
The Chilean office will take charge of sourcing South American fruit to North America and Europe. Although the U.S. company could not give specific quantities, the first blueberries are expected for export from Argentina in early October and then from Chile in November.
There are also plans for sourcing from Peru.
Berry sales director Bruce Turner said Chile was a natural choice for the office to push the brand toward year-long supply.
"Curry & Company has long been a fixture in Oregon with a respected and well-supported brand, but we have been known as a seasonal grower-packer-shipper," Turner told www.freshfruitportal.com.
"Now that blueberries are a 52-weeks-a-year fixture in the USA, Curry & Company must evolve and continue our growth to be a 52-week supplier of the right volumes.
"Since Chile is the source of most Southern Hemisphere fruit, locating our new office there was a natural choice. Curry Fruit Chile will work with only the best growers in Chile to ensure our import program quality matches the high expectations of our customers supporting our Oregon/domestic program."
Curry Fruit Chile will be run by Ernesto Pino, a former executive from Vitalberry.
"The berry category is growing and consumer demand worldwide is pushing this growth towards a higher quality product and service. The opportunity to help launch and develop Curry Fruit Chile SA and Curry & Company’s year round berry program is exciting and the timing is perfect to meet the needs of consumers," he said in a company press release.
Company president Matt Curry said costumers now expect to find blueberries on every shopping trip, a motivator behind the company's South American expansion.
"The time to capitalize on this growth is now. We’ve made investments at our blueberry packing facility in Brooks, Oregon and have proven our commitment to this category by launching Curry Fruit Chile SA. Adding Ernesto to our team is exciting, he is a well-respected industry professional," Curry said.
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