“Primarily through our sister company, El Sol, located in Miami, FL, we are able to procure tropical produce directly,” said Jasmine Hines, director of marketing and advertising for R Best Produce Inc., headquartered in Port Washington, NY. “With El Sol we are constantly looking to provide a wider variety of tropical and specialty items.

“In addition, R Best is constantly expanding within the organic produce trend by working with companies such as Earthbound, Organic Girl, Driscoll’s, Dole and Cal-Organic to supply more organic options for our customers,” she added.

R Best is a wholesale produce distributor that supplies a wide range of fresh fruits and vegetables, including many of the top brands, to independent supermarkets and various chain stores.

The company celebrated the grand opening of its new corporate headquarters and warehouse last fall.

It was previously located in the Bronx, NY. “The brand new state-of-the-art warehouse opened September 2013,” said Hines.

“The Long Island-based facility spans approximately 70,000-square-feet and is constructed with the latest technologies to focus on supporting quality fresh product and being environmentally friendly.”

She noted that every room of the new warehouse operates via automatic thermostat control to maintain multiple climate zones.

“Since moving to the new location, our product line has increased to over 300 SKUs, and we look to expand the warehouse an additional 20,000 square feet by the end of 2014,” Hines added.

R Best Produce’s mission is to be the premier produce supplier in the Northeast that fulfills all its customers’ needs by offering the highest-quality produce, unwavering reliability and superior customer service.

The company’s top priorities are sourcing and delivering only the freshest fruits and vegetables, strategic merchandising and convenience so it can help its customers’ businesses grow.

“We’re committed to exceeding expectations at all levels of the industry so that each and every person — from the grower to the consumer — is fully satisfied,” said Hines.

The company also has a dedicated in-store merchandising team of experienced retail consultants who help its customers increase their sales’ growth.

In its current strong growth mode, R Best has added to its staff. Hines joined the R Best team in October 2013.

“John Annetta joined the R Best team in June 2013 as the director of corporate sales,” said Hines.

“And Jason Garabedian, our corporate controller and director of human resources, joined the firm in March of this year,” she added.

Hines said that the company expects good movement of summer crops this year, noting that, “If anything, we may see shortages rather than gluts due to the intense winter season up and down the East Coast. There may be higher prices on certain items this season as well. Overall, we expect strong movement.”

R Best Produce is currently working to achieve its PrimusLabs with HACCP certification. Hines noted that within this realm of food-safety and traceability initiatives, the company stresses compliance with sanitation, quality and traceability.

The company is also a strong advocate of locally grown programs. “Whenever possible we support local farmers who help us supply our customers with the freshest produce available, and as close to home as possible,” said Hines.

“We have numerous local programs with growers from Long Island, upstate New York, New Jersey and Southern Connecticut.”