The Giumarra International Berry Division of the Los Angeles-based Giumarra Cos. is “a year-round berry company focusing primarily on blueberries and blackberries, with smaller volumes of strawberries and raspberries in certain windows as well,” Tom Richardson, vice president of global development, said in an interview with The Produce News Sept. 3.

Giumarra is “one of really just a few companies that supplies fresh blueberries and blackberries virtually on a year-round basis,” Richardson said. Domestically, “we cover all of the major growing areas on the East Coast as well as the West Coast.” Internationally, the company sources from Argentina, Peru and Chile for blueberries and from Mexico for blueberries and blackberries, “so that basically covers the whole calendar for us, which gives our customers a consistency of supply that many others in the industry may not be able to offer.”

Giumarra’s “Nature’s Partner” brand is “the brand that we use regardless of the origin of the fruit,” he said.

With domestic production ramping down for the year, “we are just kicking off our Southern Hemisphere season,” Richardson said. “I think it is important for our customers to know that the Southern Hemisphere blueberry season is looking very promising. Because of the mild winter, the season is just around the corner. I just returned from a two-week visit” to Argentina, Peru and Chile, and “the fruit quality and condition at this point just look excellent. We are happy to announce that volumes should be significantly better” from all three areas “than they were last year. That should give our customers confidence that promotable volumes of blueberries will be available to them between now and throughout the holiday season.”

In Argentina and Chile the larger volume expected during the coming season is “due in large part to the fact that the winters have been very mild. We haven’t experienced any major weather issues, so the crops are setting up beautifully with both good volumes and early timing,” Richardson said. “In the case of Peru, it is due to the rapid growth of the industry there, and we are working with what we believe are some of the best producers in Peru in terms of farm management, varietal development and infrastructure.”

In Mexico, the blackberry season “looks to be starting with some light volumes later this month (September),” he said. “We will have consistent supplies once the deal begins, from September through the end of May.” That program is growing as well, with probably a 10 percent increase this year compared to last year “in our Mexican blackberries.”

Giumarra also expects a 10 to 15 percent increase in blueberries from Mexico. “Our primary window of production of blueberries from Mexico is from February to the end of May,” he said.

Giumarra’s blackberry business from Mexico “goes back nearly 20 years, and we were one of the early receivers of blueberries from Chile back in the early 2000s,” Richardson said. “So we have a long history in our berry business.”

Giumarra distributes from both coasts. “We have a sales office in Los Angeles for our West Coast distribution, and we have a sales office in the Philadelphia area for our East Coast distribution,” he said. In addition, “we have a consolidation and shipping office in McAllen, TX, for a lot of the blackberries that are coming up from Mexico.”