“Making sure the consumers get the best possible produce is our No. 1 concern and our No. 1 focus,” said Luiz Perez, vice president of sales for the Miami-based company, with a warehouse in Port Washington, NY. “All of our imported products are fully vetted and third-party certified. We follow all the recommended procedures to ensure that the highest standards and safety protocols are met. Buying product from us is no different than purchasing products grown in Idaho or Iowa, for instance, and all our shipping partners are third-party certified, as well.”

Perez said that El Sol is the largest importer of root produce in the country, working with growers in such South American countries as Brazil, Ecuador and Peru, as well as growers in Mexico, Honduras, Jamaica, the Dominican Republic and Fiji.

“The key to us, and what we are fully focused on, is quality and the sell-through to consumer at the store level,” added Perez, who joined the company as a sales rep about 13 years ago. “We want to help our retail partners sell everything we send to them. We have a low shrink rate that will help retailers build higher margins and a satisfied consumer who will come back to the store for repeat sales.”

Perez said that attendees at IFPA are going to see a big emphasis on Latin American and Caribbean products and more items in the El Sol’s Asian line.

“One of our newest items is plantain chips in a jar,” he noted. “They are packed by artisans in the middle of a plantain plantation in Ecuador and, so far, are taking stores by storms. Sales are just simply outstanding. A lot of chips are made in U.S., but we offer a proprietary cooking method that gives the product a nice crunchy, fresh taste with no additives. The people who make these are in the plantain business. They harvest and process this right there. It does not get any better than that, they are very fresh because it is packed today and two weeks later they are in the store.”

Perez also said that El Sol has started carrying value-added specialty peppers from the Dominican Republic that are in high demand with the growing Caribbean demographic in this country.

These items include Ajicito sweet peppers, Thai chili peppers and habanero peppers. “We bring them in bulk and we repack using an UPC code,” he added. “We are also bringing in turmeric, a golden-orange spice, from Fiji. It is a superb anti-carcinogenic product that is great for juice, cooking and teas.”

The company is also continuing to focus on its Asian line, including Chinese eggplant, Chinese opo squash and Chinese and Indian bitter melons. “These are just more products for another growing demographic that is demanding a better selection of produce,” Perez said. “We bring them in by containers into Miami and distribute to all over the country, even reaching all the way to the West Coast.”

The bottom line, Perez said, is that El Sol has been in business for more than 35 years and has a long and successful history in the ethnic tropical produce category.

“When we first came into this business, there really were no standards for this category,” he said. “We standardized the category to the specs it uses today. That is what has made selling these products so successful for us and our retail partners. You will see us get even more involved with these new products and value-added items in the future. We also want to facilitate more grab-and-go items for consumers and keep making products that are more consumer friendly.”