Spice World, a leading producer of garlic and other spices and herbs, is 100 percent vertically integrated with its own seed program.

Louis Hymel, director of purchasing and marketing for the Orlando, FL-based company said it has offered an organic line for over a decade.

“Our organic line includes a variety of sizes, packages and value-added garlic,” said Hymel. “We offer bulk, fresh in cello or mesh bags, peeled, ready-to-use jarred garlic and, of course, our now very popular ‘Squeeze Garlic,’ all in both conventional and organic options.”

Louis HymelSpice World’s “Squeeze Garlic” took off with a huge bang when it was introduced in its original 20-ounce bottle in 2010. Since then, the company introduced a 9.5-ounce size. Introducing the popular condiment in an organic option was simply the next logical move. And in April 2012, Spice World did just that.

“The organic ‘Squeeze Garlic’ has really taken off,” said Hymel. “Consumers love the convenience factor, and the product is getting a lot of attention.”

Spice World’s garlic, organic and conventional, is produced in the United States, but in its guarantee to always supply only the freshest garlic to its customers, it will import from South and Central America at different times of the year.

The company has total diversity in its customer base and distribution range.

“Our roots, since our founding in 1949, have been in sales and distribution to retail supermarket chains,” said Hymel. “With our long history, consumers have made Spice World ‘America’s # 1 Selling Garlic Brand’ in the marketplace, according to IRI [a leading market and shopper information research firm] data. However, we also have foodservice and industrial divisions. We market and distribute all of our products nationwide and we export to foreign countries.”

Hymel said that the company sees continued increase in the demand for organic products. It is feeling the increase particularly strong in its ready-to-use and “Squeeze” product categories, which was added to earlier this year by its “Grill Garlic-Q” barbeque sauce.

He noted that the new California crop was coming in from the fields strongly in late August.

“It comes in and goes directly to our rapid cooling system,” said Hymel. “The system is running full speed ahead this time of year and our new cold storage facility is filling up quickly.”

He pointed out that garlic is pretty much exempt from the locally grown category, in that good marketable quality production is done in a limited number of places in the country.

“Also, with the importance of third party audits and traceability requirements today, it could be difficult for local growers to meet them,” he said. “Spice World is able to provide all required certifications along with complete traceability for all of our products. I’m not sure how small local producers could meet the requirements that are needed today.

“Food safety is vital, and the demands require many fulltime professionals on staff,” Hymel continued. “These demands are here to stay and will only continue to increase in the future.”