When Hollandia Produce LP in Carpinteria, CA, works with customers in the foodservice community, “we are mostly talking about white tablecloth establishments,” said Vince Choate, director of marketing, in an interview with The Produce News, June 24. “Most of the foodservice business we do generally serves that particular niche within the foodservice sector.”

The company’s “two entry points” with those establishments are “our flagship product, which is the living butter lettuce, and our Upland Cress product,” he said.

Both are hydroponically grown, and “both of those have been pretty well received by the white tablecloth establishments,” and that is due to the products’ uniformity, consistency and freshness, he said.

“Basically, those chefs want a uniform product,” Choate continued.

“That is one thing we can provide, because we are producing product in a controlled environment” and are able to “make sure there is uniformity in the product and the consistency is there.”

The chefs in white tablecloth restaurants are also “looking at portion control and cost control” and various other factors when they are putting recipes together, he said. “Those are some of the things we bring to the table.”

In addition, both items are “almost 100 percent useable. There is very little waste or discard, so they present a value,” he added.

With regard to packaging of the living butter lettuce for the foodservice sector, “we have our traditional package like we do when we go to retail,” which is a plastic clamshell. Some of Hollandia’s foodservice customers “prefer it that way,” Choate said.

But in addition, “we have a foodservice pack that we also pack for some of the clients” who want minimal packaging. That consists of a 12-count master case without clamshells, he added.

For the Upland Cress, the pack style consists of loose bunches with bands around them, he said. “There is not a lot of excess packaging there.”

Many chefs use the Upland Cress as a free substitution for conventional watercress in salads and other dishes, according to Choate.

The two products are “freely interchangeable” and have similar flavor profiles. The Upland Cress has several advantages, however. “It is a lot easier to process. It’s got a bigger leaf and a smaller stem than conventional watercress, making it easy and convenient “on the prep side,” he said. “That is one of the reasons it has been so well received by the foodservice sector.”

Hollandia’s customers are not generally the individual restaurants but the foodservice purveyors that service them, Choate said.

Hollandia has been exhibiting at the PMA Foodservice Conference in Monterey, CA, for the last 15 or 16 years, Choate said.

“We like participating in the show,” Choate said “It is always nice to get feedback from people who are actually using the product.”

The company will be there again “to meet and greet our existing client base” and to meet new prospective clients. “We always end up meeting a few new people” who are interested in the company’s products.