Dandrea promotes new clementine brand at PMA Fresh Summit
Dandrea promotes new clementine brand at PMA Fresh Summit
Relationships are a hallmark of the produce industry. One reason professionals look forward to the PMA Fresh Summit is the opportunity to reconnect personally with producers, suppliers, retailers, foodservice operators and longtime friends.
Dandrea Produce, headquartered in Vineland, NJ, is a prime example of a company whose team nurtures one-on-one relationships.
“The PMA Fresh Summit gives us a great opportunity to see our retail partners, many of which have been with us for well over 20 years,” said Steven Dandrea, vice president. “We were also able to visit with many of our grower-partners from around the world.”
Many of the Dandrea Produce staff members were on hand at the event, including his brothers and partners, Frank Dandrea, president, and Ronald Dandrea, secretary-treasurer. Also in attendance were several of their children and representatives from its buyer, procurement and sales teams.
“At the Summit we continued promoting our new and exciting clementine brand, ‘Clementeenies,’” explained Dandrea. “These are the best tasting clementines in the world, seedless, sweet, easy to eat.”
The company, he noted, is currently packing imported cherries. Among the company’s strongest product lines are blueberries, grapes, Navels, clementines and a number of items from its locally grown Jersey Fresh program.
Since its founding in 1917, Dandrea has expanded to having equity interest in California and Mexico. And it has shipping partners in Honduras and Dominican Republic for vegetables. An additional 18 countries now provide a wide range of produce, including melons, cherries, Navels, avocados, asparagus, apples and pears.
The company is undergoing some major changes in 2015 and 2016.
“We purchased nine new tractors and trailers, which are all satellite-based and tracked,” said Dandrea. “We have also invested in an organic farming operation for 2016.”
The PMA Fresh Summit was exceedingly successful for the company.
“It enabled us to get better brand awareness and convey our upcoming strategies for the next year,” said Dandrea. “There is a certain familiar vibe that resonates at the PMA event. What we are seeing now and what is increasingly hopeful is that younger generations are participating in the produce business.”
