Agri Packing Supply, Inc. celebrates 25th anniversary
Agri Packing Supply, Inc. celebrates 25th anniversary
Celebrating the 25th anniversary of Agri Packing Supply, Inc., the dynamic firm continues its growth path. The company was founded by Omar Cabrera, a humble gentleman who remains very active in the firm. Agri Packing started business on July 25, 1990.
Agri Packing Supply handles all packing materials, including pouch bags, clam shells and cartons, plus agricultural supplies serving a range of products from the open field to greenhouses. The firm is not involved in agrichemicals.
Omar Cabrera, Agri Packing owner, said his firm is not a manufacturer, but offers the produce industry over 300 products. Agri Packing’s services are “unique” to growers. “They can pick up mixed loads when they need and they need to carry no inventory.” Beyond its Nogales operations, the firm has distribution centers in San Diego and South Texas.
Cabrera’s second company, Agri Packing Distributors, is a cold storage and logistics company. This provides in and out services. Customers include Crown Jewel, Oppenheimer, Dayka & Hackett, TruFresh, Delightful Quality Produce and The Greenery.
Agri Packing Distributors owns four refrigerated buildings in Nogales. This spring, the firm will complete construction of a new warehouse in Edinburg, TX.
Cabrera said when the Texas facility is completed the company will consider new construction projects in Nogales.
Jorge Ruiz, a salesman for Agri Packing, said, “One thing that makes Agri Packing unique is that we manage the inventory of our customers, so they don’t run out.”
Cabrera added that this service of storing materials until the growers need them helps the growers adjust to the produce industry’s seasonal highs and lows.
About 95 percent of Agri Packing’s volume is shipped to Mexican growers. But the remainder is sold in the Nogales area to repackers.
Cabrera said modified atmosphere bags are a popular new product with growers. Among the items packed in these bags are squash, eggplant, cucumbers, melons and grapes. These bags “have a cost but the growers’ products won’t be kicked for mold and decay” as would sooner-be the case with traditional packaging. “You can pack a bag in Sinaloa and open it in New York and it will look like it was picked yesterday, assuming the temperatures are good. The return on investment is great!”