Van Groningen & Sons adds organic watermelons and mixed melons to spring lineup
Van Groningen & Sons adds organic watermelons and mixed melons to spring lineup
Van Groningen & Sons Inc., based in Manteca, CA, will add organic seedless and organic mini personal-size watermelons to its spring lineup, shipping from the Imperial Valley of California. Harvest will begin around May 10 and will continue through June.
Jesse Leyva, who works in grower relations and quality assurance for Van Groningen & Sons, inspecting a newly planted block of organic seedless watermelon in El Centro, CA.
These two organic items will complement the company’s diverse assortment of conventional melons, including seedless and seeded watermelons, mini personal-size watermelons, cantaloupes and honeydews. Van Groningen will also be adding a few new varieties of conventional mixed melons, including orange-flesh honeydew, galia, hami and canary melons.
“2016 will be our inaugural year starting with any organic items and we are very excited to introduce these two items to our customers,” Ryan Van Groningen, sales manager for the grower-shipper, said in a press release.
Van Groningen & Sons has been growing conventional melons since 1939 but sees the need to diversify. “Though organics might not take a lot of the market share in the melon category, select consumers are asking for these organic melons at the retail level and we are happy to support our retail partners with these products,” Van Groningen added.
