In 2011, Ayco Farms Inc., which is headquartered in Pompano Beach, FL, experienced tremendous growth in its Peruvian asparagus deal, but this year company officials say overall volume should be down, which will slow its growth.

Last year Ayco hired Peruvian asparagus veteran Tim Ryan to oversee its planned growth, and 2011 was a great year for the firm, which calls itself one of the top five players in that commodity.

Mr. Ryan said the company grew its business significantly in 2011, and even though total volume is expected to be down this year, he still sees double-digit growth for his firm.

“We grew our program out of Peru by over 20 percent last year and expect to increase production by another 10 percent this year,” he said.

Mr. Ryan added that total asparagus production from Peru could be down 5-15 percent. He blamed “higher labor cost, lower yields with predicted El Niño weather and lower overall yields per acre” for the decrease in production.

But Mr. Ryan remains bullish on Peru as an asparagus production area. “With Peru’s ideal growing conditions, high yields and high quality, we expect to enjoy growth in Peru for many years to come,” he said.

What is paying dividends for Ayco Farms is its total emphasis on quality. The firm is working very closely with its growers to have them provide a more consistent pack. The Florida firm pre-qualifies its growers to make sure they can put up the exact pack that is ordered by the customer. They are sticklers for a consistent pack with consistent sizes.

This year, Mr. Ryan expects the market price on asparagus to be higher because of the decreased supplies and increased demand, but he still sees opportunity for promotion and innovation. The firm is still in the beginning stages of its season as it primarily markets green asparagus with its heavy volume period ranging from June into January.

The company sells a variety of packs, but Mr. Ryan said its Euro Wrap is one of its best sellers. “We have been promoting Euro Wraps, which dress up the bunches and keeps the product fresher and allows more marketing information on the label,” he said.

He added that the product is very popular in Europe and does have some application to the U.S. market as well.

Ayco Farms sells Peruvian asparagus throughout the United States and Europe, and Mr. Ryan points to “excellent support from our trading partners” as one of the firm’s keys to success.

He said people are also very important on both the sales and production ends of the equation. “We are pursuing new opportunities for expansion in Peru. We are always looking for good salespeople,” he added. “We are in the midst of a national search for talent.”