When a Peruvian grower harvests an asparagus crop, he or she can either send it to the fresh market or the processor. It’s the same crop, but the decision typically is based on timing and the price.

But from the other end of the spectrum, it is an entirely different animal.

Carb/Americas Inc., based in Pompano Beach, FL, got into the processed asparagus business the past couple of years with the building of an individually quick frozen processing plant in Peru. It has worked so well that the firm built another IQF plant in Nicaragua in the past year. But that doesn’t mean it has been easy.

“It has been a steep learning curve,” said Jeff Friedman, president of the company. “To begin with, you need to be in production before you can get certified. That means you have to find customers that don’t mind taking product from an uncertified plant before it is certified.”

And the customers, of course, are not the same people that Carb/Americas has been selling fresh product to since its inception almost 20 years ago. But Mr. Friedman said that the company is learning the ropes and the addition of the IQF plants have filled the need for which they were developed.

Like virtually everyone in the industry, Mr. Friedman said that the Peruvian asparagus deal has changed tremendously over the past few years. As such, it behooves a producer likes Carb/Americas to have another outlet for its production.

“The demand for IQF, as well as for both canned and jarred product, is growing,” he said. “Plus, the addition of those markets has helped raise the floor price for asparagus. If the grower doesn’t like the fresh market price, he can always send his production to the processor.”

Mr. Friedman added, “And the great thing about IQF is that you have three years rather than three days to sell the product.”

In the firm’s two IQF pants, they now produce processed asparagus, mangos, plantains and strawberries, and they are continuing to look for other items to add to the mix.

For this year’s fresh asparagus season, Mr. Friedman expects good demand as supplies continue to decline a bit because of decreased acreage as well as the aforementioned expanded sales avenues. But he is not predicting a continued slide in production.

“While a lot of growers are taking out acreage, you also have the Warren Buffet theory,” he said, explaining that the well-known and very successful Mr. Buffet has gotten rich mostly by bucking the trends. “There are growers out there figuring that if everyone is pulling acreage they can make money planting new acreage, and that’s what they are doing.”

He added that just as some growers are pulling asparagus acreage before its effective life is over, there are no new plantings being developed.

Mr. Friedman said that as of the middle of the year, exports of Peruvian asparagus to the United States are well below last year’s pace. However he said that exports should pick up significantly in September, with Peru being the dominant player throughout the remainder of the year.