OSO Sweet onions sweet as ever in 2006
OSO Sweet onions sweet as ever in 2006
Following last year's OSO Sweet onion crop -- the best ever -- the 18th season of exporting OSO Sweet onions from Chile to America is set to commence. The shipping season runs from January through March.
All onions are grown at the base of the Andes Mountains in Chile, where OSO Sweet was among the early players in the winter sweet onion category in 1989 and has been an innovative leader ever since.
While there have been other producers who grow sweet onions in Chile, few if any have as much experience in this growing region. Extensive trial and error has enabled OSO Sweet to establish a precise growing protocol suited to each individual onion field. This guarantees unmatched crop consistency and quality year after year -- the goal of every producer.
Crop size will be slightly down from last year due to a cool growing season. Yet with about two weeks remaining before harvest begins, quality looks excellent. In fact, growing history indicates that cool growing seasons have resulted in some of the higher sugar levels ever.
As in the past 12 years, f.o.b. pricing will remain the same: $28 per 40-pound crate. The OSO Sweet has always been sold as a program rather than a commodity, with level pricing for all. So, no matter where the rest of the market goes, the OSO Sweet price remains constant for program customers.
As always, each case is packed the farm-fresh way in sturdy wood crates. Wide air slats on all sides of each crate provide unmatched flow-through ventilation, allowing all onions to continue to cure and mature properly, while protecting them from hot spots, breakdown and decay during shipping and storage. In addition, each case also serves as a striking, colorful, ready-to-merchandise package that doubles as a point-of-purchase sign, ideal for building mass displays. OSO Sweet is one of the few sweet onion producers that still ships in wood crates. Every fifth case shipped from Chile will contain a new point-of-purchase card.
Since the OSO Sweet is packed in a HACCP-certified food- safety program facility rather than field run, high levels of food safety are assured. OSO Sweet is the only South American onion packer that has an in-house lab in its packing facility to monitor product on a daily basis.
OSO Sweets arrive in the United States pre-cleared by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Plant Protection & Quarantine division. A partnership with the U.S. government via the U.S. Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism program ensures that from field to terminal, every move is monitored to protect the customer and the consumer. This puts OSO Sweet onions on a fast track for entry into the country. Participation in this program even requires security clearances of all OSO Sweet personnel.
Throughout the shipping process, OSO Sweets are treated more like a fruit. Because they have a high sugar content like fruit, the cold chain is maintained. They are constantly under refrigeration - maintaining ideal temperature and humidity levels -- from the packing facility through shipping and warehousing, all the way to the grocer's dock. This maintains the unique texture, crispness and high sugar content of the onion.
All OSO Sweets are shipped from Valparaiso, Chile, to Philadelphia and Long Beach, CA. Year after year, product appearance and consistency at point of arrival have been unmatched in the onion business, with nearly 100 percent acceptance since 1997. This translates into minimal shrink and maximum sales potential.
Articles featuring OSO Sweets appeared in over 1,100 newspapers last season, with a combined readership of over 67 million. Broadcast editorial coverage (over 90 national, regional and major market shows) reached over 70 million. This combined with radio and TV advertising enabled the OSO Sweet message to reach over 200 million Americans.
No other winter sweet onion has achieved such brand recognition. And few other brands deliver the quality, consistency and taste consumers seek. This has not been lost on retailers, who are more enthusiastic than ever about promoting OSO Sweets this year. They have learned that when they promote OSO Sweets via mass displays with custom signage, product flies off the shelves.
All onions are grown at the base of the Andes Mountains in Chile, where OSO Sweet was among the early players in the winter sweet onion category in 1989 and has been an innovative leader ever since.
While there have been other producers who grow sweet onions in Chile, few if any have as much experience in this growing region. Extensive trial and error has enabled OSO Sweet to establish a precise growing protocol suited to each individual onion field. This guarantees unmatched crop consistency and quality year after year -- the goal of every producer.
Crop size will be slightly down from last year due to a cool growing season. Yet with about two weeks remaining before harvest begins, quality looks excellent. In fact, growing history indicates that cool growing seasons have resulted in some of the higher sugar levels ever.
As in the past 12 years, f.o.b. pricing will remain the same: $28 per 40-pound crate. The OSO Sweet has always been sold as a program rather than a commodity, with level pricing for all. So, no matter where the rest of the market goes, the OSO Sweet price remains constant for program customers.
As always, each case is packed the farm-fresh way in sturdy wood crates. Wide air slats on all sides of each crate provide unmatched flow-through ventilation, allowing all onions to continue to cure and mature properly, while protecting them from hot spots, breakdown and decay during shipping and storage. In addition, each case also serves as a striking, colorful, ready-to-merchandise package that doubles as a point-of-purchase sign, ideal for building mass displays. OSO Sweet is one of the few sweet onion producers that still ships in wood crates. Every fifth case shipped from Chile will contain a new point-of-purchase card.
Since the OSO Sweet is packed in a HACCP-certified food- safety program facility rather than field run, high levels of food safety are assured. OSO Sweet is the only South American onion packer that has an in-house lab in its packing facility to monitor product on a daily basis.
OSO Sweets arrive in the United States pre-cleared by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Plant Protection & Quarantine division. A partnership with the U.S. government via the U.S. Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism program ensures that from field to terminal, every move is monitored to protect the customer and the consumer. This puts OSO Sweet onions on a fast track for entry into the country. Participation in this program even requires security clearances of all OSO Sweet personnel.
Throughout the shipping process, OSO Sweets are treated more like a fruit. Because they have a high sugar content like fruit, the cold chain is maintained. They are constantly under refrigeration - maintaining ideal temperature and humidity levels -- from the packing facility through shipping and warehousing, all the way to the grocer's dock. This maintains the unique texture, crispness and high sugar content of the onion.
All OSO Sweets are shipped from Valparaiso, Chile, to Philadelphia and Long Beach, CA. Year after year, product appearance and consistency at point of arrival have been unmatched in the onion business, with nearly 100 percent acceptance since 1997. This translates into minimal shrink and maximum sales potential.
Articles featuring OSO Sweets appeared in over 1,100 newspapers last season, with a combined readership of over 67 million. Broadcast editorial coverage (over 90 national, regional and major market shows) reached over 70 million. This combined with radio and TV advertising enabled the OSO Sweet message to reach over 200 million Americans.
No other winter sweet onion has achieved such brand recognition. And few other brands deliver the quality, consistency and taste consumers seek. This has not been lost on retailers, who are more enthusiastic than ever about promoting OSO Sweets this year. They have learned that when they promote OSO Sweets via mass displays with custom signage, product flies off the shelves.
