“We are known mostly for organic Cavendish bananas, however we also handle organic coconuts organic plantains and organic red bananas year round,” said Mayra Velazquez de Leon, who, with her husband, Manuel, owns and operates Organics Unlimited, headquartered in San Diego. Ms. Velazquez de Leon is the company president, and Mr. Velazquez de Leon oversees buying.

“We are a grower and packer of organic bananas, and we then [export]Partner-owners of Organics Unlimited Mayra and Manuel Velazquez de Leon. our bananas from Mexico and Ecuador to the United States for distribution,” said Ms. Velazquez de Leon. “All of our products are available year round.”

The company is one of the larger suppliers of bananas in the United States that deals exclusively in organic product. It was founded in 2000, and has always been strictly organic. The Velazquez de Leons come from four generations of organic banana growers in Mexico.

“Most of our produce comes from southern Mexico, and as such, it is available for distribution in the U.S. much more quickly than most bananas,” Ms. Velazquez de Leon noted. “During cooler temperatures in the winter, we also bring some bananas from Ecuador.

“The majority of our bananas are sold to either distributors or to larger chains, as it is important that buyers have ripening facilities for the bananas,” she continued. “Our primary distribution is to the western part of the U.S. and Canada, as well as to Japan.”

Ms. Velazquez de Leon said that the company is focusing on a new banana packaging system in Mexico. And the company is bringing people in from other areas of the world who specialize in all things related to banana packaging.

“Other countries are better at banana packaging than the U.S., simply because bananas aren’t produced here,” she said. “Banana bunches have three tiers — a tier of large fruit, one of medium and finally four smaller hands on top. There is a specific system to packaging the bunch, and although everyone packages bananas in a similar way, we are getting into the minute details of the process, such as the pH value of the crown on the bananas.”

She added that customers, and even consumers, who visit the company’s facility in Mexico, are typically impressed by the sophisticated methods the company uses.

Organics Unlimited is also Fair Trade-certified and Ms. Velazquez de Leon said that the category is on about the same level as it has been regarding demand.

“We have had our certification for a couple of years, but we have not seen sales increase on the label,” she said. “Whatever the market price is on Fair Trade-certified bananas, we merely apply our fair markup. But if prices are considerably higher than on other organic bananas, customers tend to back off of the higher-priced option. The idea behind Fair Trade is getting more attention, so we will just have to wait to see what the future brings.”

But Organics Unlimited’s focus on social responsibility is always important to it and its customers. In 2005 the company started a program called GROW which provides educational and health benefits to the communities where its bananas are grown.

“This program has thrived, and has provided more than $500,000 in support to the communities of southern Mexico,” said Ms. Velazquez de Leon. “This is in addition to Fair Trade-certified, and we offer our customers either the traditional ‘Organics Unlimited’ label, the ‘GROW’ label or the ‘Fair Trade Certified’ label on our bananas.”

She acknowledged that locally grown is important to many consumers, but it does not necessarily ensure that the produce is organic.

“While it is a good movement, an organic buyer is looking specifically for produce that is grown without chemicals,” Ms. Velazquez de Leon said. “As an organic grower of bananas from Mexico, we also offer the closest bananas to the U.S., and so our carbon footprint is smaller than bananas brought by ships from further distances.

“Locally grown is important to some shoppers, but at this point it also lacks credibility with some shoppers,” she continued. “It will never take the place of the desire for organic, but I think it will continue to be a consideration.”