Twin Garden set to receive first lemons from Turkey
Twin Garden set to receive first lemons from Turkey
Twin Garden Sales Inc. is expecting its first shipment of lemons from Turkey the second week in January, and if all goes as planned, additional lemons will be available on a consistent basis through the spring.
The first shipment of 2,000 boxes was expected to arrive Monday, Jan. 8, at Port Elizabeth, NJ, Jack Lambke of the Harvard, IL-based company told The Produce News Wednesday, Jan. 3. The lemons will then be trucked from Port Elizabeth to Procacci Bros. Sales Corp. in Philadelphia, where they will be stored until they are ready for delivery.
Twin Garden Sales Inc. is the exclusive distributor of the lemons in the Americas, Mr. Lambke noted.
The initial shipment will be half-bushel European cartons, primarily in the U.S. equivalent sizes of 75s, 95s, 115s and 140s, according to Mr. Lambke, who said that later shipments would include 165s and would be full-bushels cartons. "We expect to have a changeover to the full bushel box by late January, with alternate layer wrapping," he said.
While this first shipment will come into Port Elizabeth, future shipments may go into other ports, such as Wilmington, NC, Charleston, SC, and Jacksonville, FL. The company will be able to bring in as many as 15-20 loads per week, "depending on acceptance," he said.
And Mr. Lambke was optimistic that there would be high acceptance right from the start.
"This is a really fancy-grade lemon -- beyond a U.S. No. 1," he stated proudly. All the lemons except for the first shipment will be stickered with PLUs.
Initial distribution will be handled through wholesalers, "but we feel that acceptance will be so good because of the exceptional quality" that retailers will be very open to the new product.
As to the Turkish lemons competing in the marketplace with domestic product, Mr. Lambke stated, "We can compete hands down on quality."
The lemons are grown in the Izmir region of Turkey. If the lemons prove successful with the U.S. trade, Mr. Lambke said that Valencias and "thin- skinned Star Ruby grapefruit" may be available in future years.
The first shipment of 2,000 boxes was expected to arrive Monday, Jan. 8, at Port Elizabeth, NJ, Jack Lambke of the Harvard, IL-based company told The Produce News Wednesday, Jan. 3. The lemons will then be trucked from Port Elizabeth to Procacci Bros. Sales Corp. in Philadelphia, where they will be stored until they are ready for delivery.
Twin Garden Sales Inc. is the exclusive distributor of the lemons in the Americas, Mr. Lambke noted.
The initial shipment will be half-bushel European cartons, primarily in the U.S. equivalent sizes of 75s, 95s, 115s and 140s, according to Mr. Lambke, who said that later shipments would include 165s and would be full-bushels cartons. "We expect to have a changeover to the full bushel box by late January, with alternate layer wrapping," he said.
While this first shipment will come into Port Elizabeth, future shipments may go into other ports, such as Wilmington, NC, Charleston, SC, and Jacksonville, FL. The company will be able to bring in as many as 15-20 loads per week, "depending on acceptance," he said.
And Mr. Lambke was optimistic that there would be high acceptance right from the start.
"This is a really fancy-grade lemon -- beyond a U.S. No. 1," he stated proudly. All the lemons except for the first shipment will be stickered with PLUs.
Initial distribution will be handled through wholesalers, "but we feel that acceptance will be so good because of the exceptional quality" that retailers will be very open to the new product.
As to the Turkish lemons competing in the marketplace with domestic product, Mr. Lambke stated, "We can compete hands down on quality."
The lemons are grown in the Izmir region of Turkey. If the lemons prove successful with the U.S. trade, Mr. Lambke said that Valencias and "thin- skinned Star Ruby grapefruit" may be available in future years.
