Vegpro

News And Media

Business updates: Quebec Produce

Posted by:Émilie Chenevier, Thursday, March 25, 2010

The Packer – Cynthia David – June 25, 2010

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QPMA and CPMA join forces on French PLUs

Importers shipping produce to Quebec with bilingual Price Look-Up stickers can now consult a list of French names approved by the Quebec Produce Marketing Association and the Canadian Produce Marketing Association.

The 25-page bilingual list, which should be posted on both websites by the end of June, took months to compile and is extremely detailed, said QPMA executive director Sophie Perreault. The project is in response to PLU questions both organizations have received.

A crisis communications committee formed last year has completed its plan for Quebec’s fresh and processed fruit and vegetables.

“This plan will help our industry be proactive and allow all players in the chain to act as real partners to rapidly resolve crises, minimize their impact, reassure the public and protect the reputations we work so hard to earn on a daily basis,” Perreault said.

Perreault sits on the committee with Andre Plante of the Quebec Produce Growers Association and Patrice Juneau of the Union of Agricultural Producers.

Depending on the situation, Perreault said committee members will join forces with the heads of any sector affected by a crisis and share their expertise.

Vegpro adds acreage for spinach, lettuce

An alliance with CAMS Inc., a vegetable grower in Sherrington, Quebec, in March gives Vegpro International, Sherrington, much needed extra land for its Fresh Attitude baby lettuce and spinach production, said executive vice president Anthony Fantin.

“CAMS’ 1,200 acres was already neighboring a lot of our land,” Fantin said. “The merger assures us of continual growth in lettuce acreage since we’re short of land in Canada.”

Fantin said CAMS will continue to be a major carrot and onion producer in eastern and central Canada.

Vegpro’s biggest challenge now, he said, is to integrate land allocation and growing practices and manage the influx of people.

Fantin said Vegpro is also expanding its packing plant in Sherrington this fall to 100,000 square feet, and renovating its plant in Belle Glade, Fla.

This spring, the company was awarded Best Product at the 2010 Canadian Produce Marketing Association convention in Vancouver, British Columbia, for its four new Fresh Attitude ready-to-eat salads with a resealable film. Two more kits are in the works, Fantin said.

Vegpro has also received the 2010 Canadian Export Business Award From SIAL in Montreal, the Canadian arm of the Salon International de l’Agroalimentaire based in France.

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