Four leading berry producers—MBG Marketing (MBG), a Michigan-based blueberry grower; Hortifrut S.A. (HF), a berry-growing corporation based in Santiago, Chile; Munger Brothers Farms (MB) in Delano, Calif.; and Pan-American Berry Growers LLC (PBG) of Salem, Ore.—have banded together to form Naturipe Foods LLC, a value-added berry marketing company.

In a statement, the new company said the joint venture would leverage the brand strength of sister fresh-pack company Naturipe Farms and would “constitute the largest grower-owned producer and marketer of value-added berries in North America”.

The firm said the venture would annually grow, process and source the largest market share of blueberries available in North America and would have significant reach in other berries, including blackberries, raspberries and strawberries.

There are over 1,000 grower-owners in the organization, with locations from Chile to Canada. These various locations and growing seasons allow Naturipe Foods to offer customers berry products at their peak, year-round, the company said.

Naturipe Foods will be launching a new company web site in the summer of 2008 that it claims will continue to enhance its relationships with its customers.

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