Camposol is set to significantly extend its marketing window for avocados this year through link-ups with producers in Kenya, Mexico, Colombia and Guatemala. The company announced on Friday that it was looking at establishing strategic partnerships in order to diversify into new production zones and offer its clients greater security of supply. It already works with Chile’s Agricom supplying grapes, citrus and blueberries in addition to avocados.
Eventually, the firm says around 50 per cent of its avocado volume will come from its own farms in northern Peru and the remainder from international partnerships.
“For this purpose, we will work with strategic partners who have a company philosophy similar to that of Camposol, focused on the aspects of quality, social responsibility and ecology,” the company said, adding that it was also studying the possibility of investing directly in other countries.
The company said it would work closely with producer partners to achieve a complete integration that will cover long-term marketing contracts, support in obtaining the GlobalGAP certification, funding for fertilisers and seeds, and advisory regarding field management.
“Producer partners may benefit from a secure marketing platform and partake in the logistical advantages due to the favourable conditions the company obtains from service providers. In this manner, the concept of strategic partnerships will be beneficial for Camposol as well as for its producer partners and clients,” the company said.
Announcing its participation in next month’s Fruit Logistica, Camposol said product diversification was also a focus for 2014, particularly in blueberries where it plans to increase production to approximately 30,000 tonnes in the next three years. At the end of last year, it launched a US$100m blueberry investment plan to expand acreage to 2,000ha by 2016.
The company will send a team of 15 people to Berlin, including representatives from its head office in Lima and from its sales office in the Netherlands. Francesca Carnesella, Camposol’s corporate affairs manager, will be giving a presentation on water scarcity at the conference which runs alongside the trade fair.
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