Former Keelings (UK) Ltd and Janic (Import-Export) Ltd managing director Terry Watts introduced his new venture to the industry at Fruit Logistica last week.

Vidafresh is to initially specialise in melons and pineapples, going operational from March 1.

The firm, which is part owned by the Dutch company Hispafruit BV and other producers, will source melons from growers in a number of countries including both Central and South America, Spain, Morocco, Egypt, Italy, Israel, Hungary, France, Greece and Turkey. The focus on pineapples will be in Costa Rica, through the 4,000-hectare, Hispa Fruit-owned Agromonte plantation.

Other produce lines such as citrus, grapes, mangoes, bananas and salads will be added to the portfolio once the company is up and running.

Watts, now Vidafresh managing director, stood down as managing director of Keelings (UK) Ltd at the end of June 2009 after a 10-year partnership with the Keelings family. He told freshinfo: “The business model we have created is the perfect link for clients who wish to be as close to the grower as possible, but without the proven problems and pitfalls of working together directly. In turn, it is attractive to the growers, as with our wide and diverse customer base we are in the position of being able to offer total crop management by taking a full range of sizes, which is fundamentally important to any producer.

“It’s a win-win situation for the grower and the client. There will be more grower partners involved who see our vision for the future. We will have a very low cost operation, with initially no more than five or six people on the team. We will be extremely cost effective as we will not have the burden of a costly packing facility, as we aim to supply as much as we can directly to the client. We will be able to add value to any business, but adding value is not just about price.

“Some companies make things far more complicated than they need to be, but we want to keep it simple, strip out any unnecessary costs and identify how the relationship between the grower and end client can be greatly improved by having open dialogue about each other’s objectives - basically, it’s all about trust, understanding and communication.”

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