Savannah, GA-
By ANUK Staff
1.17.13
Giumarra International Berry, based out of California, brought its first shipment of South American-grown blueberries through the port of Savannah earlier this week.
“We’re excited to enter this new partnership, which highlights the Georgia Ports Authority’s commitment to the refrigerated cargo market,” said GPA Executive Director Curtis Foltz, according to savannahnow.com.
“Because of our direct interstate access, as well as having two Class I rail services on our facility, we can serve the Atlanta and Southeast regions more efficiently by importing this fresh produce directly through the Port of Savannah,” said Foltz.
Giumarra has been importing South American-grown berries since the late 90s and maintains a well-established farm network in Chile, Argentina, and other Central and South American countries, which allows the company to meet demand when North American production ceases.
“The Port of Savannah has a streamlined flow that is very fast and efficient,” said East Coast General Manager for Giumarra Alan Abe.
“We are looking forward to the upcoming Chilean blueberry season and we will have a complete Nature’s Partner program of blueberries from the Southern Hemisphere,” said Tom Richardson, VP of Global Development.
U.S. blueberry imports are rapidly increasing from the Southern Hemisphere, and are considered one of the hottest items in fresh produce, according to the USDA.
Exemplar of this trend are Chilean blueberry imports which have more than doubled in the last four years, increasing by $128 million.
