We have two interesting and informative field tours planned for Southern Exposure 2012.  Note that check in for the tours will be in the lobby of the Marriott Waterside Hotel starting at 7:00 a.m. on Friday March 2.

The motor coaches will load from in front of the Marriott and will depart sharply at 8:00 a.m. Lunch will be served at Wish Farms.


Tour Stop I



Del Monte Fresh Port Manatee

Fresh Del Monte is one of the world's leading vertically integrated producers, marketers and distributors of high-quality fresh and fresh-cut fruit and vegetables, as well as a leading producer and distributor of prepared fruit and vegetables, juices, beverages, snacks and desserts in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Fresh Del Monte markets its fresh products worldwide under the Del Monte® brand, a symbol of product quality, freshness and reliability for more than 100 years.
Port Manatee is Fresh Del Monte Produce’s second largest U. S. port facility.
Port Manatee is one of Florida’s largest and fastest growing deep-water seaports. Located in the eastern Gulf of Mexico at the entrance to Tampa Bay, Port Manatee is the closest U.S. deep-water seaport to the Panama Canal – providing shippers with speedy access to Pacific Rim markets.


The port and its partners move approximately 9 million tons of containerized, break-bulk, bulk and project cargo each year including fresh produce, forestry products, petroleum products, citrus juice products, fertilizer, steel, aluminum, automobiles, cement, aggregate and more.
As a leading economic engine, Port Manatee adds more than $2.3 billion dollars annually in regional economic impact and supports more than 24,000 jobs.

Tour Stop II



Wish Farms, founded in 1922, is the largest grower and shipper in Florida and has been for over 50 years. Nationally recognized for quality and innovation, Wish Farms is a year round supplier that represents over 2,000 acres of strawberries, shipping over 4 million flats. In addition, Wish Farms ships 6 million pounds of blueberries and over 1 million packages of vegetables a year.  
 
Our flagship growing operation in Duette, FL began in 1987 and controls over 1,500 acres, employing over 1,000 workers. From the north side of our property to the southern tip, the land stretches four miles. Wish Farms has the largest contiguous strawberry production outside of California with 600 acres of strawberries – 125 being organic. We also grow over 100 acres of bell peppers and other crops, including melons. From mid-April through May and from November to December, our bell pepper packing line is run out of this location.  During the rest of the year, peppers are packed and shipped from our Pine Island farm.
 

Wish Farms utilizes FreshQC™, a patented tool for traceability that provides specific information of each individual package of produce. Data such as grower, field, picker, time of harvest, variety, planting date, nursery source and more is stored electronically and can be accessed by the grower as needed. With our variable-printed QR codes, the consumer can scan their package of produce and provide feedback on our mobile website.
 
Wish Farms developed an extensive scientific approach to forecast weekly volumes. Combining information received from our growers in the field with the scientific data collection performed by our team, we are able to determine an effective sales strategy. In addition to this, we are the only strawberry shipper in Florida with the ability to process strawberries.   Because of this differentiating factor, our customers and retailers can always be assured fresh and premium produce. Wish Farms’ processing facilities are HACCP certified and we certify all produce from our farming operations through Primus GFSI. 

 
For more information about Wish Farms, please visit wishfarms.com or facebook.com/wishfarms