Ayco Daniel Ramirez Van Hoorde

Ayco Farms has appointed Daniel Ramirez Van Hoorde as general manager at its new office in Irapuato, Guanajuato as part of the company’s strategic plan to improve the service it offers its customers and boost its presence in western US markets.

Ramirez has spent his entire career in production agriculture most recently serving as COO of Indigo Growers where he was responsible for investment in greenhouses, packing areas, production systems and food safety programmes, as well as marketing grape tomatoes and bell peppers.

“Daniel has the perfect background to run our team in Mexico,” said Avi Nir, CEO of the Pompano Beach, Florida-based company. “He brings a broad and diverse base of experience in both business and production areas. From putting together greenhouse projects to logistics to marketing, he has been involved in all facets of the industry. He is a team builder and a team player.”

Ayco’s Mexico operation encompasses both greenhouse and open field production. Products include coloured greenhouse bell peppers, cucumbers, broccoli and asparagus.

“My mainobjectives are to partner with growers in the marketing process and for food safety programmes,” Ramirez said. “We must have exactly whatour customersare demanding. It is my job to guide and qualifyeach grower operation to ensure we are growing safe, quality products.This will lead us to achieve our goals as growers andas a distributor.”

Ramirez said he hoped to accomplish Ayco’s goals through leading a powerful team in Mexico. “One of the reasons I have been successful in my career is my ability to build teams,” he explained. “Teams are powerful when you have the right members and this is a priority task for me. We are looking for regional managers in each key growing area to help us achieve our goals.”

Ayco’s latest expansion is aimed at continuing to add value and service for clients. According to Nir, the company’s Mexican operation serves as a bridge for a larger Ayco presence in the Western US marketplace.

“This, in addition to other recently announced Ayco developments, keeps us on our strategically defined path to meet the evolving needs of our customer base,” he said.