The Oppenheimer group has announced in a press release that it will begin shipping California-grown Valencia and Navel oranges and lemons in early May under a new deal with Golden Maid Packers of Strathmore, Calif., which will see domestically-grown citrus appear for the first time with the Oppenheimer brand.
“The global citrus category is very dynamic right now,” said John Anderson, Oppenheimer’s chairman, president and CEO. “Adding domestic fruit to our repertoire enables us to market a wide range of citrus with an integrated approach, serving our customers with year-round access to preferred varieties.”
Oppenheimer is well known for building the Japanese mandarin orange market in western Canada and the Pacific Northwest well over a century ago, and has long been a source of Australian navel oranges and other varieties.
More recently, the company has focused on strategically building its citrus volume and assortment, which now comprises fruit from Argentina, Australia, Chile, Japan, Korea, Morocco, Peru, Spain, and California.
“About three years ago, we saw the US becoming more accommodating to import citrus, just as plantings of popular varieties, like clementines and W. Murcotts began to increase globally,” explained James Milne, director of Oppenheimer’s citrus category. “As we developed our import program, we have been seeking the right opportunity to complement it with domestic fruit.
“Golden Maid’s citrus volume is a logical accompaniment to our shared stone fruit program,” added Mr Milne. “In addition, the facility is located not far from our Central Valley grape growers, which could create shipping efficiencies for our customers. We are also considering taking advantage of this top-notch operation by consolidating our domestic and summer import citrus fruit there, and custom packing to order at Golden Maid.”
