Plain Jane Produce, one of the largest greenhouse vegetable growers and suppliers in North America, has announced in a press release the launch of a new greenhouse operation in Nayarit, Mexico.
The 25-acre facility, which will soon expand to 250 acres, will allow the company to offer tomatoes to the North American market during the September through January period.
The new venture will also see Plain Jane expand its distribution reach with a new US import point in McAllen, Texas, giving the group easier access to markets in the eastern US for its tomatoes, peppers and seedless cucumbers.
The Nayarit expansion was made possible through US$40m in growth capital and an US$8m credit line secured by Plain Jane that allows for strategic growth of its farming operations.
“We have reached some impressive milestones over the past two years and we are looking to carry that momentum forward by using our recently secured capital,” said Alejandro Canelos Jr., Plain Jane’s founding partner and COO and a Tucson, Ariz. resident.
“We are pleased that amid a sluggish economy, where capital has been scarce, our continued success and business model prove attractive for international investors,” Mr Canelos Jr. added.
The expansion represents an increase in farming capacity of more than 30 per cent from current levels and enables Plain Jane to expand its greenhouse vegetable production to more than 8.6m cartons per year.
The Nayarit location joins Plain Jane’s current greenhouse operation in nearby Sinaloa, Mexico, a 750-acre covered greenhouse facility, which produces vegetables from December through June and employs more than 2,000 people.
