Del Monte Pacific, Nice Fruit and Ferville to build cold storage facility, Philippines

Del Monte Pacific has approved a joint venture with Spanish fruit company Nice Fruit and investment firm Ferville to build a modern cold storage facility in the Philippines.

The new facility will use Nice Fruit’s patented technology Nice Frozen Dry (NFD), which lets fruits, vegetables and produce, be picked at its optimal ripeness and frozen for up to three years, while preserving its nutrients, structure, original properties and organoleptic characteristics, including taste, sight, smell and touch.

Based in Barcelona, Spain, Nice Fruit is a global company that produces and distributes fruits and vegetables.

Ferville is a minority financial investor responsible for carrying out joint ventures.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, Del Monte said: “It is envisaged that the joint venture will process, market and sell the Nice Fruit frozen products to various countries in the world. Nice Fruit, Del Monte and Ferville will have 51%, 35% and 14% shareholdings respectively in the joint venture.”

The disclosure further stated that the technology won the prestigious SIAL Innovation Awards – the Catering and Food Service Award this year at the Salon International de l’alimentation (SIAL), or the Global Food Marketplace, as well as five awards at the Alimentaria International Salon in Barcelona.

GMA News quoted Del Monte COO Luis Alejandro as saying: “We will start with pineapples using the same variety we export fresh today under the S&W brand to Asia Pacific and the Middle East.

“The technology is patented and there is no loss, if not minimal, in organoleptic properties when the products are thawed.”

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Image: The cold storage facility can freeze fresh strawberries and other produce for three years. Photo courtsey of Rakratchada torsap via Freedigitalphotos.net.