KINGSVILLE, ON - Scaling international growth is no small feat for trailblazing companies in the fresh produce industry—but it is an advantageous one. Expanding its prowess further onto the global stage in 2022, Mastronardi Produce^® is eyeing a new market in which to develop clusters of controlled agriculture partnerships and facilities—the first of which is Panama and an agreement with investment firm AgriCapital Holdings Corp. to support the development of a new Agropark.

“There is no question that we need to address the growing concern of food insecurity, and controlled environment agriculture (CEA) is a prime solution that is poised for rapid growth,” Dean Taylor, Vice President of Business Development for Mastronardi Produce Ltd, stated. “As leaders in the industry, we are continuously looking for opportunities to deliver more, sustainably-grown produce to people in an efficient way. That includes finding new markets and helping them develop with our support.”

The new Agropark Panama is one of the many continued efforts by Mastronardi to advance sustainable methods that meet the growing demand for fresh produce. Panama is a market that is well-positioned to deliver on growth expectations, according to a press release. This positioning includes an ideal geographic location and the Panama Canal’s Connectivity platform—which allows goods to reach major markets within four days by sea.

The fast-growing Latin American economy is already moving a significant volume of goods to the U.S., including bananas and pineapples.

“We could not find a better advisor and ally for our project,” said Juan Carlos Mastellari, Managing Partner, AgriCapital Holdings. “We admire the Mastronardi team and the magic they have done with the SUNSET^® brand.”

The vision behind Agropark Panama is multifaceted. To begin, it seeks to provide state-of-the-art infrastructure for farms that want to expand their growing operations but are confronting increasing limitations in the availability of labor for their CEA operations, the company noted.

AgriCapital will be leveraging Mastronardi’s insight and expertise for Agropark Panama—a project that is driven to be the first 100 percent clean energy agrologistics park in the world. In addition, this dynamic vision will help expand job creation in the rural areas of Panama and Central America.

Expansion on such a strategic front is just one way Mastronardi Produce generates increased value and stature in the fresh produce industry. And we look forward to seeing what else comes down the line in 2022.

Mastronardi Produce^® AgriCapital Holdings Corp.