Limoneira Invests in Chilean Packing House
SANTA PAULA, CA – Limoneira Company has invested $1.75 million for a 35% interest in “Rosales S.A.,” a citrus packing, marketing and sales operation in La Serena, Chile. This marks the company’s first international business investment.
Harold Edwards, President and Chief Executive Officer, said, "With its favorable climate for lemons and other citrus, we have been looking for the right opportunity to enter the Chilean agriculture market for some time and are very pleased with our partnership with Rosales. Our investment in Rosales is consistent with our long-term strategy to expand our agribusiness internationally as a global, year round supplier of lemons.”
Edwards added, “Our business will benefit from our increased packing capacity following our Rosales investment, as well as our recently announced acquisition of Marlin packing house in Yuma, Arizona, and the expansion of our packing facility in Santa Paula, which will be completed next fiscal year. Our team also continues to evaluate strategic opportunities to acquire additional agribusiness acreage in both domestic and international markets."
La Serena is located in a coastal region of northern Chile and is a major citrus and avocado growing area of the country. Rosales primarily packs and sells lemons and sells its produce into Asian, European and Chilean markets. With this investment, Limoneira will handle Rosales’ lemon sales to Asian markets, according to a press release.
Alex Teague, Senior Vice President, stated, "We are excited about our first international business investment. Our management team has a long-standing relationship with Rosales, and we look forward to working with them more closely following our investment. Along with expanding our participation in the growing global lemon business, this investment also enables Limoneira to better evaluate future potential investment opportunities in Chile's vast, productive agricultural properties."
Limoneira made the investment through its wholly owned Chilean subsidiary, Limoneira Chile SpA.
