NOGALES, AZ - With Southeast Produce Council's (SEPC) Southern Innovations in the works, you need to know which booths to add to your must-see list. Let me add Divine Flavor to the ranks, especially as the company brings a spectacular showcase across multiple lines.

“We’ll be showcasing a variety of our specialty grapes such as Gummyberries™, Jellyberries™, the fan-favorite Cotton Candy™, and AUTUMNCRISP® from Sun World, which is one of the hottest/newer green seedless varieties on the market,” Alán Aguirre Camou, Chief Marketing Officer, shared with me. “In addition to our specialty grapes, we will have a variety of veg items such as hothouse-colored bell peppers, squash/zucchini, tomatoes, and cucumbers. Our snacking tomato, MAGNIFICO—which is the SWEETTELLE variety—is one of the sweetest and most delicious tomatoes we grow at Divine Flavor.”

Due to advanced growing practices and greenhouse innovation techniques, the company’s farms are able to produce this tomato to the highest quality standards. Although SWEETTELLE is a common tomato variety in the industry, the MAGNIFICO is unique to Divine Flavor as its full potential is unlocked as its farms put in the extra effort to produce the perfect snacking tomato.

“It’s important for the buyers to be aware of our six-pillar company philosophy, which focuses on outstanding quality/flavor, top-notch food safety, ethical and social responsibility programs, transparency through cutting-edge traceability systems, and a true commitment to organic and sustainable growing practices,” Alán added. “A few years back, our company created a Better Grower Program (BGP), an initiative dedicated to assisting our grower community to improve and be evaluated to become 'better growers.' We understand that many produce companies in today’s industry use terms such as 'food safety,' 'organics,' and 'sustainability.' Our approach is to take these terms and put them into action.”

Ultimately, this effort gives retailers and their customers a more consistent, year-round supply.

In addition to high-quality programs and surety of supply, Divine Flavor is always on the lookout for additional opportunities to support its partners.

“Our programs across all our product offerings are constantly growing. We are establishing more growing territory in various parts of Mexico to expand our product range of veg items on a year-round basis,” Alán explained. “On table grapes, we have branched out further into South America and newer parts of Mexico beyond the traditional Sonora table grape season. As our brand becomes more global, this has given Divine Flavor the opportunity to make relationships outside our typical growing windows, allowing us to service our customers for longer periods of the year. Our goal is to seriously lead on the categories that we commit to moving forward.”

From its founding, the company has worked strategically to make sure it is doing right by its growing partners and its customers.

“Since the late ‘80s, Divine Flavor has been dedicated to producing fruits and vegetables the most natural way, becoming one of the first organic producers from Mexico at that time. Our motto, 'Growing Better Food for a Better World' stems from our devotion to producing in a manner that treats the land and people with respect,” Alán noted. “As we turned into a global brand, it’s important for our company to be present at shows like Southern Innovations to have transparency with our customers and showcase our true values. Thanks to our founders before Divine Flavor, Grupo Alta, they have paved the way for other growers within the group which has elevated the Divine Flavor brand into the company it is today.”

Be sure to stop booth #103 to learn more from the team in person!