Progressive Produce Division Keystone Fruit Marketing Prepares to Transition from Peruvian to Mexican Mayan Sweets; Matthew Gideon Comments
GREENCASTLE, PA - Few events showcase demand and loyalty to an item and a partnership like a season with peaks and valleys. Keystone Fruit Marketing, a division of Progressive Produce, is gearing up to transition to Mexican Mayan Sweets and bringing its Peruvian sweet onion season to a finish for the year.
“While this season has presented some challenges due to unusual weather patterns and a disproportionate number of small onions, Keystone has adapted to ensure a consistent supply of high-quality sweet onions for its customers,” commented Matthew Gideon, Onion Category Manager for Keystone Fruit Marketing.
The Peruvian sweet onion season, which the company said in a press release is a cornerstone of its year-round program, typically runs from late July through March, with peak supply from September to December, aligning both with back to school and holiday season promotions.
Despite Mother Nature's unpredictability, Keystone said that it has maintained its commitment to delivering top-tier sweet onions.
"The usual promotional periods are around the winter holidays, but we have found that our retail partners also have success in promoting sweet onions around holidays all year long. Another thing is to be flexible on the onion size and bagged onion volume amount. Being flexible could provide spot opportunities for margin gains at the consumer level," Gideon stated, adding that, to support its customers' success, Keystone has found offering both bulk and consumer packs of sweet onions is highly effective.
As the Peruvian sweet onion season nears its conclusion, Keystone eagerly anticipates the start of the Mexican sweet onion season mid-January.
Early indications suggest an excellent crop, and Keystone anticipates ample marketable supplies of Mexican sweet onions through April, along with a full line of onion varieties, including red, white, yellow, and its flat sweet onions for 2024.
"Bringing high-quality onions from our growers to our retail partners' stores is what we love to do at Keystone!" Gideon said, concluding that Keystone values its relationships with its growers and customers, priding itself on the integrity it carries through all those relationships.
Keystone's Mayan Sweets are well-recognized as a respected and established brand. Among the world's best-known sweet onions, its long and delicious history with the brand goes back to the early 1990s. Today, Keystone Fruit Marketing remains one of the largest importers of sweet onions from Peru into the United States, now with grower partners in multiple regions, including Washington, California, Mexico, Texas, and Georgia.
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