Lots of flavour and up to 800 jobs

Deika Morrison, Contributor

Originally, Trade Winds Citrus lands were planted out primarily in sugar cane, although the company was not a sugar producer. Keen observers of global trends, the company took note of Florida's difficulties with the freeze of 1983 and 1985. That was the opportunity to grow and export oranges.

In a move that displaced cane, the company increased its acreage in citrus and made investments in machinery and equipment to prepare fresh fruit for export. Quality oranges that did not make it to export because of size, look or other requirements provided an opportunity to diversify into value-added agro-processing. In 1991, the juice business was born with premium chilled Orange Juice Tru-Juice and the culturally popular box juice under the Freshhh brand.

Managing Director Peter McConnell believes in investing in knowledge of global trends, consumer preferences and product innovation. It is more than taking advantage of the Florida freezes. Knowledge of global health trends brought the 'No sugar added' and '100% juice' formulations and labels. Trade Winds Citrus has some 36 different beverages under the Freshh, Tru-Juice, Wakefield, Tru-Tea and Calico Jack brands that McConnell will quickly tell you were requested by customers like you and me.

Open to suggestions

The newest addition, the chilled rum punch Calico Jack, is an old family recipe made every year by McConnell for friends who insisted they just had to have it for an annual party. Have a suggestion? McConnell is all ears. Having invested in a puree plant, adding flavours is a priority for the company.

Tru-Juice premium chilled juice was a first of its kind for local manufacturing in Jamaica. One would ask: why a line of premium chilled juices if short shelf lives create limitations to distri-bution? The answer to McConnell is easy. Because there was enough of an opportunity to serve a market need for a new innovative product that could compete on taste. With all its perceived limitations, you can find Tru-Juice in every corner of Jamaica as long as there is a fridge, and in nearby Barbados and Cayman, and even as far away as the United Kingdom. Not content to accept this shelf-life challenge, McConnell found a viable solution to extend shelf life by manu-facturing concentrates. Concentrates are made during the crop season by removing 85 per cent of the water and storing the more concentrated juice in frozen drums for use out of crop time when fresh fruit are not available.

This investment in knowledge has mini-mised seasonal chal-lenges as the company has concentrates not only for its own use for local sales, but also export sales as concentrates allow the product to be made closer to the market. To serve the North American market, these concentrates are exported from Jamaica and blended and bottled at a facility in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where the company has a co-packaging agreement. McConnell is monitoring this aspect of the business closely, eager to replicate the model in other locations.

As an integrated company, Trade Winds Citrus is self-sufficient in citrus, but also buys from farmers to satisfy other market opportunities. When the local cooperative did not open last year, the company bought what the farmers had. With a range of flavours to create, Trade Winds Citrus diversified into other crops, but small farmers can sell their carrots, sorrel petals, mangoes and June plum to Trade Winds Citrus for processing. And farmers, take note: Trade Winds Citrus cannot get enough pineapple, soursop or West Indian cherry. It is important to note, too, that it is more than farmers who have now gained opportunities. Think of the reapers, truckers and packaging suppliers who all generate business from agro-processing.

In terms of employment, Trade Winds Citrus has 100 people in sales/distribution, 300 people in manufacturing and, at the peak, 800 people in agriculture. Despite the extreme weather events where for days sales are depressed because perishables are not a priority consumable in a storm, and when crops are lost - like 30 per cent of the sorrel in Tropical Storm Nicole - the company has not approached either the recession or the weather challenges with cutbacks or redundancies, and has maintained its normal hiring cycle.

Deika Morrision is managing director of Ndk Advisory and Consulting Ltd. She is compiling a catalogue of products made in Jamaica, as well as other services. See Jamaiacatalogue.com. Follow Deika on Twitter.

Facts to note:

Employment: Sales/distribution 100; manufacturing 300; agriculture at peak 800

Direct opportunities for small farmers, packaging, reapers and others

Export: Barbados, Cayman, United Kingdom. Concentrate blended and bottled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Products:

Freshhh Drink: Fruit Punch, Lemon Lime, Orange Pine, Pineapple

Freshhh Juice: Cherry, Fruit Punch, Guava Pineapple, Orange, Pineapple

Tru-Juice No Sugar Added: Apple, Fruit, Orange, Ortanique, Pineapple

Tru-Juice Premium: Cherry, Fruit Punch, Guava Pineapple, Mango Carrot, Mango Orange Pine, Orange, Orange Pineapple, Pineapple

Tru-Juice Seasonal: June Plum, Soursop, Tamarind, Sorrel,

Tru-Juice Berry: Cranberry Apple, Cranberry

Tru-Tea: Iced Teas with Pomegranate, Lime, Peach

Calico Jack Rum Punch

Wakefield Select Fruit Punch, Orange, Pineapple; Wakefield Cherry.