Vanguard International is pleased to announce its wholly owned subsidiary, Vanguard Direct LLC, has been chosen by Sun World Innovations as one of a group of select companies chosen to market and sell its proprietary grape varieties in North America.

Sun World International announced on May 23^rd its decision to focus on genetics and breeding through Sun World Innovations and chose ten companies to have licenses to distribute and market Sun World’s varieties, including Vanguard Direct.

“We are thrilled to partner with Sun World Innovations to bring these great tasting grape varieties to market,” says Craig Stauffer, CEO, Vanguard International. “This is an exciting next step for our world-class grape growing program in Peru, where we look to grow, pack, market, and deliver to our customers around the world the highest quality and most flavorable grape varieties available.”

Sun World grape varieties from our production in Peru will include:

• AUTUMNCRISP®:  Offers an unmatched eating experience with jumbo green seedless berries, crisp-juicy texture, and a sweet flavor that has subtle hints of Muscat.
• ADORA SEEDLESS®:  The “two-bite grape” boasting jumbo/giant size berries, as well as excellent firmness, color, and a sweet juicy flavor.
• MIDNIGHT BEAUTY®:  Extra-large elongated berries with firm texture and exceptionally sweet flavor.

“With all these new varieties coming to market, freshness is hugely important which makes our continued developments at our packing house in Peru crucial to our operation,” says Dirk Winkelmann, Business Development Officer, Vanguard International and Vanguard Direct’s President. “The packing house gives us the capability to temperature control the grape reception area which means that the team gets the fruit out of the field and into a controlled environment quickly.”

The selling and marketing of grapes grown on Vanguard’s Peru ranches is handled in North America by Vanguard Direct. Located in Bakersfield, CA, the team consists of Gene Coughlin (Vice President, Sales), Shawn Caldwell (Sales Manager), and Denise Smith (Sales Support Manager).

Vanguard Direct is proud to commit to the campaign message “We own it”, taking great pride in ownership of our ranches and pack house.

About Vanguard International

Founded in 1991, Vanguard is a leading global vertically-integrated fresh fruit growing, packing, marketing, and sales organization headquartered in Issaquah, Washington, USA, with branch offices in Wapato, Washington; Bakersfield, California; Lima, Peru; Ica, Peru: Santiago, Chile; Stellenbosch, South Africa; Shanghai, China; Taipei, Taiwan; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Jakarta, Indonesia; and Madrid, Spain.

www.vanguardfresh.com