New Southwestern Distribution Center by Mastronardi Produce (SUNSET® brand)

Mastronardi Produce, one of greenhouse pioneers that grows and markets fresh vegetables under the SUNSET® brand, announced the opening of a new facility. A new 185,000 square foot facility is located in Laredo, Texas, adjacent to the company's current distribution center.

The new facility will be three times larger than the old location, and will be featured with an upgraded, modern operating system for inventory tracking, customer fulfillment, receiving, shipping and produce tracking from farms to consumers. With multi-temp cooling zones at new site, it is possible to store newer company's commodities, which require a variety of temperature control, such as berries and lettuce. Equally important, the new facility will bring additional value-added packing for the company in the South, shortening transportation times and providing direct shipments of fresh  SUNSET produce to customers in that region. With 78 dock doors, cross-docking speed and efficiency will also significantly increase at the new facility.

Paul Mastronardi, President and CEO of Mastronardi Produce, commented Laredo has been a very important location for them for many years, but they have outgrown their old facility. “With this new facility, we are significantly increasing our ability to efficiently service customers across the Southern region of the U.S. with the freshest, highest quality SUNSET produce,” he said.

The facility's strategical location close to the World Trade Bridge, which carries most of Mexico's national produce, makes it ideal for efficient transportation. Mastronardi has already begun using the new facility for cross-dock transfers and expects the facility to be operational within 90 days.

According to John Hemeon, Chief Operating Officer at the company, Mastronardi Produce is always striving to optimize its nationwide distribution center network and improve its operations. Today the company has nine distribution centers with over one million square feet of cooled warehouse and distribution space. The expanded omnichannel facility also allows the company to better meet the increased consumer demand and provide even more value in the face of the changes in retail and food service caused by the pandemic challenges and its aftermath.

Mastronardi Produce is one of pioneers and industry leaders in the gourmet greenhouse industry, grows and markets nationally recognized products under the SUNSET® brand, including Angel Sweet®, Flavor Bombs® and Campari® tomatoes. Family-owned for over 70 years, the company prides itself on producing berries and vegetables, such as tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers.

More information on company’s website.