Seen and heard at GOPEX 2025 — Part 8

AVENTURA, Fla. — Organic trends were in the spotlight at GOPEX 2025, and whether non-browning apples, juice to go, ready-to-eat lettuce or other advancements, exhibitors showcased the flavor and experiences driving organic produce trends.

“Today we're focusing on highlighting how Wholesum organic produce is grown for good flavor, good health and good livelihood — 100% organic, sustainably grown, fair trade certified,” said Joanna Jaramillo with Wholesum.

“One of our biggest highlights is the experience," she said. "We want to focus on flavor when it comes to our products and you can see that through what we're featuring today our organic greenhouse-grown tomatoes.”

In addition, Jaramillo said she was featuring the company's specialty snacking tomato lines, such as mixed medley tomatoes, high-flavor grape tomatoes, cherry tomatoes-on-the-vine and mixed cherry tomatoes-on-the-vine.

“These all highlight a good, flavorful experience for the consumer," she said. "We just want to elevate that experience for the organic line.”

Hannah Emerson with Misionero was excited to discuss the Gonzales, Calif., grower's new products.

“One of our newer items, our 28-ounce wash-and-trim romaine heart bag is doing great in the retail space right now," Emerson said. "Another product we really love is our 5-ounce red butter clamshell. And our wash-and-trim lineup is pretty much our favorite thing that we do. It does very well in the retail space — people love it. There's a lot of yield and zero percent waste. It's washed and ready to eat, and you can open the clamshell and put the lettuce right into a sandwich or anything that you'd like.”

Isabel Hurtado with Ecoripe Tropicals Inc. said she was showcasing three main products at GOPEX: organic brown coconuts from India, local organic star fruit from Florida and organic ginger from Peru.

Hurtado said the company works with evenly with wholesale distributors and with retailers.

“At GOPEX, we're looking to connect with retailers," she said. "We're always looking for more national retail sales.”

Arctic Apples are non-browning sliced apples out of Washington state with a 28-day shelf life, available in fuji, golden and granny smith varieties, said Andrew Moore.

“We sell the apples in different slices and different cuts and bag sizes," he said. "They're great for cafeteria, snacking and salad bars."

Moore said he hoped to connect with retailers and restaurants at GOPEX.

Becki Rollins with Pompeii Juices was eager to introduce GOPEX attendees to Pompeii Juice Slenders, each package containing 1 teaspoon of 100% lemon juice.

Rollins said these juice-to-go packets are ideal for adding to water or for cooking.

Of whom Rollins hoped to connect with at the expo, “Definitely connect with those in foodservice,” she said.

Enrique Moreno with Frank's Distributing said the company is a year-round grower, shipper, packer and distributor of mostly mini peppers and colored bell peppers, plus organic and conventional grape tomatoes.

“This year we're going to harvest organic zucchinis as well," Moreno said. "We saw a demand in the market for organic zucchinis.

“We also ramped up production of mini peppers this year, so we have a very good volume," he added. "Fruit is looking good too.”

Anna Kirsch with Calavo said the company was founded as the original avocado company in North America.

“We are a leading supplier of avocados," Kirsch said. "We have strong programs, offshore as well as Mexico and California, and we're the leader in fair trade avocados. We're just happy to be here at GOPEX.”

Your next read:

• Seen and heard at GOPEX 2025 — Part 1
• Seen and heard at GOPEX 2025 — Part 2
• Seen and heard at GOPEX 2025 — Part 3
• Seen and heard at GOPEX 2025 — Part 4
• Seen and heard at GOPEX 2025 — Part 5
• Seen and heard at GOPEX 2025 — Part 6
• Seen and heard at GOPEX 2025 — Part 7
• Consumers want value, health benefits when shopping
• How retailers are driving organic produce and sustainability