By Keith Loria
April 12, 2022
Southern Specialties is a grower, importer, processor and shipper located in Pompano Beach, FL. The company imports a majority of its produce from the Americas, so it’s connection to Florida spring produce comes from its home for the most part. “What brought us to the table 31 years ago was our expertise in growing specialties in Guatemala,” said Charlie Eagle, vice president of business and development for Southern Specialties. “Today, we grow, source and ship product from 10 countries in locations that include South America, Central America, Mexico, the U.S. and Canada.” The company does deal with a number of Florida-grown items that are Florida sourced of course, and is excited to offer all of its products for what is expected to be a busy spring season. “Our Florida location is ideally situated in South Florida, which is a gateway to the U.S. for a wide variety of fresh produce that finds its way on the shelves of the finest retailers and club stores, and on the tables of homes and restaurants ranging from quick-serve to white-tablecloth,” Eagle said. And spring is the perfect time to pick up some of its top produce items. “When we think of spring, we think of Easter, Passover, Lent and Ramadan,” Eagle said. “This time of year, customers may be able to find Florida-grown blueberries or fresh Florida-grown green beans among our menu that includes up to 300 SKUs.” Recently, Southern Specialties attended SEPC’s Southern Exposure show, and it enabled the company to meet and greet a large community of customers. Eagle looks forward to being able to see more people throughout the year at scheduled industry trade shows and other events. The company has been pleased with the demand for its Southern Selects value-added products — available in a pack style for each consumer’s needs — which include French bean, fresh Mexican asparagus and Peruvian asparagus. Southern Specialties has also continued to make investments in its facility, allowing it to offer more services to its customers, such as increased temperature-controlled storage, ripening capabilities, cross-dock capabilities, and processing. “We’re finding that those services are being utilized more, and bringing in more customers to take advantage of those services,” Eagle said.