October 24th, 2017 Kingsville, Ontario —Mucci Farms announces the completion of Phase 2 of their 36-Acre strawberry farm expansion and subsequently announces that Phase 3 construction is underway with production to begin in the Fall of 2018. The full project will total 36-Acres, equivalent to over 1.5 million square feet of high tech glass exclusively growing strawberries—the largest in North America. "Our strawberry program is being met with a great deal of enthusiasm from current and potential retail partners because of our emphasis on premium flavour and consistent supply,” explains Danny Mucci, VP of Sales and Marketing.
Since partnering with Dutch Growers Ton Bastiaansen and Joost van Oers in January of 2016, Mucci Farms has seen accelerated growth and a greater demand for greenhouse grown strawberries. “Overwhelming is the best way I can describe how our Smuccies™️ are being received. Super sweet, clean, on the shelf within 24 hours of harvest and grown in an environment that is unaffected by inclement weather,” says Joe Spano, Vice President of Sales and Marketing. “Even better, they are grown locally in Ontario so that consumers can enjoy summer-fresh strawberries during the holiday season.”
Marketed under the Smuccies™️ Sweet Strawberries brand, Mucci Farms' strawberries are an Award Winning triple threat, recognized by multiple industry associations for Best Packaging, Best New Fruit and Best Kid-Centric product. The momentum continued this past weekend at the Product Marketing Association’s Fresh Summit Conference & Expo in New Orleans. After being a finalist for 3 consecutive years in the Sensory Experience Contest, Mucci Farms won the Kids Choice Award for their Smuccies™️ Layered Strawberry & Mango Dip.
Phase Three of the expansion will include state of the art lit culture technology, allowing Mucci Farms to offer strawberries during the winter months locally grown using lit culture. A technology they are well experienced with, Mucci Farms owns over 200 acres of greenhouses, 30 of which are currently growing lettuce, tomatoes and cucumbers year round.
“As with all of our new greenhouses, the new 24-acres of strawberries will also include the use of diffused glass which reduces stress on the plants by providing even sunlight,” says Bert Mucci, CEO at Mucci Farms. “We will continue to use high pressure fogging systems to cool down the greenhouse in the hotter months and also install the swing gutter system which allows for the number of maximum plants per square meter.”
A ceremonial ribbon cutting to celebrate the first harvest from the Phase 2 expansion will take place at 684 Road 2 East, in Kingsville on Thursday, October 26th at 10:30 am. Media passes for the ribbon cutting event can be obtained by emailing media@muccifarms.com. CEO Bert Mucci, Vice Presidents of Sales and Marketing Danny Mucci & Joe Spano, Vice President of Operations Gianni Mucci, and CFO Mat Walsh will be available for interviews after the ribbon cutting. Media will also be given an opportunity to take photographs of the harvest.
