A wintertime display of vibrantly colored, fresh papayas can brighten a shopper’s day and inspire thoughts of warm, sunny days or lush tropical isles. Any time is a good time to sell tropical fruit, but a display of ripe papayas provides a psychological lift for shoppers on a gloomy winter day, says Eric Crawford, president of Fresh Results LLC, Sunrise, Fla. The company sources tainung papayas — also known as formosa papayas — from Belize, and it plans to begin offering maradol papayas from Mexico this spring. Although papayas are available year-round, January is a good time to promote them as production increases, says Melissa Hartmann de Barros, director of communications for HLB Specialties LLC, Pompano Beach, Fla. HLB handles tainung papayas and golden, or solo, papayas. It sources golden papayas from Brazil and Jamaica, and tainungs from Mexico and Guatemala. Read complete article here
