Farm Pak Exporter of the Year

NCDA&CS gives Exporter of the Year Awardto Nash County sweet potato grower/packer

RALEIGH – The N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services has named a Nash County sweet potato grower and packer its 2009 Exporter of the Year.

Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler presented the award to officials of Farm Pak Products Inc., a division of Barnes Farming Corp., during the Ag Development Forum on Feb. 5. The department created the award to honor agriculture businesses that successfully export N.C. food products around the world.

In presenting the award, Troxler cited Farm Pak’s long record of successfully marketing sweet potatoes to the European Union, its commitment to quality, and its use of innovative branding and promotional methods.

“An exporter of fresh sweet potatoes faces many challenges,” Troxler said. “But Farm Pak has crossed those hurdles by planting a variety of sweet potato that has a longer shelf life and providing a consistent year-round supply from environmentally friendly storage facilities. In addition, the company has gotten all the certifications necessary to export their sweet potatoes to markets with some of the strictest requirements you can imagine.”

Farm Pak President Carson Barnes and Jose Calderon, international sales manager, accepted the award on behalf of the company.

Formed in 1969 as the sales and brokering arm of Barnes Farming, Farm Pak provides sweet potatoes for grocery, produce and foodservice outlets across the country and internationally.
Barnes Farming Corp. started in 1960 with less than one acre of sweet potatoes. Today, the company is the world’s largest grower, packer and shipper of sweet potatoes, with more than 5,000 acres in production.

NC Ports announce service to Central America

RALEIGH – The Danish container shipping company, Maersk Line, has announced that it will begin weekly vessel calls, effective Friday March 6, 2009, between the Port of Wilmington, NC and Puerto Cortes, Honduras and Santo Tomas, Guatemala in northern Central America, with over the road service to El Salvador and Nicaragua.

“North Carolina and our ports continue to be attractive to businesses around the world. Maersk Line is a perfect fit for North Carolina and the Port of Wilmington," said Gov. Bev Perdue. “I will continue to focus on building up the capacity of North Carolina’s port enterprises.”

New Shipping Service Announced from Wilmington to Europe

According to the NC Port Authority : " Independent Container Line, Ltd. (ICL) has announced that the shipping company will begin weekly service between the Port of Wilmington, NC and North Europe and the United Kingdom. ICL has served the North Atlantic trade for 24 years, and will begin calling Wilmington on Thursday, March 26, 2009 and each Thursday thereafter.

“This new weekly service to the Port of Wilmington will enhance the economy of the region and of North Carolina. Exporters and importers know the value of using our services in North Carolina,” said Gov. Bev Perdue."

From the NCDA's point of veiw, this is great news. Unfortunately, the line will not offer refrigerated container service. Perhaps we can get that in the future!