sept-2017

74 75 NATURE’S TOUCH FROZEN FOODS Equipement de Sécurité Universel inc - or Universel inc - is a leader in custom made uniforms, personal protection products and related product for over 20 years. Built on fast, personalized service, Universel inc. caters to all types of users: governmental, institutional, public, private, and the individual worker. U niversel inc. - t here w hen y ou n eed u s. C ontact U s: 6855 Saint-Jacques Ouest Montreal, QC, H4B 1V3 (514) 369-6699 n Fax: 514-369-0874 Toll free: 1-866-549-6699 info@unisafety.com n www.unisafetyshop.com Footwear Clothing Sanitation Supplies Medical and First Aid Eye and Hearing Protection Facility Maintenance Supplies We Sell: Universal Safety Inc. in Montréal has evolved signifi- cantly since its beginning, over 22 years ago. The family-owned and run business has grown from supplying small local businesses to supplying some of North America’s largest public and private entities i.e. municipal and federal institutions to national and international businesses. The company has become a one-stop shop for all industries, supplying every- thing from uniforms to footwear to specialized food preparation products and machinery. The vision was to create a company that was large enough to meet the needs of our clients, but small enough to care. In a very competitive marketplace, Universal Safety Inc.’s focus on customer service has helped it to succeed. Success is anchored in the trust of core clientele, and Universal Safety Inc. is proud and thankful to count Nature’s Touch as part of that core. Over the years, Nature’s Touch has become a leader in its industry by staying true to the values of quality, service and innovation. To the entire team at Nature’s Touch, thank you for your support. We wish you all the best for years to come. WWW.UNISAFETYSHOP.COM n INFO@UNISAFETY.COM al plant services customers and major retailers throughout Canada. In addition,our second plant is located in the cityof Abbotsford, British Columbia,which has about another 150 employees.It has the same type of production capacity but also has the ability to freeze fresh locally sourced fruits such as blueberries.That plant services the western part of Canada,as well as customers in the PacificNorthwest of the U.S.and into theMidwest.It also services customers inAustralia,Japan,Korea,and Taiwan.Our third plant is located inVirginia in the U.S. It ismainlya repack facility; it services our customers throughout the U.S.,and you’re looking at about 40 employees in that location.” In addition to theNature’sTouch’s attention to qual- ityand consistency,Tentomas attributes the company’s 20 to 30 percent annual growth rate to the growing acceptance byconsumers of frozen fruit as a staple of their diets.“Consumers are looking at frozen fruit because of a cou- ple of factors that are extremely important,”he proffers.“First: convenience; second: price; third: nowaste.” “Typically,frozen fruit is cheaper than fresh fruit,”Tentomas explains. “Farmers always lookat the fresh fruit market first,because they tend to get higher prices for the product than frozen,because traditionally, the frozen products were put into places like jams,yogurts,ice creams,baked goods, etc.So,the quality that these areas were gettingwas the off-grades that were coming off of the fresh pack. So,frozen fruit did not reallyyield the economics of fresh.Now,there are other compensation costs for fresh because the time sensitivity is large; a lot of importedmaterial comes in byair,especiallyduring the coldwinter months inNorthAmerica.And then you have to lookat the distribution channels because AT A GLANCE NATURE’S TOUCH FROZEN FOODS WHAT: Premier distributor of frozen fruits and vegetables WHERE: Saint-Laurent, Quebec, Canada WEBSITE: www.naturestouch- frozenfoods.com