Montaque looking to spread its wings

With ten fruit products already on the shelves of supermarkets here in St. Vincent and the Grenadines as well as a number of other regional and international countries, the Montaque Brand is looking to extend its reach.{{more}}

When Searchlight visited the company’s booth on the last day of the recently concluded National Agricultural and Agro Industry Industrial Exhibition, General Manager of Montaque Products Ltd Claude Cambridge and his staff were busy replenishing the shelves.

Cambridge acknowledged that the stall had been busy all week, with patrons grabbing up the products as soon as they were placed.

“They’re especially going for the Guava jelly. The response to the products has been great.”

The company, owned jointly by farmers who are members of the Windward Islands Farmers Association (WINFA) Fair Trade Organization, has been in operation for just over a year and a half, and is the prototype for similar industries that are to be set up under the Fair Trade banner in other countries.

The fruits are provided to the company by 12 local farmers, with the company itself supplying eight of the ten products: grapefruit juice, passion fruit juice, lime juice, mango chutney, orange marmalade, passion fruit jelly and guava jam and jelly all year round, while the ginger and concentrates are usually seasonal.

And if those items were not enough, plans are in the pipeline for the processing of more fruits.

“There are lots of fruits out there that we would love to use; like five finger and wax apple for example.”

“We also plan to do some blends with the guavas, passion fruits, mangoes etc.”

Lovers of the products, Cambridge indicated, would usually have to wait between 24 hours to three weeks for their favorite products, and the company expects to be very busy in the months to come.

Cambridge indicated that the company also would like to play its part in the Wellness and Education revolutions, by going into the production of boxed juices that would be provided mainly in schools, replacing carbonated drinks at the cafeterias.

Some time next year if all goes according to plan, Montaque Products Ltd will be venturing into the Agro tourism realm: “We started with the agro products, but we are now preparing a Nature Trail for Eco Tourism. It’s 12.3 acres of land in Grand Sable, Georgetown (where the processing plant is located).”

“We also have a three bedroom house that we are preparing to use as a Bed and Breakfast for stop over visitors.” (JJ)