Another company joined the Panama Exporta country brand, an initiative that aims at venturing into the Asian market. The Potuga Fruit Company, from the province of Herrera, has been producing and exporting fresh watermelons for nine years.

Currently, it exports its products to the UK, the Netherlands, and the US market. However, as part of the government initiative launched in September 2017, it is endorsed by the technical platform of the Ministries of Trade and Industry and Agricultural Development.

During the 2017-2018 agricultural year, the Potuga Fruit Company exported 100 containers to the international market, one of which was shipped under the Panama Exports seal to the Netherlands. The company is preparing to send 200 containers to different markets, and expects to export 300 containers each year with the help of the seal.

The company’s packing plant is located in the village of Potuga, district of Parita, in the province of Herrera. It uses about 200 hectares for its crops, which include traditional watermelons, seedless varieties, yellow seedless watermelons, and mini-watermelons.

Potuga Fruit Company followed in the footsteps of the Cascajalillo Unido Watermelon Producers Association (Apsecu), which on March 8 sent its first container with 1,200 boxes of fresh watermelon to the Dutch port of Rotterdam, under the Panama Exports seal.

Apsecu, which operates in the community of Cascajalillo, in the district of Pese, managed to place its watermelon in the Dutch and Italian markets thanks to its participation in the Fruit Logistica Fair, which was held in the city of Berlin, Germany, in February.

Carlos Campos, the founder and general manager of Potuga Fruit Company, said the company bets on a variety of watermelons that they can offer to various markets. ‘Today, there is a high demand for traditional varieties, such as the Quetzaly variety, but the European markets prefer seedless watermelons, as well as special varieties, such as the Sunshine variety (which is yellow and seedless) and individual watermelons or seedless mini watermelons, which are also an excellent option,” he said.