Cool Fresh International is strengthening its pineapple category by (re)launching Freedom Fruit pineapples from Costa Rica. Mario de Goede of Cool Fresh International says that his company’s vision for 2016 and beyond is to build Freedom Fruit (developed in 2003) as a sustainable education, social and empowerment fruit brand from Costa Rica.
De Goede: ‘Since 2010 Freedom Fruit has been supplied to a limited number of selected customers in Europe. We believe that the time has come to move this well-established brand to a next level, and give it its rightful place in the world of ethical products. To do this, we have linked some of the prime producers of pineapples in Costa Rica to Freedom Fruit. In the first instance top quality (including Rainforest certification) and regular supplies are the most important issues which we have been focusing on, and our first arrivals reflect that we have made the right choices. The product quality is great, and we are really excited about the possibilities which the Freedom Fruit brand brings to the pineapple category’.
According to Hugo Vermeulen, CEO of Cool Fresh International the key social focus of Freedom Fruit will be a rural community and education development project that has been designed to make a real difference. In Pital, the region from which most of the BonSweet and Freedom Fruit Rainforest certified pineapples are grown, Cool Fresh International has adopted ‘Escuela La Perla’. This rural school serves a community of farm workers and in addition to operating as a school where their children are educated, it is also the main gathering point for the community. Vermeulen: ‘The current facilities are very basic, and not sufficiently equipped to cater for the broader needs of the community. During 2016, Freedom Fruit (in collaboration with the community of La Perla) will refurbish the school, and build a community hall which can be used by the community for a variety of purposes, such as caring for the aged, hosting cultural festivals, and providing a comfortable meeting point for adult education classes and projects. The intention is for Escuela La Perla to become the glue that binds the community together’.
To kick off this exciting project, and raise the funds that are needed to make it a reality, Cool Fresh International will be participating in the Rotterdam Marathon on Sunday 10 April 2016. A limited edition ‘Cool & Fresh’ running shoe/sneaker has been designed to create extra awareness for the Freedom Fruit project.
For more information:
Cool Fresh
Cool Fresh International BV, The Netherlands
Hugo Vermeulen
Email: hugo@coolfresh.nl
Mario de Goede
Email: mario@coolfresh.nl
Website: www.coolfresh.nl