GreenFruit Avocados, a Southern California-based supplier specializing in avocado ripening, cold storage, and distribution, has been acquired by a group of industry veterans aiming to establish a vertically integrated avocado company with a global supply network. The new ownership team includes Scott Bauwens and Jamie Johnson of Simpatica, former Mission Produce executive Jim Donovan, and Tahuaycani, a Spanish investment firm with extensive ties to the global avocado industry.
Under the new leadership, GreenFruit Avocados plans to expand its role to encompass growing, packing, shipping, and ripening operations across North and South America. Jim Donovan, appointed executive chairman, emphasized that the partnership provides a solid foundation for distribution and operations that will benefit both customers and growers.
Tahuaycani’s connection with ACP Agro, a major producer in Peru—one of the world’s leading avocado-growing regions—offers GreenFruit increased scale and year-round sourcing capabilities. Meanwhile, Simpatica brings approximately 1,400 acres of established groves located in Ventura, Santa Barbara, and Riverside counties in California. These groves, cultivated over four generations, provide significant domestic growing capacity near the core U.S. market.
GreenFruit’s existing ripening and distribution infrastructure spans several strategic locations across North America, including Southern California, Texas, Chicago, Miami, Pennsylvania, Toronto, and Vancouver. This network positions the company near major distribution hubs, facilitating efficient supply chain operations.
The company’s supply base continues to rely heavily on Mexico, which remains central to its sourcing strategy. The acquisition is expected to infuse additional capital and enhance GreenFruit’s global supply depth.
Financial support for the transaction includes backing from an investment fund managed by Ospraie Management LLC, a New York-based firm that allocates institutional capital across real assets such as agriculture, energy, metals, mining, commodity processing, and logistics. The terms of the deal were not publicly disclosed.