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Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Mission Produce® Inaugurates State-of-the-Art Packhouse in Guatemala to Power Year-Round Avocado Supply
OXNARD, Calif., April 24, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mission Produce, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVO) ('Mission' or 'the Company') a world leader in sourcing, producing, and distributing fresh Hass avocados, today announced the inauguration of its new state-of-the-art packinghouse in Guatemala. This milestone expands upon the Company's vertically integrated global sourcing network to serve global markets year-round with the World's Finest Avocados™. In celebration, the ribbon-cutting ceremony was held on April 24, 2025, and was attended by President of Guatemala Bernardo Arévalo and U.S. Ambassador to Guatemala Tobin Bradley, marking a significant moment in the country's emergence as a key player in global avocado production. "Our strategic investment in Guatemala elevates our position as a global leader in the worldwide avocado business and year-round supplier of the World's Finest Avocados™,' said Steve Barnard, Chief Executive Officer. 'Guatemala brings great value to our diversified sourcing strategy as a premium growing region with abundant resources, optimal harvest timing and a centralized geographic position. With two crops annually, Guatemala bridges supply gaps during key periods throughout the year, enhancing our ability to meet the increasing global demand for avocados.1 Our new facility will enable us to meet demand more efficiently with greater quality control for customers in the UK, Europe– and soon, the U.S.' 'With Mission Produce's investment in this new world-class facility, we are not only adding value to our national production—we are paving the way for a more competitive, sustainable, and inclusive economy,' said Bernardo Arévalo, President of Guatemala. 'In 2024, avocado exports generated over Q120,761,773 (USD$15.5 million) for Guatemala and supported more than six thousand jobs, both directly and indirectly. This progress is a testament to the potential of our agricultural sector and the strength of international partnerships. Together, we are building a future where avocados from Guatemala reach more markets and more Guatemalan families benefit from that growth.' Tobin Bradley, the U.S. Ambassador to Guatemala, commented, 'The U.S. market is hungry for avocados. The demand is there, and with continued collaboration and high standards, Guatemala is in a position to take advantage of this great economic opportunity.' Anticipated to launch in August 2025, Mission's Guatemala packinghouse is engineered for peak performance. The facility features the latest quality assurance and food safety technology, including precision temperature management and automated grading and sorting systems– designed to maintain fruit integrity and promote the long-lasting quality of avocados from Guatemala. With Mission's 40 years of dedication to operational excellence, the facility is built to facilitate excellent postharvest handling to meet the highest phytosanitary, quality, and trade standards of every destination market. 'Guatemala is a rising force in the global avocado industry, and Mission Produce is leading the development of the region for global avocado production,' said Juan Rodolfo Wiesner, President of Mission Produce, South and Central America. 'Modeling the success of our vertical integration in Peru, our farming and packing operations in Guatemala are built to produce high-quality avocados from the ground up. In addition, our team has spent several years building relationships with the local grower base, leveraging our extensive experience as a global distributor to increase the acceptance of avocados from Guatemala to global markets.' Mission Produce first established vertical integration and farming operations in the country in 2020 with the long-term lease of the Cerro Redondo avocado farm. As of the end of Mission's fiscal 2024, the Company had planted 728 hectares on the land with expectations to plant up to 1,000 hectares and reach full production by 2026. To learn more about Mission Produce's global sourcing strategy and vertical integration, visit End Notes: Rabobank. Global Avocado Update. 2024. About Mission Produce, Inc.: Mission Produce is a global leader in the worldwide avocado business with additional offerings in mangos and blueberries. Since 1983, Mission Produce has been sourcing, producing and distributing fresh Hass avocados, and currently services retail, wholesale and foodservice customers in over 25 countries. The vertically integrated Company owns and operates four state-of-the-art packing facilities in key growing locations globally, including California, Mexico and Peru and has additional sourcing capabilities in Chile, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Brazil, Ecuador, South Africa and more, which allow the company to provide a year-round supply of premium fruit. Mission's global distribution network includes strategically positioned forward distribution centers across key markets throughout North America, China, Europe, and the UK, offering value-added services such as ripening, bagging, custom packing and logistical management. For more information, please visit Forward-Looking Statements Statements in this press release that are not historical in nature are forward-looking statements that, within the meaning of the federal securities laws, including the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Words such as "may", "will", "expect", "intend", "plan", "believe", "seek", "could", "estimate", "judgment", "targeting", "should", "anticipate", "goal" and variations of these words and similar expressions, are also intended to identify forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this press release address a variety of subjects, including statements about our short-term and long-term assumptions, goals and targets. Many of these assumptions relate to matters that are beyond our control and changing rapidly. Although we believe the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, we can give no assurances that our expectations will be attained. Readers are cautioned that actual results could differ materially from those implied by such forward-looking statements due to a variety of factors, including: reliance on primarily one main product, limitations regarding the supply of fruit, either through purchasing or growing; fluctuations in the market price of fruit; increasing competition; risks associated with doing business internationally, including Mexican and Peruvian economic, political and/or societal conditions; inflationary pressures; establishment of sales channels and geographic markets; loss of one or more of our largest customers; general economic conditions or downturns; supply chain failures or disruptions; disruption to the supply of reliable and cost-effective transportation; failure to recruit or retain employees, poor employee relations, and/or ineffective organizational structure; inherent farming risks, including climate change; seasonality in operating results; failures associated with information technology infrastructure, system security and cyber risks; new and changing privacy laws and our compliance with such laws; food safety events and recalls; failure to comply with laws and regulations; changes to trade policy and/or export/import laws and regulations; risks from business acquisitions, if any; lack of or failure of infrastructure; material litigation or governmental inquiries/actions; failure to maintain or protect our brand; changes in tax rates or international tax legislation; risks associated with global conflicts; inability to accurately forecast future performance; the viability of an active, liquid, and orderly market for our common stock; volatility in the trading price of our common stock; concentration of control in our executive officers, and directors over matters submitted to stockholders for approval; limited sources of capital appreciation; significant costs associated with being a public company and the allocation of significant management resources thereto; reliance on analyst reports; failure to maintain proper and effective internal control over financial reporting; restrictions on takeover attempts in our charter documents and under Delaware law; the selection of Delaware as the exclusive forum for substantially all disputes between us and our stockholders; risks related to restrictive covenants under our credit facility, which could affect our flexibility to fund ongoing operations, uses of capital and strategic initiatives, and, if we are unable to maintain compliance with such covenants, lead to significant challenges in meeting our liquidity requirements and acceleration of our debt; and other risks and factors discussed from time to time in our Annual and Quarterly Reports on Forms 10-K and 10-Q and in our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. You can obtain copies of our SEC filings on the SEC's website at The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date hereof and the Corporation does not intend to, nor does it assume any obligation to, update or supplement any forward-looking statements after the date hereof to reflect actual results or future events or circumstances. MediaJenna AguileraMarketing Content and Communications ManagerMission Produce, Photo:A photo accompanying this announcement is available at in to access your portfolio
BBC News
28-02-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Hundreds in US climate agency NOAA fired in latest cuts
Hundreds of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) staff have been laid off in the latest development in Donald Trump's administration's efforts to slash the federal 880 workers - including weather forecasters - have had their jobs terminated on Thursday, the BBC's US partner CBS cuts come as Elon Musk, as the head of the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), continues a push to significantly reduce the federal workforce.A NOAA spokesman said the agency would not comment on internal personnel matters. Prior to Thursday's cuts, NOAA had about 12,000 staffers across the world, including 6,773 who are scientists and engineers, according to the agency's website."We continue to provide weather information, forecasts and warnings pursuant to our public safety mission," the NOAA spokesman Californian Democrat Congressman Jared Huffman said people across the US "depend on NOAA for free, accurate forecasts, severe weather alerts, and emergency information"."Hundreds of scientists and experts at NOAA just received the news every federal worker has been dreading," Congressman Huffman added."Musk's sham mission is bringing vital programs to a screeching halt. Purging the government of scientists, experts, and career civil servants and slashing fundamental programs will cost lives." Who is Doge's official leader? White House says it's not Elon MuskMusk wields his Doge chainsaw - but is a backlash brewing?What is Doge and why is Musk cutting so many jobs? Miyoko Sakashita, the Center for Biological Diversity's oceans director, said gutting NOAA will "hamstring essential lifesaving" latest developments come days after US government workers faced widespread confusion following conflicting advice over compliance with a Musk-backed order to list their last week's work in an email or face message sent to millions of federal employees last Saturday evening came after Musk posted on his social media platform X that government staff would "shortly receive an email requesting to understand what they got done last week".On Sunday, Musk said in some cases "we believe non-existent people or the identities of dead people are being used to collect paychecks". In a copy of the email obtained by the BBC, employees were asked to respond explaining their accomplishments from the past week in five bullet points - without disclosing classified information. But, key agencies, including the Departments of Defense (DoD), Health and Human Services (HHS), Justice, the Pentagon and the FBI - now led by Trump appointees -instructed employees to ignore the such as the Department of Transportation, the Secret Service and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency also encouraged their staff to comply, reports Wednesday, Musk reiterated the suggestion that a number of federal employees who did not respond to an email requesting a summary of their achievements from the previous week could be "dead" or "not real people", but offered no facts to back it at Trump's first cabinet meeting, Musk told reporters: "I think that email perhaps was best interpreted as a performance review, but actually it was a pulse check review. "Do you have a pulse? Do you have a pulse? And two neurons. So if you have a pulse and two neurons, you can reply to an email." Elsewhere on Thursday, a federal judge in San Francisco found that the mass firings of probationary employees were likely Judge William Alsup ordered the Office of Personnel Management to inform certain federal agencies that it had no authority to order the firings of probationary employees, including at the defence department.
Express Tribune
10-02-2025
- Business
- Express Tribune
Gold at Rs303k on trade war
KARACHI: Gold prices in Pakistan surged on Monday, rebounding sharply after a previous session decline, driven by global market trends amid escalating trade tensions. The price of gold per tola jumped by Rs4,000 to an all-time high of Rs303,000, while the 10-gram rate rose Rs3,429 to settle at Rs259,773, according to the All-Pakistan Gems and Jewellers Sarafa Association (APGJSA). Globally, gold remained firm near record highs as investors sought safe-haven assets in response to growing geopolitical and economic uncertainty. Adnan Agar, Director of Interactive Commodities, attributed the surge to fears of a renewed trade war following tariff proposals by US President Donald Trump. Trump has proposed reciprocal tariffs on countries taxing American goods, potentially impacting commodities like aluminium and copper. The possibility of escalating trade tensions has pushed investors toward gold, traditionally seen as a hedge against economic instability. Additionally, China's central bank expanded its gold reserves for a third consecutive month in January, despite the metal's record-high rally, Bloomberg reported. The People's Bank of China increased its holdings by 0.16 million troy ounces, continuing a buying trend that resumed in November after a brief pause. Agar noted that the gold market is in a strong bullish phase, frequently reaching new highs. While minor corrections are expected, significant pullbacks remain unlikely. A short-term dip of $50$60 per ounce could be followed by a surge of $80$90, he said. Ongoing geopolitical tensionssuch as the Israel-Palestine conflictand uncertainty in global trade suggest continued investor interest in gold. Analysts believe any slight dip will be viewed as a buying opportunity before the next rally. For now, the momentum remains bullish, and investors are closely monitoring economic data and geopolitical developments for further market cues, he added. Meanwhile, the Pakistani rupee saw a slight decline against the US dollar on Monday, depreciating by 0.06% in the inter-bank market. The rupee settled at 279.22, losing 17 paisa against the dollar, according to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). This follows last week's minor depreciation of 0.04%, closing at 279.05 from 278.95. Globally, the US dollar strengthened on Monday after Trump announced plans to impose 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports, putting pressure on the euro, Australian dollar, and New Zealand dollar.
