Guval has emerged as Mexico’s leading manufacturer-integrated importer and distributor of Asian food ingredients, transforming how chefs, retailers, and home cooks access authentic, locally adapted Asian cuisine. Through partnerships with major supermarkets, restaurant chains, and direct collaboration with Asian producers, the company has built a national-scale distribution and manufacturing platform that connects Asia’s most iconic food brands with the Mexican market. This leadership, however, has its roots in a far humbler origin. In the early 2000s, when Japanese cuisine was just starting to gain traction in Mexico, genuine ingredients remained elusive. Alejandro Gutiérrez, then working at a Japanese multinational in Mexico City, was approached by a friend to source rice and nori (seaweed), for local restaurants. With limited supply options, he turned to small shops run by Japanese residents and began buying from them, supplying restaurants desperate for quality and consistency. Demand soon formalized the effort. In 2004, he established Guval, inviting his father and brother to create a family enterprise dedicated to making Asian cuisine accessible, educational, and operationally viable at scale for the Mexican market. “At the beginning, we were no more than 10 people. Today, we are a team of more than 200,” says Gutiérrez, CEO.

In 2013, a food-safety incident changed the landscape of Chile’s packaged food market, driving stricter regulations. As expectations shifted, manufacturers needed a solution that could enhance food safety and extend shelf life without compromising quality. High-pressure processing (HPP) emerged as the solution, yet the high cost kept it largely out of reach for small and mid-sized enterprises (SME). ALTA - HPP services is changing that status quo. Founded in 2017 in Santiago, ALTA - HPP services is Chile’s first facility to introduce an open-access tolling model. The approach makes the technology available to producers of every size, from established brands to fast-growing SMEs. Its team studied established HPP operations across the U.S. and Europe to build this model, working closely with universities and organizing nationwide seminars. “Our mission is to give manufacturers the ability to strengthen product safety and extend freshness through HPP,” says Arturo Costabal Claro, director. Using non-thermal food preservation technology, it applies uniform hydrostatic pressure to sealed products for a defined period of time. Compared to conventional pasteurization, HPP achieves food safety through pressure alone. This mechanism eliminates pathogens like Listeria, E. coli and Salmonella and extends refrigerated shelf life up to 60-fold, depending on the product and formulation..

Premium confectionery does not earn trust at the first bite. Shoppers judge its quality and craftsmanship long before it reaches the shelf. Franmar Distributors takes care of this journey from the beginning, making critical decisions that preserve peak quality at every stage. More than a logistics provider, Franmar is a long-term strategic growth partner for retailers. How does Franmar Distributors protect confectionery quality before products ever reach retail shelves? It creates high-quality confectionery, guiding each product through a disciplined framework centered on freshness, safety, transparency, and legal conformity. The consistency supports predictable sell-through, stronger margins and stable category performance, elevating confectionery experiences for retailers. “Our model combines the agility and personalized service of a boutique distributor with the operational capacity and technological infrastructure of a larger organization,” says Francisco González, president and CEO..