Surtifruver de la Sabana: A Produce Wonderland

I love produce. I love green markets, farmer's markets, kitchen gardens, CSA's and pretty much anything that has to do with fresh fruits and vegetables.

You wouldn't believe me though, if you looked in my fridge.

I admit that I'm a hypocrite in that respect because I don't often buy, cook or eat fresh produce. I have had far too many experiences with things going off in the crisper (a.k.a. the rotter). I imagine it has something to do with poor planning and a lack of effort. But anyways, I do love a nice stroll through a produce market, day dreaming about nutrition and ways to cook different veggies, and ogling at all of nature's bounty. Fortunately, in Bogota there is such a place.

Surtifruver de la Sabana (a condensed version of "Surtidora de Frutas y Verduras") is becoming a giant in this city and it's no wonder why. Imagine the produce section of your average supermarket, but instead of it only being one section out of many, it's the entire market. The last one I went to, and one of the most recently opened, has two-stories, a parking lot with a car elevator, and aisle upon aisle of every kind of fruit and veg you can imagine - and then some. Before I even stepped foot into the store I got hit by the aroma of sweet, little mangoes piled high onto a wheelbarrow....mmmmm!


I know it looks a little cold and sterile but in Bogota there really aren't too many farmer's markets, so this is a pretty good substitute. If I could make one suggestion to the people at Surtifruver it might be to warm it up a bit (think Trader Joe's, Harris Teeter or Whole Foods). In spite of this I would still say that for any foodie coming to Colombia, Sutifruver is a great place to discover some new fruits and vegetables.

Aside from offering a very wide variety of produce at great prices, Surtifruver is also committed to happy, healthy kids. They have acquired the "LazyTown" franchise for two years. The popular Icelandic (who knew!) cartoon featuring Sportacus and his "sports candy" (fruits and vegetables) helps to draw kids in and educate them on how important fruits and vegetables are.


As part of their growth plan, Sutrifruver hopes to expand not only throughout Colombia but also to Venezuela, Ecuador and Canada. Their target market, and most frequent shoppers, are women between the ages of 25 and 55 (I am not included...yet) and they sell approximately 450 tons of fruit and vegetables a day.

What is their top-selling product, you wonder?

Papaya.