NEW YORK, Aug. 10, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- S&P Capital IQ (MHFI) announced today that it has commenced Factual Stock Report coverage on Village Farms International. Inc.

Village Farms International, Inc. (TSX:VFF; OTCQX: VFFIF) is a producer, marketer, and distributor of premium-quality, greenhouse-grown fruits and vegetables. The food that it grows, along with other greenhouse operations under exclusive arrangements, is all grown in environmentally friendly, soil-less, glass greenhouses. The Village Farms brand of fruits and vegetables is marketed and distributed primarily to national and local retail grocers and dedicated fresh food distributors throughout the United States and Canada.

The company's sustainability principles enable Village Farms to grow food 365 days. Natural resource efficiencies such as water conservation and renewable energy optimizing cogeneration are part of the company's clean technology model of farming.

The company, through subsidiaries, owns and operates highly intensive agricultural greenhouse facilities in British Columbia and Texas, where it produces, markets and sells premium-quality tomatoes, bell peppers, and cucumbers. The company also markets and sells third-party produce through its subsidiaries. Village Farms operates four distribution centers in the United States and Canada. Through a subsidiary, Village Farms owns and operates a 7.5 MW power plant from landfill gas that generates electricity and provides thermal heat, in colder months, to one the company's adjacent British Columbia greenhouse facilities.

On October 3, 2014, the company sold ownership of Village Farms DR, SLR to an unrelated third party in exchange for a waiver of termination fees on a remaining lease obligation.

The company's assets include seven greenhouses providing approximately 950,085 square meters (or approximately 240 acres) of growing space in Canada and the United States. All of the company's greenhouses are constructed of glass, aluminum and steel, and are located on land owned or leased by the company. The company also has marketing agreements with growers in the United States, Canada and Mexico that operate approximately 325,000 square meters (or approximately 81 acres) of growing area.

Village Farms employs sustainable agriculture and environmentally-friendly growing practices in its business. For example, it utilizes integrated pest management techniques that use ''beneficial bugs'' to control unwanted pests. The company also captures rainwater from various greenhouse roofs for irrigation purposes; captures landfill gas to generate electricity and thermal heat; recycles water and nutrients during the production process; grows plants in a natural medium, including coconut fiber and rock wool, as opposed to growing in the soil and depleting nutrients; and uses dedicated environmental control computer systems which monitor and control virtually all aspects of the growing environment, thereby maximizing the efficient use of energy.

Village Farms believes that it is a leading marketer of premium-quality, value-added, branded greenhouse-grown produce in North America, and a significant producer of tomatoes on-the-vine, beefsteak, cocktail, grape, cherry tomatoes, roma, Mini San Marzano (a tomato variety for which the company has an exclusive agreement with the seed provider to be the sole grower in North America), other specialty tomatoes under exclusive agreements and long English cucumbers at its facilities. Village Farms also distributes and markets premium tomatoes, bell peppers and cucumbers in the United States and Canada produced by other greenhouse growers located in the United States, Canada and Mexico. With leased distribution centers in Texas, Washington and British Columbia and a third-party fulfillment center in Pennsylvania, the company believes it provides its customers with flexibility in purchasing.

Village Farms International, Inc. is based in Delta, British Columbia, Canada.

S&P Capital IQ's Factual Stock Report coverage on Village Farms International Inc will also be accessible on an ongoing basis to the investment community by scores of buy-side institutions and sell-side firms that utilize S&P Capital IQ research and information platforms daily. Millions of self-directed investors also have access to the report via their e-brokerage accounts. Please visit www.villagefarms.com for additional information.

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