NEW BEDFORD, Mass. - During the early years of working with his father, Henry Wainer said he put in “100 to 120 hours a week.” Today, as president of Sid Wainer & Son, Wainer’s hours may be a bit shorter, but his passion for the business is no less intense.

Instead of long hours learning the specialty produce distribution business, Wainer now spends considerable time traveling to different countries, seeking new products, from edible orchids to extra virgin olive oil, or conducting taste tests with his sales staff and customers.

“I have a passion for food that I share with my people,” he said, adding most of his 28-member sales force are either trained chefs or have some background in the food industry. “Our primary business has been produce. The specialty (food) business has grown only with things that we fall in love with.”

The company, which today boasts 200 employees, 45 delivery trucks and about 100,000 square feet of warehouse space in a former blanket factory here, was founded by Wainer’s grandfather, also named Henry, as a produce delivery operation called Wainer Bros. in the early 1900s.

After World War II, Wainer’s father, Sid, took over the business, renaming it Sid Wainer Wholesale Fruit and Produce.

Wainer said he became “seriously involved in the company” after finishing college in 1972. The desire by local chefs to source fresh and unique California produce got him visiting California farmers to see what he could procure. From there, Wainer said, it was just a natural step to acquire products from other places he visited such as Central America, South America, Europe, and the Mediterranean.

“Great agricultural products from artisanal farmers is what Sid Wainer & Son is all about,” he said.

“We take pride and care in the relationships we’ve developed with farmers and we want those farms to grow with us. Our job is to make sure they win and make sure their products get to the best restaurants, clubs, and stores.”

While the company may have its roots in specialty produce delivered to the food service trade, Wainer said the future of the company revolves around maintaining this tradition and adding to it with specialty packaged foods, service to retailers and even exploration of the home meal replacement market.

About 80 percent of Sid Wainer & Son’s business is with food service operations, he said. But the 20 percent that comes from retailers is also important. The company is now an active participant in the gourmet food industry, having developed several own-label lines that it features at the Winter and Summer Fancy Food Shows. In fact, three of Wainer’s products were finalists in the most recent National Association for the Specialty Food Trade’s annual product awards.

The Jansal Valley® line, which Wainer called “our depiction of the world’s finest products” features about 300 items ranging from dried beans, grains, fruits, and nuts to roasted peppers and olives from the Mediterranean to smoked meats and cheeses. Among the newest products in this line is the company’s first center of the plate offering New England-farmed ostrich meat.

Another line, Kilchurn Estate, offers Russian American caviar, smoked salmon from the Shetland Islands, and Scottish preserves, curds, and marmalades. Domaine de Provence is composed of a variety of French food items: olives, tapenades, infused oils, nut oils, as well as French-inspired goat cheeses and pates.

Italian products come under the names Fondo di Trebbiano for its Balsamic vinegar; Fondo di Toscana for its hand-cut pasta, long-stemmed artichokes and white anchovies; and Fondo di Alba for its truffles and truffle oils.

Wainer’s search for new products can take weeks, months, and even years. “We spent three years finding the right truffle company,” he said. “We take our time to make sure we’ve found the best.”

Even after he’s found the right supplier, if a source dries up or a region experiences a bad year, as was the case with French olive oil last year, Wainer is more likely to withdraw an item that find an inferior substitute.

“We tried to find something else,” he said, “but eventually we went without French olive oil for four months.”

Some years, he said, he’ll eliminate more products than he introduces, either because the quality isn’t high enough or the interest among customers has waned. “We’re not trying to expand the number of SKUs,” he said. “We’re just trying to have the best. There’s a distinct difference between what we do and what others are doing. Our goal is to be the most prominent gourmet company in the country.”

Wainer said he travels to Europe about three times a year in search of new items and looks for interesting products at the Fancy Food Shows and the National Restaurant Association Show in Chicago, where his company also exhibits. In October, he’ll visit Italy for several days, then head for Portugal for the harvest. New Bedford has a strong Portuguese heritage, so Wainer said he’s already been exposed to a variety of Portuguese foods. “I have a good idea what we’re looking for,” he said.

Each year, Wainer estimated, about 300,000 chefs and specialty retailers taste products from the company’s lines, which helps in the final selection process. Tastings are conducted at Wainer’s facility from four to eight times a week. One day it could be representatives from Sutton Place Gourmet; another day it’s Marriott or Disney.

“New England is our test market,” he said. “Then we take it to the rest of the country through national trade shows.” The company continues to build its national sales force first introduced 2 1/2 years ago as well, he added.

As a distributor, importer and even retailer, Wainer operated the Gourmet Outlet five days a week, which “lets the public shop where the chefs shop”, the next step for the company, in Wainer’s estimation, is to capitalize on its food service knowledge and expertise.