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DIGESTFresh
A P U B L I C A T I O N O F T H E F R E S H P R O D U C E & F L O R A L C O U N C I L
OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2015
Features
Departments
8 FPFC to Launch College Scholarship Program FOCUS ON TALENT
10 Panel Discusses Produce Retailing at FPFC Luncheon FOCUS ON RETAIL
14 Northern California Membership Luncheon EVENT PHOTOS AND THANK YOUS
18 Don Murphy Reflects on a 40-plus Year Career FOCUS ON RETAIL
22 HAB Continues Research Efforts FOCUS ON AVOCADO NUTRITION
24 Henry Avocado Sees Grower Response to Consumer Needs FOCUS ON AVOCADOS
26 Domex Touting Its Pears and Apples FOCUS ON THE NORTHWEST
30 4Earth Farms Steeped in Produce History FOCUS ON FAMILY TIES
33 De Franco Capitalizes on Summer Corn Deal FOCUS ON ORGANICS
34 Litehouse Adds Flavors and New Design to Lineup FOCUS ON COMPLIMENTARY ITEMS
35 35th Annual Bowling Tournament EVENT PHOTOS AND THANK YOUS
38 23rd Annual SoCal Golf Tournament EVENT PHOTOS AND THANK YOUS
4 Editor’s ViewBy Tim Linden
6 Executive NotesBy Carissa Mace
Volume 43, Number 5 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2015
FRESH DIGEST (ISSN-1522-0982) is published bimonthly for $15 of FPFC membership dues; $25 for annual subscription for non-members by Fresh Produce & Floral Council; 2400 E. Katella Avenue, Suite 330, Anaheim CA 92806. Periodicals postage paid at Anaheim, CA, and at additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to FRESH DIGEST, 2400 E. Katella Avenue, Suite 330, Anaheim CA 92806.
OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2015 3
34
Cover photo provided by: User Friendly, Ink.
26
4 FRESH DIGEST
shopping bonding and I bought a wide range of items – from strawberries, peaches and melons to lettuce, broccoli and yellow cauliflower. I bought a lot of tomatoes – heirloom to cherry, and purple to orange. I bought kale and squash and Brentwood sweet corn. I even bought a few items that I knew weren’t in season and couldn’t possibly have been produced by the local farmer.
My experience was varied. In the first place, I discovered I love the concept. Often I would see a neighbor or someone I knew. My daughter and I truly did bond over trying the different peach varieties and picking the ones we liked best, and comparing the tomatoes with the Safeway ones on her ever-present pesto/mozzarella/tomato sandwich. We bought several different types of kale and ate more greens than are usually in our diet. We bought fresh-baked bread and looked at the salmon every week …and decided each time to pass (a price tag of $24.99 per pound was just too much). We bought a lot of baby stuff from lettuce to squash. Strawberries were almost a weekly buy.
But early on, my daughter noted that the prices were no better than Safeway and worse in many cases. We did get some pretty good fruit, ripe and ready to eat, but the shelf life was very limited. We had quite a bit of shrink from one week to the next, especially if I (the cook in the family) ended up going out of town for a couple of days mid-week. Friday would find quite a few candidates for our compost bin. And the fruit wasn’t always top notch. We bought some peaches in early September that never ripened, and a green-plastic basket of straw-berries had quite a bit of mush and cuts when we hit the bottom a couple of days later. The lettuces wilted quickly (maybe because they were being sold from unrefrigerated tables).
So what’s the take-away? It depends. There is no absolute truth in this case. It’s fun to do; it’s fun to talk about. It’s fun to serve veggies Sunday night from the local farmer you bought from that morning…even if it is the same farmer selling to Safeway. It’s fun to agree with your neighbors that the produce is better at the farmer’s market, even if you don’t think it is. Perception is reality.
People believe and so it is so. This is a well-traveled phi-losophy. It tends to fly in the face of Aris-totle, one of the first philosophers to em-brace the concept of absolute truth. He argued that per-spective did not play a role. If something was true, it was so because it was not false and would never be false regardless of time, place or relativity.
I’m sure he is turning over in his grave as he listens to politicians argue about pretty much anything. In that world, truth is not relevant, only perception counts. Numbers don’t matter. Facts are irrelevant. Opinions said often and loud enough – and repeated by one’s favorite biased network – are sacrosanct.
And so it is with the growing obsession of farmers’ markets and the local food they offer. You may recall that about a year ago, I declared in this space that I was going to start to broaden my purchase of fruits and vegetables beyond the supermarket, which has served me well for my entire adult life. For about 10 months, I received a regular $30-$50 shipment of organic produce from a farm-based company within a 100 miles of my home. I have written about that experience and for the most part it was good.
I also embarked on a concerted effort to regularly shop the local farmers’ market that takes place every Sunday morning about two miles from my home in a parking lot that houses several restaurants and stores, including a Safeway. I didn’t start this endeavor with a blank slate. I have always been a bit skeptical of farmers’ markets and the perceived quality and value that they provide. But I deliberately tried to put aside this suspicion and shop with abandon and glee like the other farm-ers’ market devotees. I talked up the experience with dinner guests swapping best buy ideas, often brought my teenage daughter with me for some E
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By Tim Linden
Tim Linden
Perception IS Reality
6 FRESH DIGEST
Gallegos and Jack Gyben. It goes to show that even after serving as an officer, there is a way for a former chairman to participate and be involved with the Council.
There were various reasons why the group impressed me so much:
Task force members came in without any preconceived concepts of the outcome of the work. This let the work flow and the results come naturally.
They also came at the work without any personal bias. It’s the old association saying that you need to “leave your company hat at the door” when you come into committee work. It is often easier said than done. But this group came into the meetings not looking at what they or their company could get out of it but what was best for the industry and the FPFC.
They established early a clear focus and as-signed work accordingly. Very often groups can go off on tangents or get hung up on one area. This group stayed focused on its goal and worked ac-cordingly.
Each task force member pulled their own weight. I’ve seen groups that rely on a few “do-ers” and coast by on the hard work of the few. Not this group – there were terrific contributions made by everyone involved.
I know I sound like I’m gushing but I have to tell you, I’ve managed A LOT of committees in my day (I refuse to do the math) and rarely have I seen such a cohesive working group.
The result will be a new, exciting program that will benefit the FPFC members and industry as a whole. Years from now when the program is fully established and has helped bring new blood into the industry, these task force members will be able to look back and say “We done good!” Or something like that.
A good part of what I do is man-age volunteer meet-ings. I counted once, and between board meetings, executive committee meetings, committee and task force meetings I had 92 different meeting groups to run in one year. This explains why I need a lot of caffeine dur-ing the day.
Sometimes, I’ll be honest, it is like herding cats. We have a lot of big personalities in our industry and people with great ideas and lots of enthusiasm. But sometimes when you get a lot of those folks in one room, it can be overwhelming and not as productive as you’d hope. That’s the herding cats part. But by and large, all of our volunteer groups do extremely well with their assigned work.
This year I’ve had the privilege of working with an extremely collaborative and talented group on a brand new project. The group was charged with exploring and making recommendations on a scholarship program for the FPFC. You’ll read an article in this issue on the results of that work, but I just wanted to speak for a bit on the process that got the result.
When the FPFC Board of Directors gets an idea to do something, normally it doesn’t just “hap-pen.” There is a task force process in place to work through ideas and make recommendations to the board. And board members are not the only ones involved – very often a board member chairs the task force but other volunteers are brought in to assist based on their skill set, business type or other various reasons.
In the case of the Scholarship Task Force, Connie Stukenberg from the California Avocado Commission was asked to chair the group and she brought an impressive group together: Am-ber Flamminio, Umina Bros.; Raul Gallegos, Bristol Farms; Miguel Garcia, Ralphs Grocery Company; Jack Gyben, Progressive Produce; Jeff Oberman, United Fresh Produce Association; Kim St. George, Mann Packing; and Rich Van Valkenburg, Van Valkenburg & Associates.
The group had a terrific blend of experiences and backgrounds. It was especially gratifying to have two past chairmen on the task force – Raul E
XE
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By Carissa Mace
Carissa Mace
Collaboration Equals Results
8 FRESH DIGEST
entered the discovery phase of the concept. We talked to the universities and we surveyed the FPFC membership to see how they would like to see the program look.”
The survey did produce some results that sent the task force down a different route. “We thought professional development might be an av-enue they wanted to pursue, but that really wasn’t the case,” said Stukenberg.
She said there was a strong indication from the membership that the program should be used to attract young talent to the FPFC and the industry rather than further the education of existing industry members. In discussing the program with various universities, the FPFC task force was able to de-velop a recommendation to the board concerning the scope and general guidelines. It was proposed that the FPFC develop criteria for the scholarship recipients but that the schools themselves pick the students through an application process. The FPFC is retaining final approval merely to make sure that the mix of students chosen fit the criteria. For example, of the eight scholarships, FPFC wants six of them to be in the ag business/food management
FPFC to Launch College Scholarship Program By Tim Linden
Focus o
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One of the key elements of the Fresh Produce & Floral Council, as enunciated in its Mission State-ment, is to promote and advance the fresh produce and floral industry. It is with this goal in mind that the FPFC’s Board of Directors has launched a College Scholarship Program, which will initially grant eight scholarships of $2,500 each to worthy agricultural students attending four different schools.
The selection process will take place in the spring of 2016 with California’s top four colleges with agricultural programs awarded two scholar-ships each for students specifically in a designated program. The four colleges that will be the recipients of these scholarships for 2016 are Cal Poly Pomona, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Fresno State University and the University of California at Davis.
FPFC board member Connie Stukenberg of the California Avocado Commission served as the chairman of the Task Force that vetted the idea earlier this year. She explained that the idea was presented to the board in 2014, and as is typically the case, a task force was appointed to explore the concept.
Stukenberg assembled a stellar group of FPFC members whose first task was to make sure the idea did indeed speak to the FPFC’s Mis-sion Statement. Over the last several years, the board has made a concerted effort to make sure its programs are not only worthy on their face but that they do serve a stated goal of the organization. There are many worthy charities and programs but not all are consistent with the reason why the FPFC exists and members join the organiza-tion. President Carissa Mace said the board takes its responsibility seriously in allocating funds generated from members consistent with how the members want to see those funds spent.
Consequently, Stukenberg said once it was determined that a scholarship program was consistent with the FPFC’s mission, “we
Fresh Produce & Floral Council Scholarship Task ForceChair Connie Stukenberg, California Avocado Commission
Task Force MembersAmber Flamminio, Umina Bros. Raul Gallegos, Bristol FarmsMiguel Garcia, Ralphs Grocery CompanyJack Gyben, Progressive ProduceJeff Oberman, United Fresh Produce AssociationKim St. George, Mann PackingRich Van Valkenburg, Van Valkenburg & Associates
OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2015 9
at large. Most importantly, it is designed to attract young talent to the produce and floral industry and create awareness of the FPFC among talent. She said scholarship recipients will be encouraged to attend an FPFC luncheon and interact with the association and its members at various events.
The FPFC also expects to garner publicity from the colleges and trade press, which should help the association improve its visibility on these college campuses and within the industry.
Mace said the program has been developed as an ongoing budget item, but funds have only been allocated for the first year, which is consistent with all FPFC programs.
y
arena and two to be horticulturally related in the plant science sector.
Some of the other criteria include the ap-plicant must be an undergraduate, have a college grade point average of 3.25 or above, and must have declared their major in one of the designated programs. Each university has a little different cur-riculum so the FPFC Task Force specifically named the programs from which students are eligible for the scholarship. In each case, the major is agricul-ture related. Family members of FPFC members are invited to participate but the program is not limited to members.
Stukenberg said the program is expected to have several benefits to both the FPFC and industry
1/3 h 4c adHenry Avocado
Eligibility for the FPFC Scholarship ProgramStudents in the following programs in these participating schools are eligible to apply for the FPFC scholarships through their universities.
Cal Poly PomonaAgribusiness/Food Industry ManagementAgricultural SciencePlant ScienceHorticulture
Cal Poly San Luis ObispoAgribusinessAgricultural CommunicationsAgricultural ScienceHorticulture/Crop Science
Fresno StateAgricultural BusinessAgricultural CommunicationsIndustrial Science/Crop Production MgmtPlant Science
UC DavisAgriculture and Food SystemsManagerial Economics/Ag Econ EmphasisEnvironmental Horticulture & Urban ForestryInternational Agriculture Development
Year-round, custom ripenedfresh avocados.
www.henryavocado.com
(714) 447-4306830) 379-0288
Billie Jo (210) 226-4504
10 FRESH DIGEST
Panel Discusses Produce Retailing at FPFC Luncheon By Tim Linden
Focus o
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The organic cate-gory is going to continue to grow, and maybe even eclipse conventional pro-duce at retail some day in the future. That was one of the nuggets provided by a panel of retailers at the September 24 luncheon meeting of the Fresh Pro-duce & Floral Council in Northern California.
Alfonso Cano of Northgate Markets, Scot Olson of Grocery Outlet, Michael Schutt of Raley’s and Steve Tsujimoto of Berkeley Bowl were led through a series of topics by Michael Marks, a Sacra-mento television personal-ity who talks about fruits and vegetables under the “Your Produce Guy” moniker.
Tsujimoto, a long time retail produce veteran with Safeway who recently joined Berkeley Bowl, was the most bullish in his assessment of the growth of organics. Located in the progressive city that bears its name, Berkeley Bowl has two stores with huge produce departments including virtually every organic produce SKU currently available. Tsujimoto believes the volume of organic sales will eventually pass conventional, and once that occurs “conven-tional will fade away.”
The other panelists were not quite as opti-mistic about organics but they all predict significant growth. Schutt started the organic produce section at Raley’s in 1997 and said it has grown to 210 SKUs. He said as consumers have become more educated about the food they eat, the retailer’s organic sales have grown. He expects that to continue.
Olson operates on the extreme discount end
of the scale with Grocery Outlet, which includes a limited SKU format. He noted that the entire pro-duce department only has about 210 SKUs. While organics are a small part of the firm’s sales, Olson said the retailer’s “NOSH” department – natural, organic, specialty & healthy – is growing and will continue to do so.
Cano, who plies the produce merchandising trade at an ethnic supermarket, said the chain “can’t be everything to everybody” so it currently concen-trates on its core competency, which is in the ethnic arena. While organics have not played a big role in the past, he said the firm will be introducing about 100 SKUs of organic items in the near future.
When discussing the “local” produce move-ment, the retailers were not as singular in their opin-ions. For Raley’s, Schutt said the firm sees providing a venue for local growers to sell their products as a “responsibility.” Most of the Raley’s stores are near fresh fruit and vegetable production areas. The
Michael Marks moderated the retail panel discussion.
12 FRESH DIGEST
Schutt of Raley’s said the millennial movement is huge but he said research reveals that currently “millennials spend more time watching cooking shows than actually cooking. We are waiting for that to flip.”
Alfonso said younger, newer customers are having a big impact on Northgate Markets. When he was growing up, he said ethnic markets, like his chain, thrived on being “very Mexican”. That’s what the customers were looking for. Today Northgate wants to attract second and third generation Americanized Mexicans, as well as their parents and grandparents. And they also want to bring in the Caucasian shopper looking for ethnic foods. He said they walk a fine line of “not being too Mexican for the white customers or too white for the Mexican customers.”
Looking toward the future, each of the retail-ers sees a changing landscape for supermarkets. Alfonso and Schutt both said that rising labor costs at retail will continue to lead to more packaged and value-added items produced at point of origin. At retail that means both convenience for the con-sumer and less costly labor for the retailer.
Olson thinks the supermarket dynamic will change as the center-store is redefined as a place for produce and perishables. Food sold in boxes and cans will move to the sides, he said.
Tsujimoto said that in some ways the future is already here for Berkeley Bowl. He expects organ-ics and hydroponics to drive the business for that retailer in the future.
company has a robust “locally-grown” campaign and defines that moniker as being within 50 miles of each store. The retailer actively seeks out local growers and promotes their products in the communities in which they live and produce their crops.
To Berkeley Bowl, local has to be very, very close – like across the street. And because its two stores are in very urban environments, there are not a lot of farms in the immediate vicinity. However, this retailer has more SKUs of produce than virtually any other retail operation in its marketing area…and maybe in the country. It does tout the relative local origin of many of its product with in-store displays and signage.
For Cano’s Hispanic-centric markets, he said locally-grown is a tricky proposition. “What is local? Do you measure how far it is from the DC (distribu-tion center) or from the store?”
He noted that most of the firm’s 40 stores are closer to northern Mexico growing areas than the Salinas Valley.
When it comes to sustainability, Berkeley Bowl has a very forward-thinking program, which includes investments in farming, creating energy from food waste and adopting technology for more efficient use of resources. Olson said Grocery Outlet takes the position that it is an important cog in eliminating food waste as it thrives on selling products that are close to their “sell by” date or otherwise might be headed for the landfill.
Another topic discussed is the impact mil-lennials are having on the retail community as they gain buying power and create their own households.
14 FRESH DIGEST
Associate SponsorsAlmond BrothersA.M.S. Exotic, LLC
Duda Farm Fresh FoodsGrimmway FarmsLitehouse Foods
MarzettiNatureSweet
Pear Bureau NorthwestProduce Marketing Association
Vitasoy USAWest Pak Avocado, Inc.
Northern California LuncheonSeptember 24, 2015Thank You Sponsors!
Key SponsorsAvocados from Mexico
Earthbound Farm IFCO
Mann Packing Co., Inc.Mastronardi Produce – West, LLC
San Miguel Produce
Emcee Marvin Quebec of Quebec Distributing
Jan DeLyser and Connie Stuckenberg of the California Avocado Commission flank Tom Wheeler of Mollie Stone’s Markets
Jim Corby and Yun Yi of Save Mart Supermarkets
Scot Olson of Grocery Outlet
and Lisa Davis of Edge Sales and
Marketing
OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2015 15
Brian Lancaster and Keith Kandt of NatureSweet
Todd Achondo of Nor Cal Produce and Heather
Dunagan of NatureSweet
Photo SponsorNorth Shore Living Herbs ®
Décor SponsorKitayama Brothers
Ryan Popka of Bolthouse Farms and Joel Adams of Wonderful Sales
16 FRESH DIGEST
Dayna Brown and Dan Acevedo of West Pak Avocados flank Steve Hattendorf of the Chilean Fresh Fruit Association
(L to R) Mark Nieweg of World Foods, Mark Klein of Ready Pac,
Clyde Forbes of Wholly Guacamole and Larry Tucker of Raley’s
Supermarkets
Jeannine Martin of Giumarra, Cindy See of Vitasoy USA and Kim St. George of Mann Packing Co., Inc.
18 FRESH DIGEST
Don Murphy Reflects on a 40-plus Year Career By Tim Linden
Focus o
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Industry veteran Don Murphy is retiring after 15 years with Grocery Outlet Bargain Market and a 40 plus year career.
January 4, 2016, will be his last day as Direc-tor of Produce and Floral for Grocery Outlet. “My plans are to spend more time with my wife, Cathy, my sons, Ryan and Kevin, our daughter-in-law, Shara, our beautiful baby granddaughter, Charley, and to enjoy our home in Lake Wildwood, CA.”
January will mark the beginning of a new chapter for this longtime industry veteran. Murphy is excited about his retirement and is very happy about the wonderful career he has had.
He insists he has no future work plans and wants to enjoy the fruits of his labor for a while before even considering how he is going to fill his days to come. “I love family, boating, coin collecting…maybe I’ll start an Ebay store,” he quipped. “I’m just not sure what I am going to do, but I will continue to have fun”. Murphy admits that he may be too young to completely call it quits which is why he is referring to his retirement as a “sabbatical.”
Born in Boston, his family moved to South-ern California when he was four years old. As a teenager in the town of Lakewood, in southwest Los Angeles County, Murphy was hired as a bagger for a local Alpha Beta store. That introduction to retail has served him well for the past four decades. In fact, he stayed with Alpha Beta and its successor companies as he worked his way up the ladder. “I moved through the ranks as a produce clerk, pro-duce department head, grocery department head, store manager, produce specialist, and director of produce/floral merchandising in Southern California. A promotion with Ralphs Grocery Company moved me to Northern California and the Bay Area in 1995 as vice president of produce and floral,” Don said.
Because of consolidations and acquisitions, during this time period he worked for more than a handful of store banners, including Alpha Beta, Boys, Viva, Food 4 Less, Ralphs, Cala, Bell and Foods Co.
In October of 2000, he joined Grocery Outlet as its first director of produce and floral. At the time,
the extreme value retailer had about 120 stores, with each only beginning to carry fresh produce. Murphy assumed leadership of the fledgling produce effort at Grocery Outlet with a mandate to grow the business while preserving the customer value proposition.
Murphy extends a special thank you to the Produce & Floral Dream Team at Grocery Outlet: Director of Produce and Floral CA/NV Scot Olson, Senior Merchandiser PNW Doug Montgomery, Floral and Produce Buyer Daniel Bell, Merchandiser GOI East Al Unglesbee, Merchandiser CA Scott Gonzales, and Assistant Buyer Alison Miceli, she is the glue that holds them together.
The company has grown considerably and now has 228 stores. “We are continuing to grow and our future is bright,” said Murphy. Grocery Outlet offers the extreme value proposition of bargains on brand name merchandise, with prices up to 40 to 60 percent below conventional retailers.
Murphy said the move to Grocery Outlet allowed him to “exercise his entrepreneurial spirit.” In looking for the produce buys, it is the deal that captures the attention of Murphy and his colleagues,
Don Murphy
This is what success tastes like
Nothing tastes better than success, and that’s exactly what you get by merchandising
Fresh California Avocados — now in season.
Call 1-800-344-4333 or visit CaliforniaAvocado.com/A-Look-Behind-The-Label to learn more. Produce of U.S.A.
© 2015 California Avocado Commission. All rights reserved.
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for a tailored retail program developed just for you. Our nearly 5,000 California Avocado growers thank you for your loyalty!
20 FRESH DIGEST
Fresh DIGESTCarissa Mace
PublisherTim Linden
EditorTom Fielding
Advertising/EditorialHeather Gray
Design/Layout
FRESH PRODUCE & FLORAL COUNCIL2015 Board of Directors
OFFICERSBrad Martin
Perimeter Sales & MerchandisingChairman of the Board
Marvin Quebec
Quebec DistributingChairman Elect
Connie Stukenberg
California Avocado CommissionTreasurer/Secretary
Rich Van Valkenburg
Van Valkenburg & AssociatesImmediate Past Chair
Mike Casazza
Apio/Eat SmartPast Chairman Representative
Harland Health
Heath & Lejeune, Inc.Honorary Past Chairman Representative
Carissa Mace
Fresh Produce & Floral CouncilPresident
DIRECTORSAndrew Bivens
Westlake Produce CompanyAlfonso Cano
Northgate Gonzalez MarketMark Carroll
Gelson’s/Mayfair MarketsBrian Cook
San Miguel ProduceGreg Corrigan
Raley’s SupermarketsKelly Craner
B & C Fresh SalesRick Cruz
Albertsons/VonsAllen Demo
DiMare InternationalKent Kuwata
Smart & Final Corp.Scott Leimkuhler
Progressive Produce Corp.Liane Mast
Stater Bros. MarketsRick Montoya
Ready PacMarta Moreno
Rose Gonzales Plants, Inc.Jeff Oberman
United Fresh Produce AssociationJennifer Pelayo
JP ConsultingRoger Schroeder
Stater Bros. Markets
The Fresh Produce & Floral Council
Welcomes the Following New Members:
Tracey Lewin, Kenny Lund, Nora Trueblood
Allen Lund Company
Jessica VasquezELLS CPAs & Business Advisors
Ernie PascuaFarmington Fresh
Rick Nahmias, Amir ZambranoFood Forward Inc.
Dino IacovinoMaster’s Touch
Amy Oshiro, Hiro WatanabeRed Shell Foods Inc.
Valerie RangelTessemae’s All Natural
not a particular spec or size on commodities. “We carry limited SKUs so we are able to navigate the value,” he said.
Murphy said he could not have asked for a better opportunity during this time in his career. In fact, in his retirement letter, he wrote: “Grocery Outlet is one of the most incredible organizations I have had the privilege to have worked with. The environment here, the quality of people and the leadership are unparalleled. I have been very for-tunate to have been a part of this great company. I am and always will be a raving fan.”
Murphy and his wife have lived in the East Bay for many years, but their retirement home resides in the foothill community of Lake Wildwood, north east of Sacramento. He calls this his “dream loca-tion” where the couple has spent most weekends for the past seven years, living an outdoor-centric life that includes a fair amount of boating on the lake. The pull of the lake and that lifestyle clearly was a major factor in his retirement decision.
Murphy thanks his friends and business associ-ates in the produce and floral industry! He feels he is a better person for having known all of you.
LOVED BY THE PRESS, CONSUMERS,
& ESPECIALLY YOUR BOTTOM LINE.
Fresh Hass Avocados deserve all the attention. They’re already a hit with
consumers, and support will only grow the category. The Hass Avocado Board
is dedicated to understanding avocados’ health benefi ts and industry trends, so
we can better market to an increasingly nutrition-focused audience. Learn more
about the Love One Today initiative at hassavocadoboard.com/LOTtrade.
cholesterol freenaturally good fats© 2015 Hass Avocado Board. All rights reserved.
22 FRESH DIGEST
HAB Continues Important Research Efforts By Tim Linden
Focus
on A
vocado N
utr
itio
n
Defining and telling the good nutrition story of the Hass avocado is the focus of the Hass Avo-cado Board, and it has significantly helped the fruit achieve double digit sales growth on an annual basis for many years now.
Emiliano Escobedo, executive director of HAB, said the value of the organization and its work was clearly illustrated at the World Avocado Congress held in Lima, Peru, in September. He said the research and promotional board is the envy of marketers around the world, who marvel at the sales growth avocados have achieved in the United States. It’s one thing when a country with very little sales sees big percentage gains. It’s quite another when the leading market in the world is registering such gains.
The HAB executive said that with the 2.1 bil-lion pounds of avocados expected to be consumed in the United States when the curtain falls on the 2015 calendar year on December 31, the United States will have vaulted into first place as the world’s number one market. There are other countries with higher – even much higher – per capita consumption rates, but no country matches the United States for sheer market volume. And even with that designa-tion, the volume grew 250 million pounds in 2015 from the 1.85 billion pounds sold and consumed in 2014. That represents a 13.5 percent increase in sales. For conservative budgeting purposes, HAB has factored in a 7 percent growth for 2016, but no one would be surprised if that percentage is easily eclipsed.
Escobedo believes a sizable portion of the increase can be attributed to assessments paid through HAB for various efforts. “There is no ques-tion pooling funds and investing them in research and marketing provides positive results,” he said.
Since 2002, the avocado industry has col-lected more than $450 million through HAB as-sessments, charged on volume marketed within
the United States. Much of that money is spent via the point of origin industry groups on extremely-valuable promotion programs. In addition, HAB spends a significant amount on nutrition research. “The board is building a body of science around the avocado,” he said.
HAB continually funds research that looks at the nutritional attributes of the avocado for the purpose of linking the fruit to advantageous outcomes. Often this is deliberate work that takes quite a bit of time to test, analyze and discover positive links. But Escobedo said the building of the nutritional case is very important and can help guide nutritional decisions for years to come. For example, he said many years ago U.S. federal agen-cies established dietary guidelines limiting fat intake. Those guidelines have been used for 35 years to set policy. Much research has been done in the interim to further examine the role of “fat” and “good fat” on the diet. Consequently, for the first time in more than three decades, the new dietary guidelines are expected to remove the fat limitation. Research, including avocado nutrition research, has shown that good fat is an important element of the diet and not just the bad actor it has been made out to be for decades.
“Low fat, low fat, low fat was all we heard for years,” said Escobedo. “That dietary guideline document helped set policy for years. Now re-search has shown that setting a limit on fat is not necessarily good.”
He believes the new guidelines will be good for the avocado, nuts and other items that may have a relatively high fat content, but much of it being the “good fat”.
Escobedo is also awaiting the final report of research funded by HAB at Tufts University that examined the carotenoid lutein. This is a naturally occurring compound that provides the yellow color in various foods such as the avocado. Research
OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2015 23
has shown that it is ac-cumulated by both the brain and the human retina. The HAB execu-tive was not at liberty to discuss the prelimi-nary research, but a search of the internet revealed that lutein is believed to offer some type of protection for the retina, and may also have a positive impact on cognitive ability of older people. It is present in many well-known nutritional powerhouses such as spinach, kale and yellow carrots. Again, Escobe-do stated that the value of this type of research is to continue to build the knowledge base for avocados. Knowledge is said to be power…and it may also lead to increased consumption. “When it is published, we believe it is going to be a good study for us,” he said.
Escobedo also touted a new relation-ship HAB has devel-oped with the Ameri-can Diabetes Associa-tion. It is the first time, he said, that association has partnered with a “whole food.” There are many recipes out there that advance the avo-cado as a substitute for sugar and butter. As such, the avocado obviously fits the criteria established by ADA as a diabetes-friendly food. Escobedo said HAB’s interest has a lot to do with the growing Hispanic population in the United States and their propensity toward diabetes. He called it the num-ber five killer among Hispanics in the United States. While Hispanics typically over-index in avocado con-sumption, Escobedo said acculturated Hispanics in the United States often shed their traditional foods and adopt less-than-stellar eating habits. HAB ex-pects to exploit the partnership with ADA to urge
Hispanics to increase their avocado consumption even as they adopt American eating habits.
Escobedo noted that one study showed that either substituting or adding avocados to a traditional meal is nutritionally beneficial to the consumer. HAB has released the results of several other studies over the past few years which also point to the nutritional and healthful benefits of a diet that is heavy in avocados. He said the nutritional research focus of the board has proved successful and it is the course HAB expects to continue to navigate in the foreseeable future.
24 FRESH DIGEST
Henry Avocado Sees Grower Response to Consumer Needs By Rob Bryant
Focus o
n A
vocados
Even with its California groves completely harvested since late-September, the marketing team at Henry Avocado knows a steady flow of avocados to its retail and foodservice customers will continue at whatever pace the market requires.
This ideal situation owes its existence to the popularity of avocados in this country and the prox-imity and productivity of the country to our south. “Mexico’s large volume lessens the effect of any shortages that might occur in the marketplace,” said Phil Henry, whose family-owned company has been growing avocados since the 1920s and marketing them year-round for well over two decades.
The future looks bright as well considering California growers have a good crop on their trees for the 2016 harvest and the statewide rainfall for the coming year is predicted to be above average. Adding optimism is the growers’ response to the increasing demand for organics.
For the past three years, California growers and exporters have dedicated additional acreage for certification, which adds to a current organic volume that was already enough to meet chain store promotions this summer. Henry expects its 2016 organic production from its California groves, and imports from Mexico, to double.
And you can expect even more conventional exports in the years to come. The state of Jalisco in Mexico could have its groves certified by U.S.D.A in 2016, which would add to the production from Michoacan for the first time. Michoacan is also increasing its certified organic acreage and the conventional groves that were planted years ago,
have now reached maturity and will add to next year’s export totals as well.
Henry’s growers from Mexico have demon-strated they are committed to this market and its standards. They are re-investing a portion of the increased revenue from U. S. sales to modernize cold storage facilities and to upgrade their transportation assets, according to Henry.
In taking a closer look at the suppliers in this hemisphere, only Chile’s numbers are dropping in
Ozzie Figueroa gets ready to inspect a box of Bravocado avocados from one of Henry’s ripening rooms at the company’s Escondido distribution center.
OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2015 25
succeed if the “supply side” accommodates its vision. One has only to look at the increasing consumption numbers to understand that whatever side of the buyer/supplier equation you are on - everyone is taking their role seriously. How else can per-capita consumption have increased from 4.0 pounds in 2010 to 6.0 pounds in 2014?
In addition to ripening programs, which Henry began and is now common practice from all dis-tributors, contributions from the various avocado marketing associations have had a big impact. The California Avocado Commission set the standard decades ago with an array of integrated marketing programs.
Now all producers have marketing boards with promotional budgets that assist distributors as well as retailers. In addition, the Hass Avocado Board provides research data on every facet of avocados from nutrition to consumption.
In addition to nutrition-driven studies, HAB develops and distributes recipes for the promo-tional boards to use in creating in-store marketing materials.
The abundant supply of quality fruit from its growing partners has helped Henry increase the volume of the CustomRipe orders it processes in 67 forced-air ripening rooms at its distribution centers in Escondido and Milpitas, CA, and from the southwest in San Antonio, TX, and Phoenix, AZ.
Henry continues to publish a “Ripening Guide” for its buyers, which describes the five stages of ripening, so that avocados can be purchased on an “as-desired basis.” By using agreed upon terms for the levels of ripeness, customers enjoy maximum accuracy in their orders.
Phil Henry inspects ripened fruit at one of Henry Avocado’s 67 ripening rooms.
the United States. Victimized by almost a decade-long drought, Chile’s growers have less top-quality fruit to export and its volume has decreased the last two years. Peru, however, is a growing presence that provides value and size diversity for Henry’s customers during its season, which coincides with California.
While Henry says the company’s purpose is: “To consistently provide customers with superior quality fresh avocados and great service,” it can only
FPFC OFFICE2400 E. Katella Avenue, Suite 330
Anaheim, CA 92806
Website: www.fpfc.org
CHAMP PUBLISHINGAdvertising Office
1295 N. Holliston AvenuePasadena, CA 91104
email: [email protected] Office925-258-0892
email: [email protected]
FPFC MISSION STATEMENTThe Fresh Produce & Floral Council is a dynamic
community of professionals across all sectors of
the fresh produce and floral industry who do
business in California and the western region.
The Council is dedicated to providing members
with convenient opportunities to build productive
relationships, access timely market information,
enhance their business skills, and pool their
efforts to promote and advance the industry.
26 FRESH DIGEST
Domex Touting Its Pears and Apples By Tim Linden
Focus
on t
he N
ort
hw
est
At this year’s Produce Marketing Association convention, the Domex Superfresh Growers team has a lot to talk about. Both pears in pouches and the Wenatchee, WA-based firm’s proprietary Autumn Glory will be taking center stage in their booth.
Vice President of Marketing Howard Nager said maybe it’s just better to be lucky than smart, but the company is perfectly positioned to take ad-vantage of how Mother Nature delivered this year’s pear crop. A hot spell in late spring, which bathed the Northwest pear growing areas in temperatures above 105 degrees for the better part of three weeks, produced an inordinate amount of small fruit. Nager said the quality is very good and the crop volume is there, but the fruit is small. Just as
people don’t want to do much when temperatures rise, neither do trees. The fruit stopped growing for a good stretch and is now peaking at a smaller size than normal
As luck would have it, Domex has been work-ing with PMA on its “Eat Brighter” campaign, which is an across-the-board produce promotion utilizing Sesame Street characters on produce packaging. Hence the company was getting ready to launch a new two-pound stand-up pear pouch this fall aimed at both kids and the gatekeepers for those pear purchases.
Pears merchandised in bags, which is an increasingly popular way to gain incremental pear sales, tend to utilize smaller fruit. Nager said selling pears in an array of packaging is a great way to utilize
28 FRESH DIGEST
really well, needs less inputs and can be grown or-ganically easier than other apple varieties.
And make no mistake about it, Nager says, organics are helping to drive the category. “There is not a buyer I talk to that organics isn’t the first or second thing he wants to talk about. It seems like everyone is wanting to grow that part of their business.”
Nager said there have been many new apples coming down the pike in recent years, and it is a great trend. These apples are all driven by their flavor profile and are breathing new life into the category. For the first time in many generations, the Red Delicious crop has dropped into third place in the list of Washington’s top money making fresh apples. Gala is in the number one spot and is now followed by Honey Crisp in terms of dollar sales. Both still lag behind Red Delicious in acreage but they both far outdistance that old standby in average sales price per pound
At its PMA booth, Domex will be touting one additional new variety called Cosmic Crisp. This variety was developed by Washington State University and is cross of the Honey Crisp and other varieties. The state of Washington is going to keep this apple as its own and in years to come it will only be available from Washington shippers. Nager said it is a great story of the industry working collaboratively to create a marketing opportunity. He said Cosmic Crisp is a very good apple and should do very well, though it will take many years for commercial production to ramp up.
the entire crop. “We call it ‘selling the whole bin’,” he said. “It maximizes returns for the grower by finding a home for all the different pear sizes.”
He said it is equally good for retailers and pear consumers, respectively, who can sell and buy value packs. The three and five pound pear bags are noted as value purchases. Nager said the two-pound pouch actually allows a retailer to upsell the bag-friendly consumer because the price point on a per pound basis is higher.
And the graphics with the cartoon characters have proven to be a great draw to those little kids, who truly help their parents make in-store buying decisions.
Nager said Pear Bureau Northwest research has revealed that 37 percent of buyers, categorized officially as Super Heavy and Heavy buyers, purchase 74 percent of the pears. These buyers share a num-ber of traits, including: they are looking for natural/organic and locally grown; they are younger, better educated and have higher incomes; and they are more likely to have kids and larger households.
Domex is offering the pear pouches in four different varieties – Barlett, Anjou, Bosc and a red pear pack – and in both conventional and organic packs
The Autumn Glory story is just beginning to be written but it appears to be a good one. This proprietary variety is in its third year of commercial production, which means volume is still very small. “We expect to have about 50,000 boxes this year,” Nager said.
That number will double next year and prob-ably the year after. Within about five years, Domex sees a crop of about 800,000 cartons. This year’s volume is just enough to whet the appetite of the company’s best customers. Because it is a new apple, Domex is looking for retailers that want to grow their participation along with the program. He said the apple will need to be introduced to consumers through demos, sampling, promotion and in-store signage.
“We have high hopes for this variety,” he said as he ticked off its many attributes.
Like other new varieties, he said it has a great crunch, flavor and texture. The firm’s website says “Autumn Glory apples have a very sweet, firm flesh with a subtle ‘cinnamon’ flavor. Some describe it as tasting like apple sauce while some say it tastes just like apple cider ; regardless of how you describe it, Autumn Glory apples have an intense ‘apple’ flavor you’ll love.”
In addition, Nager said, in relative terms, it is an easier apple for growers to produce as it stores
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30 FRESH DIGEST
4Earth Farms Steeped in Produce History
Focus o
n F
am
ily T
ies
This year Deborah Bolstad-Lake and her husband, David Lake, are celebrating the 22nd anniversary of their 4Earth Farms, a Los Angeles based grower and packer of organic, conventional, and specialty produce.
The Los Angeles-based grower and packer of organic, conventional and specialty produce was originally founded in 1993 along with industry veteran Fred McConnell, who retired from the company in 2001.
While 22 years is a long time to be in the produce business - Deborah’s and David’s story really began 104 years and four generations ago. On a street corner at 7th and Figueroa in downtown Los Angeles, Deborah’s great grandfather, Charles Von Der Ahe, opened his first grocery store in 1913,
called Vons Grocery.In less than 16 years, Von Der Ahe grew his
little shop into an 88-store chain, with locations all over the Southern California basin. He eventually sold his company to McMars (renamed Safeway) and he retired.
Not to be out-done, Charles’ two eldest sons graduated with law degrees from Loyola University and decided they wanted to carry on the family gro-cery tradition, rather than pursuing legal careers.
With a $5,000 stake from their father, Debo-rah’s great-uncles Theodore and Wilfred Von Der Ahe started their store in 1932 in Lynwood, CA. This was the first of what today is Vons Grocery, with patriarch Charles managing the finances, Theodore handling procurement and Wilfred handling store
Deborah and David Lake
walk4hope.org
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Now!NOvember 8, 2015City of HopeDuarte, California
ALLISA OVARIAN CANCER
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32 FRESH DIGEST
operations.In 1933, a huge earthquake devastated the
Long Beach area and their Lynwood location. The brothers reached out to the community, taking what they could salvage from their destroyed store and distributed groceries to those who were left home-less. Setting up in their parking lot, they re-opened the store to feed the people as the community rebuilt itself.
Deborah’s family ties to the Southern Cali-fornia produce industry grew even deeper when Charles’ fifth child of eight, Pinky (born Virginia) married Norman Bolstad - also known as Buz, Deborah’s grandfather.
At the time they were married, Buz Bolstad had a secure career with Bullock’s, a tony depart-ment store located in downtown Los Angeles. While most fathers would be thrilled their daughters mar-ried a man with such a stable career, Charles Von Der Ahe would have none of it... “Wouldn’t you rather sell groceries than shoes and socks?” he ca-joled Buz. Buz finally relented and joined the family business in 1941, much to his mother’s chagrin.
How lucky we all are in the produce industry that Buz ignored his mother’s consternation and traded his tie for a produce apron!
At the time Buz Bolstad joined Vons, they had 11 stores. From 1940 to 1990 all the top super-market chains in Southern California were founded by individuals or families: Vons, Ralphs, Alexanders, Market Basket, Smith’s Food King, Shopping Bag, Hughes, Boys Market and Foods Co.
When World War II broke out, Bolstad was responsible for buying produce for all the Vons stores from the two markets located at 7th and Central and 9th and San Pedro, which were run by an association called the Associated Brokers and Dealers, headed by a man named Homer Harris.
Because most of the produce on the mar-ket was being sold to the U.S. Military, little was left for the chains to procure. This process was made even more difficult by the fact that there was no coordination between the market and all the Southern California grocery chains. More than once the market would be closed for a holiday, un-announced, leaving the chains scrambling to stock their shelves.
Frustrated, Bolstad spearheaded a committee to improve the communication and coordination of all the family chains with the produce markets. This group eventually took root and became the Southern California Fresh Produce Council, and Buz was their first President.
Buz and Pinky, had four children. Their second
child, David Bolstad entered the produce industry at adulthood, starting and building the successful Los Angeles produce firm Western Mixers.
David Bolstad Sr. married Patricia Gailin and they have been blessed with twelve children, all of whom have worked at Western Mixers at some point in their careers. Their children, David Bolstad Jr., Kristin Bolstad-Finley and Michelle Bolstad all currently work with their father at Western Mix-ers. Their oldest daughter Deborah also worked at Western Mixers, before shifting her career to hi-tech, and currently partner and C.F.O. of 4Earth Farms
“Four generations of my family have earned their livings from selling produce,” said Bolstad-Lake. “I hope my ancestors would be proud of the company David and I have built together and in the way 4Earth Farms honors its staff and our community. And, I hope they would be proud of the work we’ve done to support sustainable farming practices so that my family’s legacy can continue for many generations to come.”
David Lake added, “We have tried to build our business the same way Deb’s family did in the past – focusing on quality, innovation and excellent service. Those values are as important today as they were 100 years ago.”
4Earth Farms is on the cutting edge of or-ganics, specialty and conventional produce offer-ing more than 350 SKUs daily - and growing. The firm and its staff are active members of FPFC and are sponsors of the Southern California Produce Achievement Award, which is also known as the Norman H. ‘Buz’ Bolstad Produce Award.
Norman H. ‘Buz’ Bolstad
OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2015 33
which helped push it out to smaller stores.”The entire program was not a long one, but
that was by design. “I certainly wanted to be a little conservative the first time around to see how this would work,” he said.
De Franco & Sons’ long history of innovation is well documented. The company was the first tomato re-packer on the West Coast to package tomatoes in tube trays. The firm has provided qual-ity packaged produce to Southern California’s most prominent chain stores for more than 50 years.
The new organic corn venture goes hand in hand with De Franco & Sons entrepreneurial beliefs and nature. Jerry and brothers Paul and Richard are the third generation of this family-owned business, and they bring with them a combination of more than eight decades of experience in the industry. The company, De Franco said, “packs corn 365 days a year.”
Jerry added that the recent organic corn pro-gram has him thinking about possibly expanding to other items. “I’m thinking that we could also try an organic green bean program in the future,” he said, “but we will take baby steps to get there.”
As for organic corn, he said the company is committed to doing it again next year. “Our goal is to grow the category. Now that I know better how to navigate the situation, we can certainly push more volume in future years.”
De Franco Capitalizes on Summer Corn Deal By Tom Fielding
Focus o
n O
rganic
s
A chance encounter with a corn grower at last year’s Produce Marketing Association Convention turned into a sweet, new deal for Los Angeles-based De Franco & Sons. The company, established in 1916, began supplying organic corn to California, Arizona and Texas retailers this summer, and the program, which recently ended, turned out to be quite a success.
Vice president of Sales Jerry De Franco said, “After meeting a Colorado corn grower at the PMA Convention and talking with him, he was interested in working with us so we decided to mutually try to do this venture together. I was fortunate to meet him, because he was a high quality grower who also has very high standards.”
De Franco added, “He did a tremendous job, because growing organic corn is tough and there are numerous challenges. There are not a lot of growers who want to do this, because of cost and the process is also very labor intensive.
“Organic corn is sprayed with organic chemi-cals, which are not harsh, but growing can be very tricky. The yields often are not as good, but we thought this was a good time to get our feet wet and see what happens. It was very exciting to be involved with this.”
Another unexpected challenge this summer came from Mother Nature. “We had to delay our start for almost a month because Colorado expe-rienced some crazy weather during the summer including hail.”
Once the selling of organic bi-color corn did get off the ground, De Franco said the retail response was good. He forged a relationship with Sprouts Farmers Markets. “Sprouts said, ‘Let’s do it,’ and they were the driving force.”
The corn was sold mostly in 12 three-pack cello trays, but De Franco did said there were also some 48-count bulk sales. The Los Angeles market veteran was quick to add that other retailers such as Stater Bros., Bristol Farms, Gelson’s and Mother’s Market and Kitchen were also integral to the success of the organic corn program. “We also became involved with wholesalers like Better Life Organics,
34 FRESH DIGEST
Litehouse Adds Flavors and New Design to Lineup By Tim Linden
Focu
s on C
om
pli
men
tary
Ite
ms
Litehouse, which bills itself as the top selling organic refrigerated dressing brand in the industry, has recently introduced a fresh new bottle design and two new flavors into this line of dressings.
Alison Kellogg, brand manager for the firm, said “Rosemary Balsamic and Ginger with Honey round out the delicious flavor varieties available in our organic offerings. The new look perfectly captures the natural, wholesome flavors in this line, and include the third party verified on-pack seals for USDA Organic, Non-GMO Project Verified, and GFCO Gluten Free.”
The company has also introduced three new bacon-flavored dressings: Avocado Ranch with Ba-con, Bacon Vinaigrette, and Bacon Blue Cheese.
Yogurt based food items, including dressings and dips, are seemingly a growing trend and Lite-house is participating in that movement. Camille Balfanz, another brand manager for the firm, said the company has had great success with its OPA brand dressing, which was the first Greek yogurt dress-ing on the market. Last year, Litehouse introduced Opadipity savory and sweet dips , which also utilizes a yogurt base. This year three new flavors are being added to that dip line: Greek Olive, Spicy Asiago Artichoke and Cinnamon Swirl. “More than just a veggie dip,” Balfanz said these dips are thick enough for many different uses including “spreading on sand-wiches and gyros or dipping pita chips, vegetables or wherever your curiosity takes you.”
She noted that side by side, the firm’s Opa-dipity Greek Olive dips outsell the competition by 20 percent.
Kellogg said the yogurt-based salad dressings are also doing very. They “continue to see strong growth in the market as consumers choose the big flavors with fewer calories and fat. Our recent line extensions, Kalamata Feta, Roasted Pepper and Jalapeno Ranch, continue to gain distribution and are contributing to the nearly 60 percent year-over-year growth we’re seeing for OPA by Litehouse.”
Kellogg told the Fresh DIGEST that the re-frigerated dressing category is continuing to grow and gaining market share. “As consumers continue to be more informed about what they’re eating,
there has been a natural shift from shopping in the center store to the perimeter, where fresh, healthy food is found,” she said. “This trend has impacted the salad dressing category, and we have seen shelf stable (center store) dressings declining by 4 per-cent while refrigerated dressings are growing by 6 percent over previous year. We’re seeing growth with unique, on-trend flavors including bacon, avo-cado, and Asian-inspired combinations, as well as in organics.”
While these unique flavors are gaining trac-tion and driving category excitement and growth, she said the traditional flavors, such as blue cheese, ranch, coleslaw, and balsamic continue to be the top sellers.
Litehouse packages its products in glass jars because of consumer preference. “We’ve recently conducted consumer research and continue to hear that consumers prefer glass jars for their refriger-ated salad dressings, as they feel this lends itself to a higher-quality product,” Kellogg said.
The entire refrigerated salad dressing is do-ing very well, according to scan data. “Household penetration for refrigerated salad dressings has seen continual growth over the past four years, and has reached 20.6 percent,” said Kellogg. “This is right in line with the consumer trend toward eating high-quality, fresh food, and we anticipate this number will continue to grow in the years to come.”
Litehouse advocates continual promotional activity and the use of point of sale materials, shelf-talkers and recipe pads to help catch the consumer’s attention and help drive impulse sales.
These products feature the hand-painted artwork of one of our employees, Lindsey Kuhn.
OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2015 35
35th Annual Bowling Tournament AMF Carter LanesSeptember 12, 2015
Men’s High SeriesMichael Casazza, Calavo Growers
SponsorsTeam Photo Sponsors
DiMare International Legacy Farms
Ready PacWestlake Produce Company
Pizza SponsorsApio/Eat Smart
Progressive Produce Corp.
Event Contributors4Earth Farms
Apio/Eat SmartCharlie’s Produce
IFCOLegacy Farms
Westlake Produce Company
Product Contributors Apio/Eat Smart Legacy FarmsSmart & Final
Bowling Tournament Team SponsorsAMC Direct
Apio/Eat SmartCharlie’s Produce
CMC Sales & Marketing DiMare International
D.L.J. ProduceFresh & EasyFrieda’s Inc.
Houweling’s TomatoesLA & SF Specialty Produce
Legacy Farms The Oppenheimer GroupProgressive Produce Corp.
San Miguel ProduceSecond Harvest Food BankVision Produce Company
Westlake Produce Company
Women’s High SeriesSally Mendoza, DLJ Produce
36 FRESH DIGEST
3rd Place TeamVision Produce Company
Christopher BetancourtNicole BetancourtPeter Betancourt
Steven Betancourt
1st Place TeamApio/Eat Smart
Michael Casazza, Calavo GrowersMike Casazza, Apio/Eat Smart
Seth KendellBrian Stanphill
2nd Place TeamLegacy Farms
Jason Meadows, Legacy FarmsVincent Mendoza, Legacy Farms
Joey Simpson, Legacy FarmsKirtan Simpson, Legacy Farms
OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2015 37
5th Place TeamDLJ Produce #2
Susana Clifford, DLJ ProduceDonna Moyher, DLJ ProduceAlma Rodriguez, DLJ ProduceSally Mendoza, DLJ Produce
4th Place TeamThe Oppenheimer Group
Larry Hanson, The Oppenheimer GroupJeffrey Ngo, The Oppenheimer Group
Cameron Purcell, The Oppenheimer GroupMichelle Purcell, The Oppenheimer Group
23rd Annual SoCal Golf Tournament Tustin Ranch Golf ClubAugust 25, 2015
38 FRESH DIGEST
On Course Demo StationBing Beverage CompanyDel Monte Fresh, N.A.
Naked Juice Odwalla
The Wonderful Company
Tommy Bahama GiveawayApio/Eat Smart
Marie’s/Ventura FoodsMarzetti
Golf TowelBeachside Produce, LLC
Chiquita BrandsGreat West Produce
The Oppenheimer GroupWestlake Produce Company
Closest to Pin ContestLegacy Farms
Perimeter Sales & Merchandising
Hole in One Contest DiMare International
Putting Contest Umina Bros., Inc.
Team Photo Consolidated West Dist., LLC
Del Monte Fresh, N.A.Green Thumb ProduceKern Ridge Growers
Progressive Produce Corp.
SponsorsDinner Program
WJL Distributors
Event SignageAvocados from Mexico
Fresh Gourmet CompanyHenry Avocado
Western Mixers Inc.
Door & Raffle Prize DonorsMelissa’s/World Variety Produce
Orange County Food BankTommy Bahama
Tustin Ranch Golf Club
Product DonorDel Monte Fresh, N.A.
Nancy Hamilton, Connie Thatcher and Greg
Bradley, Advantage Sales & Marketing; and David
Miroglio, Marzetti
OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2015 39
WinnersFirst Place Team
Kim Murata, Melissa’s/World Variety ProduceParker Nishi, Melissa’s/World Variety Produce
Matt Steinbeck, Melissa’s/World Variety ProduceMatt Stocks, Melissa’s/World Variety Produce
Second Place TeamTodd Butler, WJL Distributors
Rick Garboski, WJL DistributorsMax Kaffler, Superior Grocers
Harry Karasawa, Superior Grocers
Third Place TeamRyan Dunham, RJ Produce Dist.
Jeff Johnson, Great West ProduceKevin Johnson, Great West Produce
Jason Minici, Christopher Ranch
The First Place Team from Melissa’s/World Variety Produce, Matt Stocks, Kim Murata, Matt Steinbrick and Parker Nishi.
Putting Contest winners Bill Laliberte, WJL Distributors and Larry Hanson, Oppy.
Longest Drive Winners
Men’s:Ryan Dunham, RJ Produce Dist.
Women’s:Therese Ferrara, Preferred Sales
Putting ContestLarry Hanson, The Oppenheimer Group
Bill Laliberte, WJL Distributors
Women’s Longest Drive winner Therese Ferrara, Preferred
Sales, LLC
40 FRESH DIGEST
Closest to Pin Contest Winners
Hole # 3:Jack Gyben, Progressive Produce Corp.
Hole #6:Eddie Yarberry, The Pinery, LLC
Hole #11:Jesse Ramirez, Ralphs Grocery Co.
Hole #17:Jack Howell, Chiquita Brands
Jesse Ramirez and Tracy Ramirez, Ralphs Grocery Company; and Chris
Robinson, The Pinery, LLC
Tony Garcia, Ralphs Grocery Company; with Jack Gyben (Closest to Pin winner), Jim Leimkuhler and Gary Meadows, Progressive Produce Corp.
OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2015 41
Championship TeesAdvantage Sales & Marketing
All Fresh ProduceApio/Eat Smart
B & C Fresh SalesCategory Partners, LLC
Chiquita BrandsCMC Sales & Marketing
Consolidated West Dist., Inc.Co-Sales
Del Monte Fresh, N.A.DLJ Produce
Dole Fresh VegetablesEarthbound FarmFreshSource, LLC
Great West ProduceKern Ridge Growers
Legacy FarmsThe Little Potato Company
Marie’s/Ventura FoodsMarzetti
Melissa’s/World Variety ProduceNaked Juiceorganicgirl
Perimeter Sales & MerchandisingThe Pinery, LLC
Professional ProduceProgressive Produce Corp.
Ready PacSan Miguel Produce
Taylor Farms Retail, Inc.Umina Bros., Inc.
Westlake Produce CompanyWest Pak Avocado, Inc.
WJL DistributorsThe Wonderful Company
Rick Cruz, Albertsons/Vons; Mike Casazza, Apio/Eat Smart; with Pat McDowell, Brad Martin and Chris Martin, Perimeter Sales & Merchandising
Eric Christensen, United Melon Distributing; and Michael
Gaskins, Professional Produce
42 FRESH DIGEST
Kristyn Lawson, Good Foods Group; and Chad Miller, Sprouts Farmers Market
Don Gann and David Martus, Stater Bros. Markets; with Marty Craner, B&C Fresh Sales
Richard Flamminio and Andrew Cotton, Umina Bros.
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