RIO RICO, AZ -- Fresh Farms LLC and Visalia Produce have merged operations to create a single sales and distribution company called Fresh Farms.
Effective April 1, Steve Biswell becomes the chief executive officer of Fresh Farms. He has been serving as the COO of Visalia Produce, which is located in Kingsburg, CA.
Marco Molina Sr. heads Hermosillo-based Grupo Molina, one of the largest farming families in Mexico and one of that country’s largest fresh grape growers, which is expanded farming into California. The firm is also a major grower and shipper of fresh vegetables.
On March 20, the combined sales staff of Fresh Farms and Visalia Produce met in Rio Rico, AZ, to prepare for an April 1 merger of the California and Arizona sister sales companies. Front row: Robert Hernandez, Alan Voll, Marco Serrano, Juan Pablo Molina, Fernando Pompa. Back row: Javier Molina, Aron Gularte, Ben Moenig, Martha Noriega, Marco Molina Jr., Carlos Molina, Steve Biswell, Dale Prinz, Marco Molina Sr., George Matoian, Charlotte Suarez, Eloy Suarez and Dan Garcia. Photo by Tad Thompson.In 2006 Grupo Molina created Fresh Farms as its marketing wing in Rio Rico. Visalia Produce was purchased in part by Grupo Molina in 2010. Visalia partner Stanley Shamoon died in 2011, so Molina then purchased the entirety of the company.
The merger was detailed to The Produce News a March 20 meeting in Rio Rico with the Molina family and Biswell.
Biswell said there has been a lot of overlap in the products sold by the Fresh Farms sales staff and that of Visalia. With so little differentiation, it made sense to have both locations sell all products. The California and Arizona offices will remain the same with the same staffing.
Biswell said the two sales staffs were all in Rio Rico on March 20 to discuss all accounts. Very few customers are common to both staffs, so he said it is simple to have all salespeople handle all products and be more efficient.
Biswell said the “Visalia Produce” sign that has stood for many years is immediately being replaced by a “Fresh Farms” mark.
Both sales offices will now be selling Mexican vegetables and grapes as well as Grupo Molina’s expanding California grape deal. Both operations will also sell California citrus and some specialty items.
Biswell said the two sales staffs have met in joint meetings over the last two or three years, so there is a familiarity among all parties.
A March 19 press release indicated, “This move is being made to take full advantage of both sales staff’s strengths and abilities. By merging the offices into one company there will be more sales firepower for both offices and a wider distribution of our products as both sales staffs will share inventories.”
Aside from grapes, Fresh Farms offers soft squash, hard squash, Bell peppers, English and American cucumbers, eggplant, watermelon, hot peppers, corn, pickles, round beans, citrus when in season, and specialties such as persimmons and quince. Most of these items are available from organic farms.
