As Live Oak Farms nears its nearly century-old, four-generation history as a grower-packer-shipper in the heart of California’s San Joaquin Valley, the company is seeing some change. Starting in late November, the grower-shipper will begin importing products from its farming operations in Mexico to help complete a 52-week cycle of availability on one of its most important crops, green and red bell peppers.
“The message has been loud and clear from both our retail and food service customers: we need you to be in the game year-round,” said Damon Barkdull, vice president of pepper sales. “We’re excited to begin this next chapter in our history.”
For the vast majority of its history, Live Oak has focused mostly on its crops close to Le Grand from July through October. Those crops included mature green tomatoes (round and Roma) along with chili and bell peppers (green, red, and yellow). With the company’s hire of Pete Aiello, vice president of pepper programs, came the addition of programs in Coachella and Bakersfield to extend that California window.
Barkdull said the decision to expand its operations into Mexico does not come lightly, but it was a must to continue its continuity to its customers in a global market.
With the program in Sinaloa (Mexico), Live Oak now has bell pepper coverage 52 weeks a year. It is expecting green bells to begin crossing in late November and red bell peppers as early as the second week of December into Nogales, Arizona.
“The Giampaoli family has stayed in business and flourished largely because of incremental growth and taking calculated but heavily weighed risks. They’ve built an excellent reputation by putting up a quality product and having integrity along the way,” Barkdull said. “The decision to expand our operations into Mexico does not come lightly, but it was a must to continue our continuity to customers in a global market.”
In addition to bringing Mexican peppers to its customers, Live Oak will expand its portfolio of products in both conventional and organic vegetables, including but not limited to Italian squash, yellow squash, cucumbers, and an expanded array of chili peppers.
“Customers have been banging the drum that we need to diversify our portfolio,” said Barkdull. “We have an excellent reputation when it comes to tomatoes and peppers, so the thought was that we could expand the dry vegetable category and build on the momentum we have created.”
It expects the Mexico pepper program to carry them into May for a smooth transition into its California crop.
“This is uncharted water for us but not for Pete and I. We have years of experience in Mexico and have aligned with some of the best growers in Sinaloa. We expect to build on this inaugural Mexico season in years to come,” Barkdull said.
For more information:
Briana Giampaoli
Live Oak Farms
Tel.: +1 (209) 389-4576
[email protected]
https://www.liveoakfarms.com/