Oser Communications Group

Produce Show Daily Oct 18 2014

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P ro d u c e S h o w D a i l y S a t u rd a y, O c to b e r 1 8 , 2 0 1 4 7 2 clients and 56,000 active cardholders. Our Commercial Card Division offers flexible and cost-effective solutions to help cardholders manage business expenses and cash flow efficiently. We work closely with approximately 400 agribusinesses – ranging from small dairy farms and wineries to large nurs- eries and multinational seed companies. Smaller agribusinesses appreciate the convenience of our solutions, particu- larly the widespread acceptance of cards at more than 30 million merchant loca- tions worldwide and floats that offer up to a 55-day grace period. Cash-back or rebates based on card volume and automation are other significant benefits larger agricultural companies enjoy. Our ePayables solution replaces checks and uses virtual card numbers to make pay- ments, increase efficiencies and help safeguard against fraud. Working with all of our clients, we take pride in using a high-touch approach Bank of the West ( Cont'd. from p. 4) to help them increase efficiencies and extract the maximum benefits from our commercial card solutions. We have a dedicated cardholder call center based in Georgia available 24/7 as well as a call center for card administrators based in California. A dedicated Bank of the West Account Manager is a resource for larger companies, helping them extract the most value from our solutions. Our deep expertise, high market concentration and broad footprint enable us to share valuable information and best practices with our clients on an ongoing basis. This includes conducting vendor analysis for our clients, so we can find and recommend vendors where they can use their commercial cards. For more information on how Bank of the West's Commercial Cards solutions can help generate efficiencies for your busi- ness, contact Lena Jennings, V.P. at Bank of the West, at 408-299-1604 or lena .jennings@bankofthewest.com. Be sure to stop by booth #1166 to learn more. products can we expect from North Shore within the next year? JF: Well, we are always working on coming up with innovative and unique products to offer our retailers. We just recently came out with our newest two items: potted cilantro and parsley. They have been a great addition to our existing potted line up of basil, mint, rosemary and dill. For merchandising, we created slanted trays for our retail partners to dis- play packaged basil neatly out of refrig- eration. Most importantly, we have redesigned all of our POS and product labeling to communicate that our prod- ucts are Non-GMO, Sustainable and grown in the U.S.A. Look for it in stores soon! PSD: You were recently certified with Non-GMO and SCS Sustainably grown. Has this helped with growing sales and attracting a specific market? JF: As the public becomes more aware of the health risks associated with GMOs they will demand Non-GMO foods for their families. I believe our Non-GMO Certification will help foster trust in our fresh herbs and ultimately have a positive effect on sales. Sustainability is not a trend, it's a lifestyle. It all started with recycling. Now recycling is part of our North Shore ( Cont'd. from p. 1) lifestyle. We don't even think about it anymore. We just do it. Sustainability is becoming increasingly more important to consumers. Consumers want to enjoy products grown on farms that do not con- tribute to the destruction of the environ- ment. North Shore is the only SCS Sustainably Grown Herb grower in the United States. That's something to be proud of. PSD: What does it mean personally to you to be Non-GMO and SCS Sustainably grown certified? JF: Personally I'm concerned anytime we go against Mother Nature. When organ- isms are genetically modified it crosses over the line into an area I'm not com- fortable with. It changes the course of nature and inevitably could cause irre- versible damage. In our business, I try to stay away from harming nature, and stick to nurturing in the most responsible way possible. I feel our North Shore Living Herbs Brand, the way it is grown, pack- aged and used, makes a meaningful con- tribution to our community as well as our consumers. Being able to communicate this with a certification on our packaging builds trust between our business partners and has the ability to grow category sales. For more information, visit www .livingherbs.com and www.northshore greenhouses.com or stop by booth #4110. your company. What's your main line of business? AS: The Little Potato Company focuses exclusively on the breeding, growing and marketing of proprietary little potato vari- eties. We are one of the only companies in North America to focus solely on little potatoes, and we are passionate about them. PSD: What would you say makes your company unique? AS: The fact we have proprietary rights to our potato varieties. No one else in North America can grow the kinds of potatoes we grow. PSD: How do you source your propri- etary potatoes? AS: Ah, the global potato hunt! We trav- el the world looking for just the right kinds of little potatoes – varieties that are unique, look great and are bursting with flavor. We also have innovative breeding programs in Chile, the Netherlands and Canada to develop new varieties. PSD: Why the exclusive focus on little potatoes? AS: It started with my father, who grew up in Holland where little potatoes were a favorite treat. He couldn't find anything even close to them in North America, so in 1996 we grew a test acre of little creamer varieties. It was a labor of love, and we did everything by hand. When we shared our first crop, we found immedi- ate and growing interest, and we've been trying to keep up with demand ever since. PSD: Have you ever considered growing larger potato varieties? The Little Potato Company ( Cont'd. from p. 1) AS: In a word, no. Little potatoes are the future of the potato category. First of all, they're so flavorful and the taste differs from variety to variety, which makes it interesting and exciting for the consumer. Also, the thin skin is meant to be eaten, so not only is there added convenience in not having to peel them, but there is added nutrition as well. In fact, little potatoes are packed with great nutrients like potassium, fiber and even iron. They also cook very quickly – just 15 minutes on the stovetop or five in the microwave. PSD: You said little potatoes are the future of the potato category. Can you expand on this? AS: Right now, potatoes are suffering from the 3 Blahs: big, bland and boring. We want people to get excited about potatoes again. Our mission at The Little Potato Company is to 'Save the Potato, Feed the World.' We see a future where potatoes are once again full of flavor, bursting with nutrition and the center- piece of every wholesome meal. PSD: And feeding the world? AS: Absolutely. By 2050, the global popu- lation is expected to reach nine billion, and experts say food production will need to double. Potatoes offer a key answer to this looming crisis as one of the world's most efficient crops. Potatoes are easy to grow and yield more nutritious and energy-rich food, more quickly, than any other major crop. And with less water and on less land too, so the environmental footprint is much smaller. That's why the potato is already seen as a wonder crop in the developing world, and I believe its importance will only increase in the future. For more information, visit www.little potatoes.com, call 780-414-6075 or stop by booth #874. right off the bat. After years of helping her mother deliver melons to local retailers from the family's 100-acre farm in Keenes, Ill., Frey-Talley had saved up enough money to buy a truck, and also saved up enough dreams to take over and revamp the farm. The only problem? Desertion among family members! Frey-Talley's four brothers knew that the small family opera- tion couldn't sustain them, and all went off to college to prepare for other careers. Meanwhile, Frey-Talley went to work. In short order, she expanded her melon clients to 150 from the 12 she and her mother delivered to; this necessitated sourcing from other farms in Illinois and Indiana to meet demand. As some of these supplying farmers began to retire, Frey-Talley purchased their operations, and FF grew. And grew and grew. Today the com- pany has operations in Florida, Georgia, Missouri, Arkansas, Indiana, Illinois and West Virginia. It's one of the nation's leading producers of pumpkins and watermelons; other crops include can- taloupe, sweet corn, green bell peppers, winter squashes, gourds and decorative corn, as well as pine cones. FF sells to Whole Foods, Fresh Market, Walmart, Target and all of the nation's other top 25 retailers, as well as specialty retailers. While Frey-Talley has faced chal- lenges as a female CEO, she feels her background prepared her well. "My dad and my brothers pretty much told me every day I could be whatever I wanted to be," she explained. "Growing up on the farm, there wasn't anything I wasn't asked or challenged to do because I was a girl." Frey-Talley has used that confidence to build a hugely successful business, one that began supplying national retailers with local produce 20 years ago – "Before local became cool," she explained. "We've had a sustainability Frey Farms ( Cont'd. from p. 1) mission since our inception, but we sold local product to Walmart and others not from a feel-good standpoint, but from a 'this is going to save you money' stand- point, by having farms strategically located near their distribution centers." FF has always been bold in its choic- es. One of Frey-Talley's early decisions was to grow pumpkin in the row crop- focused Midwest, where corn, soybeans, wheat and sorghum dominate the land- scape. In addition to the standard jack-o'- lantern pumpkin, the company began planting exotic varieties like the blue- green Jarrahdale from Australia, in addi- tion to ornamental pumpkins. FF now sells more than 20 varieties of pumpkins. "We've seen many other growers start to produce some of these same vari- eties," explained Frey-Talley. "When oth- ers start copying you, you know you've done something right, but then you need to move on quickly and come up with the next big idea." FF's next big idea might be its recently released Tsamma Juice, the national's first widely distributed premi- um watermelon juice. The delicious, nutrient-packed product contains 45 per- cent RDA vitamin C and 20 percent RDA vitamin A (as beta-carotene) per serving, along with high levels of antioxidants and lutein. The juice was also developed with athletes in mind; watermelon juice has been proven to enhance recovery by elim- inating lactic acid, and shown to equal or outperform Gatorade on several measures of recovery. It's been quite a ride for Sarah Frey- Talley, and the best part comes back to family. Those four brothers that left for other pursuits are now back in the fold and working for the company. For more information, visit www.tsamma juice.com or freyfarms.com, call 812- 874-3373, email sales@freyfarms.com or visit booth #1883.

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