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P r o d u c e S h o w D a i l y F r i d a y, O c t o b e r 2 3 , 2 0 1 5 7 6 industry in the state won't surprise any- one, but the reality that agriculture is so close behind in the nation's third most populous state does tend to garner curi- ous looks. With so much land devoted to agricultural production, it's hard to imagine that the vast majority of Florida's visitors and residents never perceive the agriculture that surrounds them. The chief advantage to agricultural production in Florida is the same benefit that makes the state so popular to its many visitors and residents. Mild tem- peratures during the fall, winter and spring are what sets Florida agriculture apart from the rest of the United States, and Florida's farmers have benefited from that commercial advantage for cen- turies. Citrus production began in 1565, and the signature crop remains the anchor of Florida agriculture to this day. As most of the crop tends to be located in central Florida south of Orlando and Tampa, the citrus groves become active in October and remain busy until the last of the late season varieties are picked in early June. Tomatoes are grown from the south- ernmost region near Miami to the Georgia border creating a season that generally lasts from October until June. Immokalee and the Tampa Bay area rep- resent the largest production areas by acreage. Bell pepper production takes place in the southern half of the state with much of the crop being located in Palm Beach County, Tampa Bay and Immokalee near the Gulf Coast. One third of all U.S.-grown bell peppers are from Florida. Fresh from Florida (Cont'd. from p. 1) Florida cabbage and broccoli pro- duction occurs throughout the late winter and early spring, and is concentrated most heavily in the St. Augustine area along the St. Johns River. Growing areas throughout the Florida peninsula provide an early winter crop, making Florida cab- bage available for six months of the year. The Hastings area produces the largest concentration of potatoes between February and June, with additional con- centrated production areas near the Gulf in southwest Florida and central Florida between Lakes Okeechobee and Kissimmee. Sweet corn production takes place in the lush, fertile soils of the Everglades Agricultural Area, a region on the south- eastern shore of Lake Okeechobee, which creates a warming effect during the winter. No tour of Florida agriculture would be complete without the tradi- tional stop for strawberries in Plant City, the winter strawberry capital of the world. The fields just east of Tampa are active from December until April. Finally, the tropical breezes that blow across the south Florida beaches work their way through the Redlands area of Homestead, creating a perfect place to grow Florida avocados and other tropical favorites. Florida may be known for its beaches and tourist attractions, but its growers and farms are the true heart of the state's economy. Come see for yourself at PMA Fresh Summit in 2016 when the Fresh Summit comes to Orlando. For more information, visit booth #1632, or go to www.freshfromflorida.com. season. "We are dedicated to bringing our retailers the supply they desire to meet consumer demand for Cuties, while maintaining our exceptional quality stan- dards as well," said Bob DiPiazza, President of Sun Pacific. The increased amount of Cuties available this season is due to multiple factors. Many of Sun Pacific's mandarin groves, as well as the groves of some of its supporting growers, are maturing and pro- ducing more fruit. It has also added more grower partners to the Sun Pacific family, which produce mandarins at a level that meets or exceeds Cuties high-quality stan- dards for juicy, sweet mandarins. "Cuties are America's No. 1 favorite fruit brand, and continue to hold con- sumers' perception of the highest quality mandarins among all brands," said Victoria Nuevo-Celeste, Vice President of Marketing at Sun Pacific. "That's why Sun Pacific (Cont'd. from p. 1) Cuties continues to be the fastest selling mandarin in the United States." Sun Pacific's Cuties & Mighties Fruit Salad recipe has been named one of the 10 finalists in the PMA Sensory Experience Contest and is being featured in the private Sensory Experience Tasting on Friday October 23, 2015. Founded in 1969, Sun Pacific is a leading grower, packer and shipper of fruit with more than 70 million boxes of fresh fruit sold each year. Sun Pacific is the owner of America's most preferred brand of mandarins, Cuties. Headquartered in Pasadena, California, Sun Pacific is the largest kiwi fruit and navel orange grower/shipper in North America, the second largest producer of tomatoes in California and renowned for its exceptional quality Air Chief label table grapes. For more information, visit booth #415 or go to www.sunpacific.com. KW: King Fresh Produce LLC is a pri- vately owned, vertically integrated fresh produce company based in central California, owned and operated by the Wilson family, celebrating three genera- tions and over 80 years in agriculture. King Fresh specializes in farm-to-table grapes year round. We also pack and market California pomegranates, tree fruit, citrus and cherries. The King Fresh Produce family also owns and operates Jody Fresh Cooling Co., River Island Fresh Cold Storage, Red Lion Cherry Packers and King Fresh Transportation. PSD: What would you say makes your company unique? KW: Being a vertically integrated com- pany allows us to handle every aspect of the "go-to-market" process in-house. We grow, pack, pre-cool and ship from our own facilities and manage a fleet of trucks to make timely deliveries to our customers. Our marketing teams located in California, Missouri and Washington are able to meet face to face with our cus- tomers and communicate to them regard- ing truck deliveries, promotional oppor- tunities and packaging options. King Fresh is growing rapidly by acquiring more farmland in California, Mexico, Chile and now Peru to meet the demand of our retail partners. PSD: You recently became a part of the PMA's Eat Brighter! Campaign. What does that mean to King Fresh? KW: We are always interested in pack- ing brands that meet and exceed our customers' expectations. The Eat Brighter! campaign is designed to be grower friendly with an excellent mes- sage to our customers and their fami- lies. We are very excited to be a part of the campaign. PSD: What was the most significant event or series of events affecting your company in the past year? King Fresh Produce (Cont'd. from p. 1) KW: King Fresh made a large invest- ment in cherry packing equipment this past year. At our Dinuba facility we installed a state-of-the-art photo-optic cherry sorting machine that reduces labor and ensures that perfect cherries are being delivered during the season. PSD: What distinguishes your company from others? KW: My wife Lisa and I are the sole owners of King Fresh Produce, and we are truly hands-on when it comes to the day-to-day management and decision- making process. We are able to react very quickly to market changes and pride our- selves on our open-door policies to all our associates. PSD: King Fresh is celebrating more than 80 years in business; to what do you attribute your longevity? KW: Hard work and the desire to grow our business, based on a solid foundation built by past generations. We are also very knowledgeable of our soil types and matching up our grape varieties to those soils to produce quality product. This knowledge has been passed down from generation to generation. Our family has been farming in the San Joaquin Valley for many years, and our reputation as fair-minded, hard-working people con- tinues to allow us longevity in this busi- ness. PSD: How can readers find out more about your company? KW: We welcome visits from our cus- tomers to both our fields and/or packing facilities to see for themselves how we conduct and organize our business. Our website and social media sites are also great sources for learning more about King Fresh. Connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, YouTube, LinkedIn and Pinterest. For more information, visit booth #4160, go online to www.kingfresh.com or call 559.596.2040. the food chain is safe, secure and pathogen-free. Through environmentally responsible chemistry for sanitation and processing, state-of-the-art harvest and dispensing equipment and a comprehen- sive online chemical tracking system, Birko helps customers meet HACCP and SSOP standards. It's all part of The Birko Advantage, a total integrated food safety solution that maximizes customers' return on their investment. Birko carries a complete line of antimicrobials, sanitizers and biofilm remediation aids, including environmen- tally safe chemical formulations, many of which are listed on the USDA National Organic Program for use by organic processors. The products meet kosher guidelines. The company carries a com- plete line of antimicrobial hand soaps and hand sanitizers, and has an entire range of products free of butyl solvents. Birko's state-of-the-art equipment solutions include boot scrubbers and entryway foamers to stop cross contami- nation between processing areas. Birko's antimicrobial spray systems automatical- ly mix and apply solutions to produce, eliminating over- or under-mixing and making chemical usage easy to track. Birko is an original member of the International HACCP Alliance and is Birko (Cont'd. from p. 1) well qualified to meet these guidelines for produce. The company's entire team of technical representatives is HACCP trained, and Birko also has SQF practi- tioners on staff. Birko's recent ISO 9001 certification helps meet customers' food safety challenges even more effectively. Birko is one of a limited number of com- panies that can support BRC (British Retail Consortium) standards as well as SQF (Safe Quality Food Institute) requirements. In addition, Birko provides complete in-plant assessments to review cleaning, sanitation and food safety programs, as well as assistance with employee train- ing, chemical management, custom equipment procurement and implementa- tion. Birko can also provide design and application of SSOPs, and HACCP and OSHA compliance, as well as custom chemical blending and CIP applications. Birko is a Certified Women's Business Enterprise through The Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) and was awarded Supplier of the Century by the National Meat Association. Protect your produce. Protect your brand. Fight back with Birko. For more information, visit booth #4915, go to www.birkocorp.com or call 303.551.4370.