A Fresh Idea

Imagine the power a grower- owned, grower-focused organization would have establishing alliances between major players in the vegetable and fruit industry. If the concept sounds far-fetched, you are going to be surprised to find out that this group does, in fact, exist — and it is looking for you.

Naturipe Farms Grower Services LLC is a partnership formed between MBG Marketing, Hortifrut SA, Naturipe Berry Growers, and Munger Enterprises for the purpose of creating supply alliances with other growers to meet sales demands. Though the initial goal of the partnership was to offer consumers 52 weeks of availability in fresh berries, the organization has grown to encompass the vegetable, tree fruit, and nut industries as well.

The partnership between MBG Marketing and Hortifrut SA dates back to 2000, when they joined forces as a way to achieve the 52-week goal. When the sales demand for Naturipe Farms LLC products started to rise, the company started looking around for supply support. Forming the partnership with the other organizations met this need.

The cumulative background in the fresh produce industry of the partners involved in Naturipe Farms Grower Services is a key factor in the success of the venture. John Shelford, president and CEO of Naturipe Farms Grower Services, has more than 30 years experience in the berry industry. In his leadership role, Shelford works to establish relationships with growers. MBG provides the operational support requirements, and Naturipe Farms handles the sales and marketing aspect of the organization.

With the expansion of its business interests comes the need for Naturipe Farms Grower Services to actively recruit more growers, which it is currently doing. "It's just a matter of finding the right growers who understand and appreciate our business model, and who are willing to make a long-term commitment. We are looking for the best growers," Frank Bragg, CEO of MBG Marketing and board chairman of Naturipe Farms Grower Services, says.

In return, the organization promises to focus on furthering the business interests of its grower members. Naturipe Farms Grower Services will work to obtain the best prices from the marketplace, do so as efficiently as possible, and net as much of the profits back to the growers as it can.

Ensuring Quality

Adding to the strength of Naturipe Farms Grower Services is the fact that the organization handles every step of the food supply chain, from the soil to the store. This enables it to ensure that it produces quality vegetable and fruit crops that are desirable to retailers and consumers.

The idea has already proven to be a fruitful one. Forming the partnership between the four companies helped Naturipe Farms Grower Services to obtain more than 2,000 strawberry, blueberry, blackberry, and raspberry growers. To further strengthen its ties to the U.S. blueberry industry, Naturipe Farms Grower Services added the Texas Blueberry Marketing Association to its roster about three months ago. "With the top 20 retailers on board, this is a very powerful mechanism. In regard to blueberries, there is no other organization that can supply 52 weeks of fresh fruit," Bragg says.

One of the primary goals of Naturipe Farms Grower Services is to ensure that consumers have fresh fruit available to them every time they go to the store, which is where the 52 weeks of availability comes into play. To achieve this goal, the members of the organization are banding together to plant different types of plants in different climates so that fresh fruit is available at just about any time of the year.

Naturipe Farms Grower Services has set in place a strategic plan for expanding the partnership further, and have held discussions with professionals in the tree fruit and nut industries regarding the formation of partner-grower organizations. In addition, Naturipe Farms Grower Services has active dialogue going on with several interested companies in the vegetable industry. Bragg says he anticipates several new businesses will join the organization in the next few months.

"We are creating something brand new," says Bragg. "This model didn't previously exist."

Naturipe Farms Grower Services LLC connects major players in the fresh produce industry.