America’s Largest Onion Producer Changes Hands

River Point Farms

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River Point Farms in Hermiston, OR, America’s largest onion producer, today announced that brothers Bob and Rick Hale have bought back control of the farm. On August 15, the Hale brothers led an investment that also included new investor and strategic partner Taylor Farms as well as existing shareholder CIC Partners. The cooperative transaction closed making the Hale brothers once again controlling partners of River Point Farms.

Bob and Rick Hale also own and operate Hale Farms, a 37-year-old first generation diversified family farming operation.

“Rick and I are elated about this transaction for River Point Farms, which empowers us to make business decisions to reinvest quickly in new opportunities and react to market conditions and customer requests,” said Bob Hale, president and CEO.

River Point Farms and its sales team will remain focused on their foodservice program business, but also have plans to begin expanding their retail business solutions as well, working with strategic partner Curry and Company, in Brooks, OR. The Hale brothers say they will invest in facilities and equipment for the operation, which includes plans for offering retail-ready products in discussion with strategic partner Taylor Farms in Salinas, CA.

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According to Hale, the onion producer has several new strategic partnerships and affiliations which position them to expand their growing, production, packing, shipping, and product offerings over the next several months.

River Point Farms is the largest red onion grower in the country, with 450 million pounds of overall onion volume each year. The onion producer has in-house growers with operations in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and California, with national distribution to all 50 states and Canada.

“We want our customers to know that we remain fully committed to providing a very high standard of quality with our onions and with the service and supply that they have come to trust and rely on for their businesses,” Hale said. “As we look to the future, we see growth and opportunity for River Point Farms, our current customers and our potential customers with new and improved capabilities.”

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