Peppers Marketing 2018 business updates
Oppy boosts pepper supply
The Vancouver, British Columbia-based Oppenheimer Group reports that a conventional pepper grower partner, Randhawa Farms, has expanded by 15 acres under glass in the off-season.
“We expect new production from this facility to begin in June,” said Aaron Quon, Oppy’s executive greenhouse category director.
Oppy and Randhawa have plans in place for further expansion in 2019, Quon said.
MORE: Bailey Farms adds DulceFina peppers
Peter Rabbit hires safety director
Coachella, Calif.-based has hired Leo Soto to serve as a director of its food safety program, said John Burton, sales and cooler general manager.
“He’s in charge of all food safety programs in the field,” Burton said of Soto.
MORE: Live Oak Farms installs new pepper packing line
Pure Hothouse continues rebrand
London, Ontario-based greenhouse pepper grower-shipper Pure Hothouse Foods Inc. and its Pure Flavor brand are going through a complete packaging and brand refresh, which was rolled out at a number of trade shows during the spring, said Chris Veillon, who joined the staff as chief marketing officer last summer.
The company has completely rebranded all its packaging — labels, bags, trays, PLU and boxes — in support of its new “healthy active living brand position,” Veillon said.
“Consumers will see the rollout take place throughout the year.”
He added: “A refreshed position has helped the brand be more brand-centric, evolving from a vegetable company to a lifestyle company that grows and markets an extensive array of premium greenhouse grown vegetables. Color coded by commodity, there will now be a more consistent brand position across all Pure Flavor’s packaging.”
The change wasn’t simply “about correcting what we didn’t like in the current packaging,” Veillon said.
“The goal of the packaging audit was to identify how the brand could be more impactful at retail and by doing so, be more relevant to both retailers and consumers alike,” he said.
Talley Farms adds sales manager
Derek Sass has joined Arroyo Grande, Calif.-based grower-shipper Talley Farms Inc. as sales manager.
Sass, an ag-business graduate of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, joined Talley Farms Feb. 1 after a 12-year stint at Guadalupe, Calif.-based Beachside Produce.
There, he was in charge marketing and sales of strawberries, along with being an account manager.
Prior to Beachside, Sass was at Salinas, Calif.-based Markon Cooperative Inc. for eight years, during which time he was a purchasing manager.
“I already knew the Talley family reputation,” Sass said of joining Talley Farms.
“They were looking to diversify their customer base. At Beachside, I had a lot of experience with that. I was looking for an opportunity to grow also, and the match seemed perfect.”
