Latest News From Obituaries

Longtime produce industry journalist Tad Thompson, who wrote for The Packer and other publications, died April 8.

Industry veteran Glenn Beckham, 77, of Bettendorf, Iowa, died March 12 after a courageous battle with health complications due to diabetes. 

Wilson, who is remembered as a stalwart in the produce industry and a mentor, died Jan. 5 after a courageous 10-year battle with cancer, his family announced.

Leaders, innovators and industry stalwarts were among those who died in 2023, with their peers remembering their professional contributions and impact on the produce industry.

In a recent call with The Packer, Jeffrey Nagelberg's son, Eric, recounted his father’s wisdom in the produce business and in life, specifically admiring his ability to find the middle ground in produce relationships.  

Ocean Mist Farms, a Castroville, Calif.-based grower and marketer of fresh artichokes in North America, is mourning the passing of beloved former president and CEO Ed Boutonnet.

Marianne Santo, three-time president of Eastern Produce Council and senior category manager of produce and floral at Wakefern Food Corp., died Sept. 24.

“Bobby was an original ‘produce man,'” said Robert Bassetti’s brother, Jimmy Bassetti of Little Bear Produce.

Longtime Kentucky produce industry veteran Al “Buzz” Horton died Sept.  4 at age 79.

Mike Bowe, president of B&B Imports Inc., has announced the recent passing of colleague Fred Van Zandt, who died June 7 after a brief battle with brain cancer.  

Pam Durrence Dasher, a farmer, businesswoman and Vidalia sweet onion pioneer, died July 24 at age 79.

Yvonne Morales died June 20 after a brief illness. "She was a wonderful person and had a unique way of making people feel very special," said Jimmy Bassetti, co-owner and president Little Bear Produce.

During his 45 years of ownership, The Dramm Corp. grew to a four-segment business that included commercial greenhouse equipment and other products.

Matt Steve Pandol Jr. of Pandol Bros., 60, died unexpectedly April 21 at his home in Delano, Calif., according to a family statement.

More than 4,645 people in the community — from former employees, longtime shoppers, family, colleagues and friends — posted tributes within two days after the death of the Northeastern grocer founder.

Long-time Tom Lange Co. leader Farrell Cole "Dutch" Gay, 89, has died.

David Whitmore, a longtime employee of and former vice president for Peak of the Market, died April 16 at age 60.

Craig Fox, executive vice president at Fox Packaging, died on Feb. 1. 

Matiasevich, 76, was co-founder and president of Fullerton, Calif.-based Veg-Land Sales Inc. and its subsidiaries, including JBJ Distributing and Flowerland.

The International Fresh Produce Association has issued a release mourning the death of Ron Carkoski, retired CEO of Four Seasons Produce and a past chair of United Fresh Produce Association.

Known for his passion for radicchio and Italian specialties, Marchini leaves behind a fresh produce legacy.

Tjerandsen, 80, died Nov. 8 in Sonoma, Calif.

USDA has announced actions the agency said will further its commitment to farmworkers, meatpacking workers and grocery store workers by recognizing their essential role in America’s food system. 

Winifred Mary Pandol, nee Zaninovich, died Saturday, June 25, in Bakersfield, Calif., the company announced.

Florida citrus leader Al Finch, 55, died June 21.

Celebrated Colorado grower Bob Sakata, 96, died June 7.

The industry lost another "produce man" recently.

Willard “Bill” Bishop — who co-founded grocery digital analytics firm Brick Meets Click — died March 25. Bishop was 80.

Dan Sholl, 44, an executive in the fresh produce industry and a former general manager of Sacramento-based Wild About Sprouts, has died. 

Organics Unlimited sadly announces the passing of organic banana pioneer Carlos Cortes, Sr., the farmer who commercially introduced organic bananas to the United States in 1974.

The U.S. produce industry mourns the loss of a beloved community leader, fresh produce industry veteran, and supreme family man Franz Warren De Klotz.

Fresh Produce and Floral Council have received the sad news that Wayne Snodgrass, of Loomis Distributing, Inc. and formerly Apio, Inc., has passed away.

Sabine Henry, tropical manager and salesperson at Central American Produce for almost two decades, passed away August 30.

In 1978, Jorge Aguilar Heredia formally founded AGGALL Coliman Group, with the inauguration of the first sales center in Hermosillo, Sonora in northern Mexico.

Marcela Riquelme, logistics and operations coordinator at the Vanguard International office in Santiago, Chile, has died.

Angelo Caputo’s Fresh Markets founder and patriarch Angelo Caputo died June 16 at the age of 89.

NEW YORK STATE — Some people work tirelessly for their region’s produce industry and are well-respected for it, but it isn’t until they’re gone that others realize their impact.

The Fresh Produce & Floral Council is saddened to learn of the loss of Harland Heath. 

Calvin Tribiano, a longtime sales executive at Vancouver, British Columbia-based The Oppenheimer Group, passed away on May 6 after a brief illness.

Robert “Bobby” O. Bianco, a California table grape grower for more than five decades, has died.

Tim Corkill, a long-time regional marketing manager for FirstFruits Marketing, Yakima, Wash., has died.

Robert Glasser, who started each morning at 2 a.m. for 60 years opening the family business, Torn & Glasser, has died.

Bill Stewart, a founder of WesPak Sales, Dinuba, Calif., has died.

Fruit importing company William H. Kopke Jr., Great Neck, N.Y., is mourning the loss of Paul Wigand, the director of operations who was with the company for more than 40 years.

Canadian produce industry leader Garry Wagner, 84, died Oct. 3 in Calgary, Alberta.

Margaret Ann Comito, whose husband and children have overseen the growth of the family company, Norwalk, Iowa-based Capital City Fruit Co., has died.

Mario Basciani, a mushroom grower known for his tireless work ethic and founder of Basciani Foods, has died.

Steve Shadle, who instrumental in the formation of DatePac LLC, which consolidates and packs for the Bard Valley Date Growers Association members, has died.

Albert Garnica, the vice president of agricultural operations at Taylor Farms who helped the industry define reliability and quality that made the value-added salad category possible, has died.

Amy Lowe, executive vice president for PSSI, Keller, Wis., died in a plane crash with her husband.