Editor’s note: The following profile is from the 2024 Packer 25, our annual tribute to 25 leaders, innovators and agents of change across the fresh produce supply chain. (You can view all honorees here.) This feature has been edited for length and clarity.
Giovanni Cavaletto — U.S. division president, GLC Cerritos
What experiences led you to a career in the produce industry?
I grew up on a lemon and avocado farm in Nipomo, Calif. At 18, I went to Michoacán, [Mexico,] for an internship with Calavo Growers.
After finishing my undergraduate degree in Latin American history and Spanish, I decided to stay in agriculture and completed a [Master of Science] at Cal Poly in international agricultural development. This was a great program, as it combined my Latin American interests with my farming interests. It was a very well-rounded program that included courses in agricultural business, soil science and crop science. I wrote my thesis on the need to establish a federal marketing order for avocados. This helped to lay the groundwork for the Hass Avocado Board and the $85 million in annual avocado promotions that are carried out by Avocados From Mexico, the Peruvian Avocado Commission, the Chilean Avocado Importers’ Association, and the Colombian Avocado Board.
After completing the program, I returned to Michoacán for a couple of years before the U.S. market opened up for Mexican avocados. We were shipping fruit to Canada, Europe and Asia in order to establish relationships prior to the opening of the U.S. market for Mexican avocados.
What do you most enjoy about leading your company? What principles guide your leadership style?
I have known the Medina family for over 25 years, and they really have a reputation for doing things well. This extends from a focus on per-acre productivity and extends through food safety, environmental stewardship and social responsibility.
GLC Cerritos is very unique within the avocados from Mexico category. All the orchards are certified with GlobalG.A.P., something achieved by very few growers. In addition to this, the groves are also certified by the Rainforest Alliance and Fair Trade. These three certifications, when coupled with the critical mass of 3,000 acres, have proven to be an important point of differentiation.
Many growers have traditionally looked at audits as an additional cost imposed from the outside. At GLC Cerritos, we have approached these audits as investments and opportunities. The mission of GLC Cerritos is to inspire other farmers through sustainability to grow healthy food for the world.
Farmers naturally have a bias toward sustainability. Many are working where their parents and grandparents worked and look forward to passing this down to the next generation. GlobalG.A.P., Rainforest Alliance and Fair Trade give us three effective tools to share news about the good that our industry does in the communities where we work.
What advice would you give produce professionals seeking high-level leadership roles?
Never stop learning and seek out opportunities to add more skills. The decision to go to Uruapan, [Mexico,] 35 years ago is still paying dividends.
Always say “thank you” and look for opportunities to share your knowledge with the people around you.
What industry issue are you passionate about? How can the industry meet the challenges related to that issue in the next five to 10 years?
Per-acre productivity is key to expanding the market. Historically the industry has increased volume primarily by adding new acres. The challenge today is to produce more avocados per unit of input — be that input land, water, fertilizer or labor.
We also need to really develop a world-class germplasm bank to collect, catalog and replicate the genetic diversity within the avocado varieties. There were some good collections developed during the green revolution, but many of these have come upon hard times in recent years.
Small improvements in fruit size, seasonality and per-acre productivity can make big impacts to the economies of the communities where we work.
