Kansas City, Kan.-based Liberty Fruit Company has hired Joe Cimino as the operation’s director of sourcing for the West Coast.
Cimino, according to a news release, will be based in the Salinas Valley and lead sourcing operations in California, Arizona and the Pacific Northwest to support the Kansas City-based wholesaler’s growing retail business.
Liberty Fruit, founded in 1965, serves thousands of retail and foodservice customers throughout seven states. CEO John McClelland said in the release that the addition of this role — and Cimino in particular — is representative of the company’s broader diversification strategy.
“Our job is to deliver solutions that enable our customers to succeed,” McClelland said in the release. “As consumers’ purchasing criteria continue to evolve, the way we operate must evolve with them. We believe having an expert sourcing specialist on the ground with growers on a day-to-day basis elevates our ability to create value opportunities for customers.”
Cimino began his career in 1989 walking fields, inspecting product, and working with harvesting crews as part of a family business, according to the release.
Cimino joined Monterey, Calif.-based Pro*Act as procurement manager in 2000 and remained with the company for nearly 20 years, ultimately becoming vice president of procurement.
“I’m extremely proud to be a part of the Liberty Fruit family, its next chapter of growth and to represent our brand within the supplier community and throughout the industry,” Cimino said in the release. “I’m excited to be working for a company with such a great reputation and one that clearly strives to differentiate through innovation.”
