WESTERN GROWERS OFFICERS – 2021 RYAN TALLEY, Chairman ALBERT KECK, Senior Vice Chair STUART WOOLF, Vice Chair CAROL CHANDLER, Treasurer VICTOR SMITH, Executive Secretary DAVE PUGLIA, President & CEO DIRECTORS – 2021 GEORGE J. ADAM Innovative Produce, Santa Maria, California ALEXANDRA ALLEN Main Street Produce, Santa Maria, California KEVIN S. ANDREW Illume Agriculture, Bakersfield, California ROBERT K. BARKLEY Barkley Ag Enterprises LLP, Yuma, Arizona STEPHEN J. BARNARD Mission Produce, Inc., Oxnard, California BARDIN E. BENGARD Bengard Ranch, Salinas, California LOREN BOOTH Booth Ranches, Orange Cove, California GEORGE BOSKOVICH III Boskovich Farms, Oxnard, California RODNEY BRAGA Braga Ranch, Soledad, California NEILL CALLIS Turlock Fruit Company, Turlock, California EDWIN A. CAMP D. M. Camp & Sons, Bakersfield, California CAROL CHANDLER Chandler Farms LP, Selma, California LAWRENCE W. COX Lawrence Cox Ranches, Brawley, California STEPHEN F. DANNA Danna Farms, Inc., Yuba City, California JOHN C. D’ARRIGO D’Arrigo Bros. Co. of California, Salinas, California THOMAS DEARDORFF II Deardorff Family Farms, Oxnard, California FRANZ W. DE KLOTZ Peter Rabbit Farms, Coachella, California SAMUEL D. DUDA Duda Farm Fresh Foods, Inc., Salinas, California CATHERINE A. FANUCCHI Tri-Fanucchi Farms Inc., Bakersfield, California DAVID L. GILL Rio Farms, King City, California BRANDON A. GRIMM Grimmway Farms, Arvin, California JOHN JACKSON Beachside Produce, LLC, Nipomo, California A. G. KAWAMURA Orange County Produce, LLC, Irvine, California ALBERT KECK Hadley Date Gardens, Thermal, California J.P. LABRUCHERIE LaBrucherie Produce, El Centro, California FRANK MACONACHY Ramsay Highlander, Inc., Gonzales, California JOHN S. MANFRE Frank Capurro and Son, Moss Landing, California STEPHEN MARTORI III Martori Farms, Scottsdale, Arizona HAROLD MCCLARTY HMC Farms, Kingsburg, California TOM MULHOLLAND Mulholland Citrus, Orange Cove, California ALEXANDER T. MULLER Pasquinelli Produce Co., Yuma, Arizona DOMINIC J. MUZZI Muzzi Family Farms, LLC, Moss Landing, California MARK NICKERSON Prime Time International, Coachella, California THOMAS M. NUNES The Nunes Company, Inc., Salinas, California STEPHEN F. PATRICIO Westside Produce, Firebaugh, California RON RATTO Ratto Bros. Inc., Modesto, California CRAIG A. READE Bonipak Produce, Inc., Santa Maria, California ERIC T. REITER Reiter Affiliated Companies, Oxnard, California JOSEPH A. RODRIGUEZ The Growers Company, Inc., Somerton, Arizona WILL ROUSSEAU Rousseau Farming Company, Tolleson, Arizona VICTOR SMITH JV Smith Companies, Yuma, Arizona RYAN TALLEY Talley Farms, Arroyo Grande, California BRUCE C. TAYLOR Taylor Farms California, Salinas, California STUART WOOLF Woolf Farming & Processing, Fresno, California ROB YRACEBURU Wonderful Orchards, Shafter, California
in anticipation of the large shift of fruit volume within the next couple of years. To ensure the long-term sustainability of the farm, the young couple also developed a meticulously calculated model that would allow them to balance the amount of work and financial stress that come with farming in a way that would allow them to have a family, support one another and keep healthy. The main element of their model is maintaining off-farm work.
Harrison works as membership director for the Rocky Mountain Farmers Union while Stacia works for a vet clinic. “During the farm season, they allow me to step down to do relief work which is really important for our business,” said Stacia. As the couple artfully balances off- farm work with growing their orchard operation, they look forward to seeing Topp Fruits be sold far and wide for years to come.
Larry & Tina Cox Company: Coastline Family Farms Locations: California, Arizona and Mexico
While attending Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Larry and Tina formed an unbreakable bond that has since transformed into a marriage, a family of four and a thriving business partnership. The husband-and-wife team founded Lawrence Cox Ranches in 1984 and began farming a 70-acre cotton field. The company now farms 3,300 acres in the Imperial Valley and the production has expanded to include all types of lettuce, melons, onions, asparagus, wheat, alfalfa, grains, hay and seed crops. “Among my favorite things about working together, I’ve enjoyed the additional time we’ve been able to spend together—especially while traveling,” said Larry. “I’m pretty much ‘go, get the job done, get back home and get back to work,’ while Tina is much
more spontaneous than I am and will say ‘let’s take an additional day or two when meetings are done and go see the surrounding areas.’” In 1991, the couple launched Coastline Family Farms, and through their tenacity and dedication, the farm has grown into a year-round grower-shipper of premium vegetables from California, Arizona and Mexico. Though Tina stepped back from the business for a short period to raise their two sons, she has now returned to the farm and currently leads projects such as product development for Coastline Family Farms, logistics for employee housings and resource updates for human resources. The classic yin to the yang, Larry and Tina’s different strengths beautifully complement each other to result in a thriving and healthy work environment for their employees. “Tina has a different thought process than I do, and thank God for that,” said Larry. “She has strength and wisdom in areas that I don’t. She is much more perceptive of what is being asked of the people who work with us and is protective of their time and families. I’ve learned to trust her opinion.”
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SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER 2021
Western Grower & Shipper | www.wga.com
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