Evolving Beyond Horse and Buggy, Farmers Looked to as Business Mavens
By Stephanie Metzinger F or generations, growers across the United States have masterfully responded to the ebb and flow of massive global transitions to continue to provide food for the world, carry on their farm legacies and contribute to the nation’s economic success. In 2017, the agriculture and food sector contributed $1.053 trillion to the U.S. gross domestic product. If treated as its own country, it would rank as the 16th largest economy in the world, sandwiched between Mexico and Indonesia. Farming contributed $132.8 billion of this sum. Even more astonishing is this was generated by only 3.4 million producers—75 percent of whom have been in business for more than 10 years. The longevity and success of these operations is a testament to the business savvy of farmers. In Western Growers’ membership alone, many farm operators have been in business for 50 or more years. The Elliot family has been farming for over 150 years; the Jack, D’Arrigo, Vessey, Danna, Smith and Couture families for more than 100 years; the Reade, Pappas, Deardorff and Merrill families for 90 years or more, to name a few. “I’ve been active on the ranch since I was a kid and have seen farming practices evolve from literally those horse and buggy days on up to now where we are flying drones,” said Ross Merrill, CEO of Merrill Farms. “I’ve witnessed a lot of changes, but the one thing that stays consistent is the need to adapt business models to keep up with current conditions in the marketplace.” Merrill Farms was originally founded by Ross’ grandfather, Russell Merrill, in 1933 as a grower/packer/shipper, selling its crops under the Merrill labels. Identifying an opportunity to ship product to the East and expand into new markets, Russell
partnered with Ken Nutting, Bruce Church and E.E. Harden to build packing houses and launch an ice company (Growers Ice) next to the railroad tracks. This proactive move not only resulted in the launch of the fresh produce industry in Salinas Valley, but it allowed Russell to expand Merrill Farms to other locations across California. Business was booming and Merrill Farms was officially a year-round shipper. However, in the ‘80s, the company started to see a trend of consolidation on the retail buying side for produce items. It was becoming increasingly difficult to stay competitive so Merrill Farms evaluated its operation and profit margins and decided to rewrite its business model. “We decided to specialize in farming and grow for the larger labels rather than competing with them on a marketing level,” said Merrill. “This model has been successful for the last 25 years. Our core value is focusing on the quality of our cultural practices so our shipper partners are assured that our product is going to arrive on time and that the food safety, worker safety and environmental safety compliance is already taken care of with a degree of excellence. That’s the currency Merrill Farms has today out in the marketplace.” Merrill went on to share how focusing on the growing side has also opened up more marketing windows for the farm and has presented new crop opportunities. Merrill Farms has been able to expand its crop offerings beyond its signature iceberg lettuce, romaine and leaf lettuce programs, to now grow crops such as cauliflower, broccoli, broccolini, and Brussels sprouts. Venturing into new commodities has helped with crop rotation on the ranch and has resulted in increased yield and improved soil health. Similarly, Rancho Filoso, which planted its roots in Ventura County in 1882, first grew lima beans, then walnuts and today citrus and avocados. The ranch is now diversifying and casting a wider net beyond its specialty crop background in search
Merrill Farms Founder T.R. Merrill (middle right) inspects crops in the field.
Lisa Tate Soury recently diversified Rancho Filoso with coffee plants.
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SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER 2020
Western Grower & Shipper | www.wga.com
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