Homegrown Organic Farms, Porterville, California Member since 2019
Necessity Led to Founding of Organic Marketing Specialist
By Tim Linden Background : John and Cindy France were farmers in the San Joaquin Valley in the mid-1990s who were continually increasing their production of organic fruit crops. But they kept running into trouble marketing their output. “They had a number of bad experiences with other marketers,” said Scott Mabs, the company’s CEO. “They were struggling to find a company that could market organic fruit.” So, in 1998 the couple hired a salesman and started Homegrown Organic Farms to sell their own production. “Like many things, the company was born out of necessity,” Mabs said. Soon Homegrown also was selling the production of other organic growers in the area. “John had a simple philosophy,” said Mabs. “He told his fellow growers that he can’t change market conditions or whatever the realities are at a given time, but he would live by his motto of ‘no surprises.’ Transparency was the key.” The company slowly grew both by increasing its own acreage and representing more and more organic farmers up and down the West Coast.
Years of Exponential Growth : It was in 2007 that Mabs joined the team as Director of Sales and Marketing. He oversaw sales for about five years before being elevated to the CEO position in February 2013. Over time, the company has experienced excellent growth. “We are about four times the size, in terms of dollars, than we were when I started,” he said. Under Homegrown’s corporate structure, Agrivision, Inc., is the umbrella or parent company with several entities, including AgriCare Inc., which is a land and farm management company, and Homegrown Organic Farms, which is the sales and marketing arm of the operation. To quantify the size of the company, Mabs revealed that they farm more than 4,000 acres and he believes Agrivision is the largest organic permanent crop grower in the United States. Challenges Along the Way : During the first 10-12 years of its existence, Homegrown would take on most items, according to Mabs. If it was grown organically, the company would try to sell it. “We sold everything including organic lettuce, organic garlic
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MARCH | APRIL 2022
Western Grower & Shipper | www.wga.com
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