Jan 29, 2010

SunnyRidge Berries a Cinderella Story

“It’s hard to believe sometimes. But it really comes down to being in the right place at the right time and having the right people to make things happen.”

That’s how Keith Mixon describes the rise of SunnyRidge Farm. From 7 acres of blueberries in 1993, the Winter Haven, Fla., company has soared to become the third largest berry marketer in the United States. It supplies blueberries, blackberries, raspberries and strawberries to the nation’s top retailers and has large sales in the United Kingdom and other European countries.

SunnyRidge works with about 180 berry growers in the South and in other states and countries. The company grows 1,500 acres of its own berries – but that’s “about 10 to 15 percent of the fruit we sell,” Keith said.

This year will be the company’s second year in strawberries; last year was spent developing the packing and distribution system for them.

But it all started with a different berry.

“We saw a niche window in blueberries,” said Keith, the farm’s president and CEO.

Back in 1993, the Mixons’ real business was the Haines City Electric Co., which the family had owned and operated for 60 years. They also had been part-time citrus growers since the 1970s.

But Gerald and Viki Mixon had a vision and three energetic, 20-something sons, and they saw opportunity in blueberries. Back then, the blueberry industry was centered in the north and the fresh blueberry season was summer. Florida berries, if they could grow them south of I-4, would come to market March 15 and be gone by May 15.

“We’d be the first ones into the market,” Keith said. “Blueberries have historically enjoyed good prices and we’d get the early market, the best part.”

Keith worked with his father and two brothers to build the business. Greg is vice president and sales manager. Jerry is vice president and farm manager. Gerald retired in 2004.

Luckily, Keith and Jerry said, a few other Florida pioneers were also working out the details of how to grow the finicky blueberry, conquering high pH levels, high water tables and droughty soils with pine bark mulches, raised beds and trickle irrigation. They still have problems getting enough chill hours, but new varieties are helping with that.

By 1995, Keith said, they’d conquered the growing techniques and had solidified the spring market for fresh blueberries, not only in the United States but in Europe.

“We built sales on that – on earliness,” he said.

And that was the start.

“It’s hard to organize a seasonal business,” Keith said. “Not only do customers want service year round, you can’t build a business without year-round employees capable of providing professional service.”

This led SunnyRidge to develop a longer blueberry marketing system, both by planting more berries in other locations, like Georgia, and by developing relationships with growers in other areas. They contracted berries out of Michigan, the largest producer. They now market blueberries year round, with growers in every major growing region throughout North America and South America. SunnyRidge is certified under GlobalGAP, and all its growers must comply with the audit program.

Last June, the company announced a new relationship with the Leduc family in Michigan. The new partnership is called BlueberryRidge, and it packs under the SunnyRidge Farm label.

In the process, SunnyRidge gained a new facility for state-of-the-art packing, pre-cooling and cold storage in Paw Paw, Mich. The company obtained committed acreage, plus the ability to expand operations with contract growers in Michigan.

“Through our partnership with the Leducs, SunnyRidge now has the opportunity to work with some of the best growers in the region,” Keith said. “The future success of this partnership is based on working with a handful of large, quality growers who are committed to implementing cultural and harvesting programs to ensure the delivery of only the finest berries that Michigan has to offer.”

The Michigan season typically runs from July through September. During the 2008 season, SunnyRidge Farm represented 2.4 million pounds of blueberries, or 5 percent of the fresh market, Keith said. Through the new partnership, SunnyRidge anticipated growing its market share to 15 percent to 20 percent during the 2009 season.

Blackberries

The rise of SunnyRidge blackberries runs parallel to the blueberry scenario.

Keith calls it “an alignment of the stars.”

Blackberries were never a strong berry in the market, Keith said, and back before 2002, most people were familiar with the California blackberry, which is tart and acidic. Central America produces a sweeter berry, and SunnyRidge began to procure berries there, first in Guatemala and later in Mexico. The production window is long, Jerry said, but ends when the rainy season starts in June.

Thanks in large part to blackberry breeding work led by John Clark at the University of Arkansas, a series of rich, sweet blackberry varieties began to appear. SunnyRidge entered the market with Southern berries ¬– as opposed to those with the “West Coast flavor” ¬– and used its expertise to organize the growers who provide the berries.

The new varieties not only tasted good, “they grew well and traveled well,” Keith said.

Strawberries

On Dec. 10, SunnyRidge Farm held the grand opening and ribbon cutting at its new distribution facility in Plant City, Fla.

“The new building is an exciting step for SunnyRidge Farm,” Keith said. “As we enter our second year in Florida strawberries, this building will be a key facility in the continued growth of our company in strawberries, as well as our other berry commodities. This facility will nearly triple our capacity and fits nicely with SunnyRidge Farm’s growth strategy.”

The new distribution and packing center features more than 51,000 square feet of space. The building will be the centerpiece of the company’s strawberry program, serving as the shipping, receiving and cooling facility. In addition, the facility will support the company’s Florida blueberry and Mexico, Argentina and Chile berry programs.

Production

Jerry Mixon heads the family’s berry production business, overseeing managers at five family owned sites in Mexico, Florida, Georgia and North Carolina.

“It’s been a blessing,” he said about the rise of berry consumption in the United States. “There’s been a tremendous increase, and it was largely unsolicited by the industry. People saw the health benefits, and demand grew.”

The company’s base in central Florida has mixed benefits when it comes to production.

“Cold weather can be a devil, but we don’t know what to wish for. We grow both strawberries and blueberries. We need to protect the strawberries, but blueberries need some cold weather. Chill hours are one of the limiting factors in blueberries,” he said.

“We need 200 to 250 chill hours for blueberries, but we’re happy with half that. If it gets too cold, we need to protect the strawberries. They come into production already Dec. 1.”

Without enough chill hours, blueberries may drop their leaves and fail to re-grow them, Jerry said. The plants blossom, but without enough leaves fruit yield is reduced. The Florida growers would love to see an evergreen variety, he said.

The Mixons use overhead irrigation and plastic low tunnels to protect strawberries, usually needed in January.

The family has learned how to go where berries will grow to fit nicely into a marketing window. The model established by blueberries – find the niche – has led them to procure berries by growing them themselves or contracting with growers, wherever the right niche can be filled.

When the time and price is right, blueberries can be flown from Argentina into the distribution center in Florida. From Chile, a 12-day boat ride is the more usual method.

Keith is an advocate of the blueberry industry’s plan to devote more money to promotion.

“The industry has planted a lot of acres of blueberries, and we hope demand will continue. But promotion is essential. To double consumption in the next five years is a daunting task.”

Are they still planting blueberries?

“Yes, we are, in Florida and elsewhere,” Keith said.