Verdant Technologies names new sales director-West

Verdant Technologies has brought on Harlan Ewert as sales director-West, effective immediately. Ewert comes to Verdant from 30+ years with The Kroger Co. He has spent his career in the retail grocery business and brings procurement, leadership, lean process improvement and retail expertise to the Verdant sales team.

Ewert will lead all Western sales initiatives for Verdant Technologies and report to Scott Harker, vice-president of sales.

As produce category manager for Kroger, Ewert drove significant category growth and led numerous strategic initiatives for the company. During his tenure, he served in various leadership roles across the country, focused on implementing best practices, maximizing category strategy, managing high-performing teams and aligning company and customer goals.

“Consumers demand freshness in their produce – and the success of the industry depends on it. HarvestHold brings a solution to an ever-changing world, whether pandemic or supply chain-related, to meet this expectation,” said Ewert. Ewert has led a sizable team of procurement specialists, been a frequent presenter at Kroger leadership programs and has been closely connected with many produce suppliers in a vast range of commodities. “I look forward to continuing to collaborate throughout the industry and accelerate the introduction of HarvestHold. I am very excited to join the Verdant team,” said Ewert.

Ewert joins the team at a pivotal time for Verdant. HarvestHold, Verdant’s introductory produce shelf-life extension product, received EPA approval in September 2021. “We are thrilled to welcome Harlan to the company. His deep knowledge and disciplined approach to the category make him a valuable part of our team. He is highly respected in the industry and brings retail and grower insights to our sales team that will strengthen the HarvestHold offering to the entire supply chain,” said Verdant CEO, Gordon Robertson.

Verdant Technologies announced the roll out of its HarvestHold Fresh product life extension solution to the produce industry, after receiving EPA registration in early September. HarvestHold is a 1‑MCP-based post-harvest solution that extends the usable product life of fruits, vegetables and flowers by an average of 40–50% and significantly reduces wastage in perishable supply chains.