Even though the produce office of United Supermarkets is almost 800 miles away from the grapefruit groves of South Texas, the citrus is still a local buy for shoppers, and they love it.

Darvel Kirby, director of produce for United Supermarkets, which has 65 stores under five banners, said Texans are very proud of their state and very loyal to the products grown or made there.

“For us ‘locally grown’ is anything that comes from Texas and our customers love it,” he said.

The company’s tagline is “Texans proudly serving Texans.” And it uses that phrase to differentiate itself from its competitors that do not have deep Texas roots, and are headquartered in other states.

Under all five banners, United Supermarket stores tout the Texas connection with stories about the local growers and ample signage. In its mainline United Supermarket stores, Kirby said there is often a huge sign stating “Texas Fresh” where the product is merchandised. In its upscale Market Street stores, the retailer held a “Texas Expo” in July to showcase Texas-grown produce as well as other locally grown or made products.

United Supermarkets includes 12 upscale Market Street stores that Kirby likens to Whole Foods; four Amigos, which cater to the Hispanic community; 12 Albertson’s that fly that banner but are serviced by United Supermarkets staff and distribution centers; and the rest are United Supermarkets or United Express, which is a convenience store format that includes a gas station.

Kirby said the purchase of United by Albertson’s about a year ago added the Albertson’s banners and has led to some rapid growth. Four more Albertson’s in eastern New Mexico are currently transitioning into United Supermarkets, and several other stores have been opened in the past year on somewhat of a fast track. Kirby said that when an Albertson’s transitions into United Supermarkets it is more than just a paper transfer. The employees become part of the United Supermarket family and the store is run through United’s operating system. “We write the ads,” he added.

As director of produce, Kirby likes how the company’s various banners give him more buying and merchandising options. “We like to tell growers we can buy their whole tree or their whole bush.”

The 21-year United Supermarket veteran explained that while each of the banners stocks the same quality specifications, he has a lot of flexibility in sizing. For the Amigos markets, he can buy a value-priced size of a fruit while he will most likely stick with the most popular sizes for the upscale Market Street locations.

Prior to the purchase by Albertson’s, Kirby said United Supermarkets was a 98-year-old company owned by one family. Despite the purchase by the much larger retailer, he said the firm has retained that family-owned feel.

“The biggest change is we have had much faster growth in store count,” he reiterated, indicating that more openings are anticipated in the next year.

With its various banners, Kirby is experiencing the trends that seem to be sweeping the retail grocery trade. He already discussed the locally grown trend and added that growth in sales of organics is also being experienced, most notably in the upscale Market Street stores.

“Under the Market Street banner organic produce is doing very well,” he said. “We have over 100 organic items available every day and usually it’s around 150.”

Several other stores within the chain do carry organic produce but Market Street is where it does best and gets the bigger play. He said the same is true with prepared foods in the produce department and in the store in general. Again Market Street, with its upscale clientele, offers more prepared foods and has seen more growth in that area.

Overall, Kirby said produce is a very significant department for United Supermarkets, and he believes consumption is increasing significantly on an annual basis. “Sales vary by season and depending on the store and the location, but I’d say produce represents about 10 percent of store sales. It ranges from 8 to 15 percent depending upon the store.”

Kirby said altering the statistics are other factors such as the product mix of each store. “We are big in meat in Texas and some of our stores do very well in the meat department. We also have a high-volume pharmacy in many of the stores which cuts the percentage of produce sales.”