The year 2013 was an extremely successful year for Giorgio Fresh in Temple, PA, and for its organic sales, which increased at double-digit rates, according to Bill Litvin, regional sales and national account manager for the company.

“Our organic sales are continuing to increase thanks to our sales strategies,” he noted. “2013 was the first full year of the Modern Mushroom fresh mushroom business being a part of the Giorgio family of brands. We were extremely pleased with the seamless transition that allowed us to continue to service customers and consumers, and to help the industry meet the demand for mushroom sales.

Giorgio Fresh’s eight-ounce pack of white organic mushrooms.“Similarly, 2013 saw the launch of our newly redesigned website, www.giorgiofresh.com,” Litvin continued. “We have also recently launched our official expansion into the world of social media with our brand-new Giorgio Fresh Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest and Instagram pages.

“We’ve worked carefully to craft our new vision and hope to be a source of expertise to our customers with posts including recipes, product knowledge, company and industry information, giveaways and more. It is our goal to continue to present new ways to market mushrooms to the public, and we hope that these new ventures will allow us to do so.”

Litvin noted that the Organic Trade Association has the online resource, The Organic Pages, which provides users with a quick, easy way to find certified organic products, producers, ingredients, supplies and services.

“Giorgio is a member of this association so our section in the resource promotes our growing and shipping of fresh organic white, baby bella and portabella mushrooms, along with our processing of frozen organic products like [individually quick frozen] mushrooms.”

Consumers that visit The Organic Pages are able to link to the new giorgiofresh.com website and find not only a list of the company’s organic products but also a range of recipes to use them in.

According to the 2013 U.S. Families’ Organic Attitudes and Beliefs Study published by the Organic Trade Association, 81 percent of U.S. families are buying organic.

“This number represents a three percent increase over the record number of 78 percent of families reported in the 2011 U.S. study,” said Litvin. “The OTA also highlights that with consumers choosing and demanding organic foods the organic sector continues to add jobs to the U.S. economy. Giorgio is also proud to be part of that aspect of the organic movement.”

Litvin said the company became a certified organic mushroom grower on March 11, 2004.

“We are certified by Pennsylvania Certified Organic,” said Litvin. “Giorgio conducts agricultural and processing operations in accordance with the standards of the National Organic Program of the United States Department of Agriculture. These standards represent the highest organic production and handling standards in the world.”

Giorgio, Litvin said, is one of the larger grower-shippers of organic mushrooms in the country. Its extensive organic line includes white whole, white sliced, baby bella, portabella caps, sliced portabellas and shiitake mushrooms.

Litvin said that the company’s organic items are produced at its farms in Berks County, PA.

“We grow our mushrooms in a fully organic substrate without artificial fertilizers or sewage sludge,” he explained. “We are leading the way in [integrated pest management], including non-chemical and natural biological pest control techniques-to limit the use of synthetic pesticides. Giorgio does not bio-engineer mushrooms or use ionizing radiation. Our operations must pass stringent inspections to ensure that we continue to meet USDA Organic standards.”

Giorgio Fresh services a wide range of customers that includes retailers, wholesalers, foodservice operations and industrial customers. It distributes from Maine to Florida, west to Iowa, Minnesota and Montana. It also has a joint shipping venture from Mexico into Texas.