Brenda Briggs, vice president of marketing, and Valerie Ramsburg, sales and marketing representative for Rice Fruit Co. in Gardners, PA, will be representing the firm at the upcoming Southeast Produce Council’s 2014 Southern Exposure annual conference and expo.

The event will be held Feb. 27 to March 1 at the Caribe Royale Conference Center & Hotel in Orlando, FL.

“We will be at booth number 1029,” said Briggs. “Although we’ve been members of the council for three years, this will be our first time exhibiting.”

Rice Fruit will be featuring its proprietary “KIKU” apples at the show, along with its other great-tasting apple varieties. It continues its strong concentration on marketing and promoting the “KIKU,” and is one of only three companies in the U.S. that is licensed to produce and sell the apple, and the only one permitted to sell it in the East.

“Consumer reaction to the ‘KIKU’ is great, and that’s going to increase as more volumes become available,” John Rice told The Produce News in January. “Production is increasing every year. Last year our supplies lasted to the end of January, but this year we have enough volume to last through late February.”

While the “KIKU” represents only about 5 percent of Rice Fruit’s production today — because it is still in the early production stage — that figure is expected to grow in coming years.

The company produces over a dozen of the most popular apple varieties on today’s market.

“Our number one apple in production terms continues to be the Red Delicious, followed by the Golden Delicious,” said Rice. “The Gala, Fuji and Honeycrisp varieties are now third, fourth and fifth, respectively.”

The company is a family business that was founded in 1913 by Arthur Rice Sr., but its origins go back much further. Around 1790, Daniel Rice, the first member of the Rice family to settle in Adams County, PA, arrived as a young German immigrant. A general farmer like his neighbors, he soon recognized that the scenic foothills of the South Mountain, the eastern-most ridge of the Appalachians, had ideal soils and a perfect climate for growing many kinds of fruit. Soon apples would become one of his most import crops. Besides apples, the company also produces peaches and pears today.

Briggs said that the company is looking forward to its inaugural participation at the Southern Exposure event, and the opportunity to visit with current and future customers.

“It is also a chance to talk with industry friends from across the country,” she added. “The apple marketing has remained steady and strong. We have an excellent quality crop that we expect to market into the summer months.”