Pacific Sun continues on course
Pacific Sun continues on course
Pacific Sun Distributing Inc. is primarily a mixed load consolidator that ships products by truck, ocean or air to customers throughout the United States and globally from its refrigerated warehouse in the Los Angeles suburb of Bell, CA.
“Our job is to make their job easier, matching the product that we buy to order for customers” to assure freshness and to assure it meets customer specifications, said President Ray Davis.
The product is cross-docked through the company’s HACCP-certified facility, he said.
“Nothing has changed” at Pacific Sun over the past year, Davis said June 11. “We are just working hard” and “trying to grow the deal.”
Also on sales at Pacific Sun are John Florance and Bob Drake.
The company, which was formed about 16 years ago, handles a full range of produce items, including specialties and exotics, sourcing locally and from suppliers throughout the United States. “We procure product from A to Z,” he said, including conventional produce, organic produce, specialty produce, mixed nuts, dried fruit, and items that are difficult to source.
The difficult-to-source items are not necessarily exotics or specialty produce. They can be mainstream commodities that are temporarily in tight supply.
Being based in Los Angeles is definitely advantageous for the company, Davis said. It is in convenient proximity to Nogales, AZ, the main port of entry for products coming into the United States from West Mexico, and to many major producing areas in Arizona and California. There are growing districts for many commodities “all around us.”
For most of the products Pacific Sun handles, “we deal with growers,” he said. But also, “we will pick up product from the local distributors in Los Angeles,” which has the advantage of being able to “hand select” the product and keep a close watch on quality. “Everybody comes to L.A. with their produce, so we are in a perfect situation” to acquire the products customers need.
Los Angeles is also a transportation hub, which makes it convenient for loads both inbound and outbound. “It is a perfect shipping point, with product coming in and out of Los Angeles,” with the Port of Los Angeles nearby as well as the Los Angeles International Airport, and “there are always trucks in town. It is a perfect scenario,” he said.
