Live Oak Farms appoints Ed Beckman to newly created COO position
Live Oak Farms appoints Ed Beckman to newly created COO position
Live Oak Farms announced that Ed Beckman has joined the company as its new chief operating officer, a newly created position that will foster the strategic growth of the family-owned grower-shipper of tomatoes and peppers.
For over 20 years, Beckman led associations representing the California fresh tomato industry, most recently as chief executive officer for California Tomato Farmers, where he championed the development of programs that resulted in cutting-edge food-safety standards for field-grown tomatoes, expanding the presence of California’s fresh tomato industry in export markets, and secured supply partnerships with leading foodservice and supermarket chains.
“Live Oak Farms is a multigenerational farming operation that’s committed to excellence, and Ed’s vision and demonstrated ability to successfully navigate the rapidly changing market forces of the fresh produce industry will position Live Oak Farms for growth to the benefit of our customers, employees and the next generation of our farming family,” Bob Giampaoli, Live Oak Farms CEO and a third-generation farmer, said in a press release.
In the newly created position, Beckman will initially focus on the creation of new initiatives to support future growth across Live Oak’s tomato and pepper operations.
Beckman had been involved with Live Oak while he serving as CEO of the grower organizations that Live Oak was a member of.
“I’ve witnessed for many years the passion that the Giampaoli family has for farming, their commitment to excellence and their giving back to the community," Beckman said in the release. "I’m thrilled to work alongside Bob and the family as we work together on making a great company even better in the years ahead”.
Beckman joined Live Oak Farms in mid-October from Certified Greenhouse Farmers, where he served as CEO.
