Z&S Fresh rolls out product line under 'Old El Paso Fresh' brand
Z&S Fresh rolls out product line under 'Old El Paso Fresh' brand
FRESNO, CA Z&S Fresh, a broad-line fruit and vegetable grower, shipper, distributor and broker, here, has reached an agreement with General Mills under which Z&S is authorized to ship an expanding assortment of produce items under the "Old El Paso Fresh" brand.
The product line will tie in with General Mills' Old El Paso brand used for an assortment of Hispanic items in the grocery department.
The Old El Paso Fresh program has actually been in the works for about a year-and-a-half and first went into test market last December with some lemons shipped into Salt Lake City, said Justin Bedwell, a four-year employee of Z&S who has recently been appointed director of marketing one of several personnel changes in support of the new program.
The initial test slowly grew to bell peppers into the same test market, Mr. Bedwell said. By early July, we figured out, 'Hey, this thing is working, so we expanded it elsewhere. Over the course of the last two months, the company has shipped bell peppers to Detroit, Columbus, the Northwest and pretty much all over, he said.
An assortment of other items will soon be added to the Old El Paso line, he said. We are just now starting to release certain commodities.
Z&S, which has a sales office and distribution center in Nogales, AZ, as well as a sales office in Mt. Kisco, NY, handles, among other things, an assortment of items that are popular in Hispanic cuisine, complementing the Hispanic-type items in General Mills Old El Paso line, which includes such items as tacos and tortillas, rice and refried beans, Mexican condiments, Mexican sauces, seasonings and chilis, and various dinner kits.
We wanted to have a year-round program, and we started with [Mexican-grown] vegetables out of our Nogales office, he said. We thought we could do a real good job with chili peppers and onions as well as bell peppers and tomatoes.
But General Mills suggested expanding the line to various fruit items that are popular in the Hispanic trade, such as lemons and other citrus items and avocados, said Pat Hopper, who joined Z&S just over a year ago and is now director of national brands.
They brought me in to help out on the Old El Paso program as well as the Just Ripe program, she said. Z&S uses the Just Ripe brand for its preconditioned stone fruit and also uses the label on some of its grapes.
About 60 percent of the product currently handled by Z&S is house product, and about 40 percent of that is grown on company-owned ranches, Mr. Bedwell said. In addition, Z&S works with co-packers in various growing areas both within and outside the United States.
We are going to have a good, full product line, but not necessarily be a 100 percent grower-shipper, he said. That is where our co-packers come in. We feel we can do a little bit better job with quality with the customers if it is not all in-house.
Z&S is a full-line shipper of tree fruit, vegetables, grapes and citrus as well as an importer and exporter, and what we are trying to do now is grow smartly for the future, he said.
The company was formed in 1986 by Marty Zaninovich and Loren Schoenberg. They started as a Nogales office, strictly a brokerage, then took on growers here in the Central Valley, Mr. Bedwell said. The company has grown every year since.
Z&S has just completed some organizational restructuring involving the formation of a new organizational team dedicated to the growth and the expanding market presence of the Old El Paso Fresh and Just-Ripe labels, according to a press release dated Aug. 9 announcing the personnel changes.
The release quoted Mr. Zaninovich, president of Z&S, as saying, Along with the increased commitment to our General Mills/Old El Paso program and to our existing tree fruit, vegetable, grape and citrus deals, Z&S has become more vertically integrated in all facets of its operation, which has led to the need for these positions. The increased growth of our farming operations, our grower base, the expansion of our Nogales facilities and an East Coast operation has required new management positions.
Rick Sakomoto, who spent 10 years with Grand Union as a produce buyer and 13 years with A&P as a buyer and as senior manager of Western fields operations, has been named director of sales and procurement. He is now in his second year with the company. His responsibilities will include procurement for the Old El Paso Fresh line and setting up co-packers, according to Mr. Bedwell.
Lorren Buller, who also comes from A&P, continues as director of procurement at Z&S. He is out there helping us get a year-round supply of our commodities, added Ms. Hopper.
Mr. Bedwell worked at Sun Valley Packing and at Bari Produce before joining Z&S.
Ms. Hopper, whose assignment is to guide the Old El Paso Fresh and Just-Ripe programs through development, distribution and growth, was director of marketing for Ocean Mist Farms for 12 years and manager of the California Artichoke Advisory Board.
The product line will tie in with General Mills' Old El Paso brand used for an assortment of Hispanic items in the grocery department.
The Old El Paso Fresh program has actually been in the works for about a year-and-a-half and first went into test market last December with some lemons shipped into Salt Lake City, said Justin Bedwell, a four-year employee of Z&S who has recently been appointed director of marketing one of several personnel changes in support of the new program.
The initial test slowly grew to bell peppers into the same test market, Mr. Bedwell said. By early July, we figured out, 'Hey, this thing is working, so we expanded it elsewhere. Over the course of the last two months, the company has shipped bell peppers to Detroit, Columbus, the Northwest and pretty much all over, he said.
An assortment of other items will soon be added to the Old El Paso line, he said. We are just now starting to release certain commodities.
Z&S, which has a sales office and distribution center in Nogales, AZ, as well as a sales office in Mt. Kisco, NY, handles, among other things, an assortment of items that are popular in Hispanic cuisine, complementing the Hispanic-type items in General Mills Old El Paso line, which includes such items as tacos and tortillas, rice and refried beans, Mexican condiments, Mexican sauces, seasonings and chilis, and various dinner kits.
We wanted to have a year-round program, and we started with [Mexican-grown] vegetables out of our Nogales office, he said. We thought we could do a real good job with chili peppers and onions as well as bell peppers and tomatoes.
But General Mills suggested expanding the line to various fruit items that are popular in the Hispanic trade, such as lemons and other citrus items and avocados, said Pat Hopper, who joined Z&S just over a year ago and is now director of national brands.
They brought me in to help out on the Old El Paso program as well as the Just Ripe program, she said. Z&S uses the Just Ripe brand for its preconditioned stone fruit and also uses the label on some of its grapes.
About 60 percent of the product currently handled by Z&S is house product, and about 40 percent of that is grown on company-owned ranches, Mr. Bedwell said. In addition, Z&S works with co-packers in various growing areas both within and outside the United States.
We are going to have a good, full product line, but not necessarily be a 100 percent grower-shipper, he said. That is where our co-packers come in. We feel we can do a little bit better job with quality with the customers if it is not all in-house.
Z&S is a full-line shipper of tree fruit, vegetables, grapes and citrus as well as an importer and exporter, and what we are trying to do now is grow smartly for the future, he said.
The company was formed in 1986 by Marty Zaninovich and Loren Schoenberg. They started as a Nogales office, strictly a brokerage, then took on growers here in the Central Valley, Mr. Bedwell said. The company has grown every year since.
Z&S has just completed some organizational restructuring involving the formation of a new organizational team dedicated to the growth and the expanding market presence of the Old El Paso Fresh and Just-Ripe labels, according to a press release dated Aug. 9 announcing the personnel changes.
The release quoted Mr. Zaninovich, president of Z&S, as saying, Along with the increased commitment to our General Mills/Old El Paso program and to our existing tree fruit, vegetable, grape and citrus deals, Z&S has become more vertically integrated in all facets of its operation, which has led to the need for these positions. The increased growth of our farming operations, our grower base, the expansion of our Nogales facilities and an East Coast operation has required new management positions.
Rick Sakomoto, who spent 10 years with Grand Union as a produce buyer and 13 years with A&P as a buyer and as senior manager of Western fields operations, has been named director of sales and procurement. He is now in his second year with the company. His responsibilities will include procurement for the Old El Paso Fresh line and setting up co-packers, according to Mr. Bedwell.
Lorren Buller, who also comes from A&P, continues as director of procurement at Z&S. He is out there helping us get a year-round supply of our commodities, added Ms. Hopper.
Mr. Bedwell worked at Sun Valley Packing and at Bari Produce before joining Z&S.
Ms. Hopper, whose assignment is to guide the Old El Paso Fresh and Just-Ripe programs through development, distribution and growth, was director of marketing for Ocean Mist Farms for 12 years and manager of the California Artichoke Advisory Board.
