COALINGA, CA — Double D Farms, which is headquartered in Fresno, CA, but has farming, packing and cooling operations here, is involved in the production of several commodities, one of which is garlic. In the garlic category, “we specialize in organic garlic,” said Gurdeep Billan, director of sales.

The garlic is not packed on premise but nearby at the Harris Fresh facility,” he said.

The company’s 2012 harvest was already completed when The Produce News visited the facility July 20.

Sal Pacheco, Gurdeep Billan, Victor Gaspar de Alba and Chris Carbajal of Double D Farms.Unlike some in the garlic industry who put bins of garlic in storage for later packing, all of Double D’s garlic is packed before going into storage. “After the harvest, the product is brought into the packing facility” where it is sorted, graded, sized and packed on an automated line.

“We find that by sorting and grading out at the primary stage, we get a superior product that lasts a longer time,” he said.

Typically, “we have enough supplies of fresh California garlic” to last from July through around February, he said.

Traditionally, Double D’s organic garlic has all been packed in 30-pound bulk boxes. This year, however, the company will be introducing some consumer value packs with the “Double D Farms” brand, Mr. Billan said.

“Our focus on the garlic is going to be similar to all the other organic commodities that we are growing, especially with the continued demand for increased organic produce consumption. We provide solutions for the conventional retailer who is either new in merchandising organics” or who faces challenges with organic produce being mis-rung at the cash register, he said. Those solutions are mainly designed to help conventional retailers “distinguish organic commodities from conventional. We work hard in developing very simple solutions to that, and a lot of that is going to be some type of package. That allows us to penetrate into marketplaces where we wouldn’t have the opportunity” otherwise.

The solutions can range from putting banding on organic cantaloupes to putting organic garlic or onions in bags.

Except for the new bags, and a modest increase in volume, Double D’s organic garlic program this year will be very similar to last year, he said.