Nogales, AZ — Members of the Fresh Produce Association of the Americas (FPAA) held their annual meeting on May 12, 2015 in Nogales, Arizona. The annual meeting is an opportunity for members to discuss key actions from the previous year with detailed updates from the FPAA’s president, chairman, and staff. In addition, the annual meeting is the opportunity to vote for board members to fill the terms that ended this May.
This year the FPAA was also honored to have Mark Killian, the newly appointed director of the Arizona Department of Agriculture, as the keynote speaker. Director Killian was recently appointed by Governor Doug Ducey. He is a business owner and the former Director of the Arizona Department of Revenue. He also served in the Arizona House of Representatives for 14 years. His leadership positions in the House included Majority Leader, Speaker of the House, and Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee and Public Institutions Committee. Mr. Killian stressed the importance of agriculture in Arizona and his department’s commitment to working with the Nogales produce industry to keep Arizona competitive and to support growth.
FPAA president, Lance Jungmeyer, talked about a variety of activities and opportunities that the association has been working on in the past year, including important infrastructure improvements ranging from State Route 189 to the broader vision of Interstate 11, Mexico and Washington, DC advocacy, and more.
“We are in the business of moving fresh produce across the border. In order to accommodate the kind of growth that we foresee, the state needs a strategic plan to address the key routes that the produce traverses on,” Jungmeyer said.
The FPAA chairman, Matt Mandel of SunFed, talked to the members about change, innovation, and moving forward in the industry. Matt said, “Our membership continues to work on the balance between a proud history and constantly reinventing itself. We must not lose focus on the core business that has helped us arrive here today and yet keep our eyes on the horizon for a variety of new technologies and fresh takes on old technologies which will help catapult us into the future.”
Before electing board members, Lance Jungmeyer presented the FPAA Member of the Year Award. The Member of the Year is someone who goes above and beyond in working for the betterment of the membership. This year’s recipient is Scott Vandervoet of Vandervoet & Associates. Scott accepted the award to resounding applause and appreciation from the members. In his remarks he said, “It is an honor to be recognized by the Association. Our industry is in a constant state of evolution, and it is only through the hard work and active participation of our membership that we can remain vital, not only in the local sense, but also on a global stage.”
During the meeting, FPAA members elected eight distributor directors and two associate directors to the FPAA board. JJ Badillo of Delta Fresh Sales, LLC; Chris Ciruli of Ciruli Brothers; Walter Ram of The Giumarra Companies; and Scott Vandervoet of Vandervoet & Associates were re-elected to two-year terms on the FPAA board of directors. James Martin of Wilson Produce; Eric Meyer of Prime Time International; Gerardo Ritz of Ritz Produce; and Mikee Suarez of MAS Melons & Grapes were newly elected to the board for two-year terms.
Sabrina Hallman of Sierra Seed Company LLLP was re-elected for a one-year term as associate member director. Chuck Thomas of Thomas Produce was elected for a one-year term as associate member director. He previously served on the board for many years.
Bobby Astengo of Healthy Trends Produce Company; Ricardo Crisantes of Wholesum Family Farms; Bert Monteverde, Jr. of H.M. Distributors; Jose Luis Obregon of IPR Fresh; Rod Sbragia of Tricar Sales, Inc.; Leonardo Tarriba of Farmer’s Best International; and Jaime Chamberlain of J-C Distributing, Inc. have one year remaining on their two-year term of office.
Rosie Cornelius was presented with an award of appreciation upon completion of her term on the FPAA board and for her valuable contributions to the FPAA.
The FPAA members re-elected JJ Badillo of Delta Fresh Sales, LLC as chairman of the FPAA Tomato Division. Chris Ciruli of Ciruli Brothers continues as chairman of the FPAA Mango Division. John Pandol of Pandol Brothers also continues as the chairman of the FPAA Grape Division.
The FPAA and its members rely on the commitment and expertise of their board of directors, division directors, and the engagement of the FPAA membership in advancing the goals of improving business for its member companies.
About the Fresh Produce Association of the Americas:
The FPAA is a nonprofit trade association headquartered in Nogales, Arizona, that represents over 120 U.S. member companies involved in growing, packing, sales and transportation of fresh fruits and vegetables grown in Mexico. The FPAA leverages the efforts of private companies and partner-associations to increase the consumption of fresh fruits and vegetable from Mexico. Produce from Mexico accounts for approximately 37 percent of fruit and vegetable consumption in the U.S. during the winter months. The Mariposa Port of Entry located in Nogales, Arizona, is the largest port of entry for fresh produce imported into the U.S. from Mexico.
Source: Fresh Produce Association of the Americas