Growers Express

Green Giant® Fresh goes back to school with Box Tops for Education
The iconic Green Giant® Fresh is the only fresh produce brand featuring Box Tops for Education, which is explained in this short video.

Growers Express : Cooling & Testing
Cooling is the final step in our growing process, and it is vital to ensuring a fresh, high quality product by removing the field heat from the harvested plant. Harvesting is sometimes performed in 70 to 80-degree weather, which means your produce is hot! Removing field heat from the freshly harvested commodities reduces nutrient degradation, water loss (wilting), and slows down micro-organisms that cause decay. This is why it is so important to quickly transport the produce from the field to the cooler within a 3-hour window. It is also important that the cooling process is not interrupted, and that the cold chain is consistent until the product is consumed. Depending on the type of commodity, there are a variety of methods to remove the field heat out of the produce: Vacuum-cooling is a method where the produce is put into large cylinders and most of the air is evacuated out. The vacuum causes the surface water to evaporate quickly, lowering the temperature. This method is usually used on leafy greens. Hydro-cooling is a process that uses chilled water to rapidly reduce the temperature. This is the quickest method to reduce the temperature but can only be used on produce that is not adversely affected by water, such as cauliflower and celery. Icing is an efficient method used on dense produce such as broccoli. Pallets are inserted in the icing machine where tiny ice crystals are injected into the carton through the side holes, quickly reducing the temperature and settling on commodities with high respiration rates. Forced-Air Cooling consists of a cooling room with large fans. The cold circulates the room and through the air holes in the cartons, allowing the cold air to penetrate the produce and reducing the core temperature quickly. Once the produce is cooled, its optimal temperature is 34 to 36 degrees Fahrenheit. It is then stored in large warehouses, each about the size of a football field. The harvest crews and sales team coordinate the shipping schedule of these pallets of produce to your local supermarket. We take great care in every step along the way to ensure the product is in an optimal growing environment and cooled by the proper methods, delivering the freshest, safest, and highest quality produce to your local supermarkets. Quality Testing The final step prior to shipping is a detailed quality assessment test, during which careful review and grading of the products and their packaging are performed by specially-trained personnel. Quality scores must meet the high level of TrueTrac requirements in order to proceed to shipping. Properties such as color, appearance, packing quality, package condition, texture, and carton condition are all carefully reviewed and graded for each product.

Growers Express : Growing Practices
Growing practices refers to the cultivation of the land, which involves loosening or breaking up the soil. If the land is not cultivated, a smaller plant of lesser quality will result at harvest time. It takes about a month for seeds to sprout and develop a root system before we start the cultivation practices. We go through the fields loosening up the soil to give the plant access to good air and proper drainage. The land is irrigated 3-4 times during the growing process, and more if needed. A variety of irrigation techniques are employed by the commercial growing industry, including both drip and spray irrigation methods. Drip irrigation is one of the most efficient ways of watering but it is also the most expensive, employing plastic pipes with holes in it that are buried along the root lines. This method reduces water evaporation and is more efficient relative to fertilizer distribution. Spray irrigation uses multiple sprinklers that are positioned evenly to reach all areas of the field. Our growers continuously walk the fields to inspect growing conditions, monitoring the soil, plant growth and weeds and determining what should be done to improve the overall quality of the crop. Observing superior growing practices allows our growers to reduce excess applications and waste.

Growers Express : Sam McKinsey

Growers Express : Stan Pura

Growers Express : Ron Garney

Growers Express : Mike Hitchcock

Growers Express : David Gill

Growers Express : John Romans

Growers Express : Site & Seed Selection
In farming, one of the first steps is selecting an appropriate site. We look for locations that offer nutrient-dense soil, good air, proper drainage and easy access for workers and equipment. On a new piece of land, it can take up to 2-3 years to fully determine the ideal combination of crop, seed variety, and location that allows a grower to maximize the full potential of a crop. Crop rotation (the sequence of different crops on the same piece of ground from one time of the year to the next) has a significant influence on quality, consistency, disease, insect pressure and yields. Variety selection is another factor in determining what we grow. Some types of seeds grow better than others in certain areas, depending on factors such as soil and microclimates. Most crops have seed varieties that have been developed for various climates and regions. There are certain types of seeds that tolerate difficult, cold winters and high heat summer conditions. We are constantly going through the process of testing new varieties on our land to pinpoint the desired combination. Once the ideal growing location and seed variety has been determined, we conduct soil and water analysis to compete the selection process. Providing crops with ample clean water and soil nutrition during the growing process is essential to providing our customers with fresh, high quality vegetables.

Growers Express : Planting
After determining the right location and seed type to plant, it's time to prepare for planting. Soil test results effectively show the deficiencies that will need to be corrected. The planting of a crop varies on the type of vegetable crop and the cultural practices that are utilized according to the particular crop's needs. Over-planting and under-planting may reduce yields and quality of vegetables. If seeds are planted too early or late in the season, many problems, such as poor root systems, malformed plants and increased risk of crop disease, could arise. During the planting process, we cultivate the land by deep-tilling the soil to loosen up the ground. We also use a variety of methods to break up the dirt clods that allow for good air circulation, drainage and uniform seed germination when the seed begins to sprout/grow. Our mechanical planters break down the clods and form even, square beds. Uniformity is key to growing a nice quality crop. Some crops, such as cauliflower and celery are germinated in greenhouses and transplanted. Most other seeds are directly planted into the even beds. These seeds are evenly spaced to allow optimal growing space and even light.

Harvesting & Packing
Capurro Farms Green Giant Topless Western Express Harvesting is the last step that is done in the field. Once our growers determine that the plants are at their optimal growth for harvest, they inform the harvest managers. These managers work closely with the sales team to determine fulfillment of upcoming orders. When crops are ready to harvest they have about a 3-4 day window before they could be damaged or past their optimal harvest quality point. Commercial harvesting is done by a combination of machines and harvest crews consisting of about 10-30 people per crew. These crews start working at the break of day, preparing the equipment and conducting a pre-harvest food safety and quality assessment. the harvest managers keep a close eye on the crops in the days leading up to the harvest to ensure that weather conditions, insects, and nutrient control are all in balance. If any of these factors occur in the final days prior to harvest, it could have significant adverse affects on an entire crop. These harvest managers are well-trained and specialize in each crop, knowing when the exact time to cut the plant is to maximize the plant's nutritional content and quality. Depending on the crop, crews walk behind the slow moving machines and carefully inspect each item for size, color, and quality before cutting. The crops are trimmed, cleaned or directly packed into cartons and loaded onto a truck. This is a manual process with the help of machines to facilitate the assembly line of crews packing. The field trucks are loaded with the pallets and quickly transported to the coolers where they are cooled, stored and shipped to your local grocery market. Harvesting practices and proper trimming and cleaning techniques can have dramatic impacts on the ultimate appearance, shelf life and consistency of the finished product.