INDIANAPOLIS, IN & BARTLETT, IL - Two great food entities create one new company in an effort to bring produce, freshcut, and specialty food to retailers. I’m talking about IF&P Foods and Get Fresh Produce creating FreshEdge™. The consolidated entity will be run by two industry leaders with vast pools of knowledge and experience holding them up: Get Fresh Produce's CEO Steve Grinstead will serve as Chief Executive Officer and IF&P Foods' CEO Greg Corsaro will serve as President and Chief Operating Officer.

“This is an amazing opportunity to join one of the leading fresh food distribution platforms in the country,” said Steve Grinstead, CEO of FreshEdge. “Through our broad Midwest and Southern distribution platform, unique meat and seafood vendor relationships, and extensive specialty food offerings, the FreshEdge companies provide full-service fresh food options to all its customers. FreshEdge has also devoted significant resources to growing its selection of value-added products and services and can provide a wide array of pre-cut produce, prepared foods, and ready-to-eat products.”

According to a press release, FreshEdge aims to house a collection of industry leading produce and specialty food distributors, freshcut operations, and a USDA kitchen, including Piazza Produce, Get Fresh Produce, Indianapolis Fruit, Papania’s, Garden Cut, Just Cut, and Cibus Fresh. Serving over 2,000 customer locations across 18 states and distributing over 30 million cases of fresh produce, proteins, specialty processed produce, USDA certified grab-and-go offerings, and specialty foods annually, FreshEdge operates over 400,000 square feet of distribution and processing facilities with 1,200 employees and a fleet of over 500 trucks.

Grinstead has 40 years of experience in the food distribution industry. He was COO of Standard Fruit and Vegetable and President of Fresh America, spending eight years in the produce distribution management company, before taking on the mantle as CEO of The Grinstead Group. Grinstead is active in industry-wide organizations, serving as Chairman of United Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Association and the United Fresh Foundation. He is a longtime member of the Produce Marketing Association, National Restaurant Association, and the Food Marketing Institute.

Corsaro worked as a Certified Public Accountant for one of the Big Four public accounting firms, later switching to the private practice of law. He then served as an active attorney and a CPA while being heavily involved in the produce industry for the last 27 years. Most recently, Corsaro was the CEO of IF&P Foods, the parent company of Piazza Produce, Indianapolis Fruit, Papania’s, Garden Cut, and Cibus Fresh.

“Over the last several years, IF&P Foods has invested heavily in our management team, digital platform, warehouse facilities, and logistics platform,” said Corsaro, President and COO of FreshEdge. “With the acquisition of Get Fresh Produce, the combined platform can integrate our facilities and combine our offerings to provide the freshest and most complete suite of products to all of our customers.”

Backed by private equity firm Rotunda Capital, FreshEdge expects to continue to build on its platform and leverage its infrastructure investments with selective acquisitions of distributors in desirable geographic locations and product categories.

Keep reading ANUK for the latest in all mergers in the produce world.