Clewiston farm sells produce to BJ's stores as part of Farm to Club Program
C&C Agricultural Farms, a 300-acre operation in Clewiston, joined BJ’s to provide fresh and local cucumbers, squash and bell peppers to stores in Florida as part of BJ’s Farm to Club Program.
Farm to Club began after BJ’s CEO challenged employees to develop a locally grown food program, which grew into a 15-state operation supplying consumers with fresh produce grown in their own state.
Dominic Viglione, produce buyer for BJ’s, said the company networked with local farmers to find enough supply to meet the demand of club members who were calling for locally grown produce at their stores.
“Members appreciate the locally grown produce. It’s fresher, they know the source and we identify the farms using signs in the store,” said Viglione.
Viglione said having locally grown produce in stores means produce doesn’t need to travel as far as it normally does. In fact, in a study of 16 common fruits and vegetables conducted by the Leopold Centre for Sustainable Agriculture, the average one travelled nearly 1,500 miles before it was sold to consumers. In addition, 39 percent of fruits and 12 percent of vegetables were imported from other countries -- this means many fruits and vegetables are picked before they have fully ripened and have a chance to absorb essential nutrients from its surroundings.
BJ’s Farm to Club program is trying to lessen the distance fruits and vegetables travel, while offering its members fresh, seasonal produce from local farmers.
Clewiston’s C&C Agricultural Farms is one of two farms providing produce to BJ’s stores in Florida. C&C Agricultural Farms was established in 2008 by Ernesto Cordero and Carlos Rodriguez and, with the help of Robinson Fresh, has been providing produce to BJ’s stores since 2011.
“Robinson Fresh and C&C Agricultural Farms appreciate the opportunity to work closely with a large retailer like BJ’s Wholesale Club on such an expansive local produce initiative, as well as providing consumers the most local, fresh produce that Florida has to offer. The companies are excited to continue to collaborate as the relationship expands and the program grows,” said Drew Schwartzhoff, director of marketing, products and services at Robinson Fresh.
Source: florida.newszap.com
