Calavo Growers facts for kids
| Public | |
| Traded as | NASDAQ: CVGW S&P 600 component |
| Industry | Agricultural Food Products |
| Founded | 1924 |
| Headquarters |
1141 Cummings Rd, Santa Paula, CA 93060
,
United States
|
|
Key people
|
Lecil E. Cole (CEO and chairman of the board) |
| Revenue |  $1.08 billion (2017) |
|
Number of employees
|
1,848 (As of 2014[update]) |
Calavo Growers, Inc. is a big company that sells food products around the world. They are famous for packaging and distributing avocados. They also offer other fruits and fresh prepared foods. You can find their products in restaurants, stores, and even directly for people to buy.
The company is based in Santa Paula, California. However, they grow avocados in California, Central America, and South America. Calavo Growers started in 1924. It began as an agricultural cooperative, which is a group of farmers working together. This company played a huge role in starting the California avocado industry.
Today, Calavo Growers has three main parts: Fresh Products, Calavo Foods, and Renaissance Food Group (RFG). In 2013, Forbes magazine named Calavo one of America's Best Small Companies.
Contents
How Calavo Growers Started
Calavo Growers, Inc. began on January 21, 1924. It was first called the California Avocado Growers' Exchange. Many people in California were very interested in avocados. They had planted avocado seeds that came from Mexico.
By 1923, these trees were producing enough avocados to sell. But there was no easy way to sell them. So, the founders looked at other successful farmer groups. They learned from groups like the California Fruit Growers Exchange. They used the best ideas for the avocado business.
In its first year, the California Avocado Growers Exchange packed 18,000 pounds of fruit. This really launched the California avocado industry. Soon after, the growers' group adopted the name "Calavo" as their brand. This name came from a contest. People submitted ideas that combined "California" and "avocado." Calavo quickly became known for high-quality avocados.
In the early 1930s, the cooperative started selling more than just avocados. They added limes, coconuts, kiwis, mangos, and persimmons. Papayas were added to their offerings in the late 1940s.
Supporting the Avocado Industry
In 1961, the California Avocado Advisory Board was created. Calavo played a very important part in setting it up. The goal was to promote the California avocado industry as a whole. This was different from just promoting the avocados from their own group. Today, this board is known as the California Avocado Commission.
Becoming a Public Company
After 78 years as a farmers' cooperative, Calavo members decided to make the company public. This means anyone could buy shares of the company. In 2002, Calavo Growers Inc. was listed on the NASDAQ stock market. Its stock symbol became CVGW. Most of the people on the company's board of directors were, and still are, longtime avocado growers.
What Calavo Growers Sells
Calavo Growers sells fresh avocados. These avocados are grown in California, Mexico, and Chile. They also distribute other fruits. These include tomatoes, pineapples, and Hawaiian papayas.
In Mexico, they have a large packinghouse. It is 50,000 square feet. Here, they pack and ship fresh avocados. They also have a second, even bigger facility. This 90,000 square foot facility prepares and packages fresh avocado products. An example is guacamole.
Calavo's products are sold all over the U.S. You can find them in stores and restaurants. They also distribute to Canada, Europe, and Asia.
See also
- California Avocado Society
- California Avocado Commission
