General Misionero Vegetables has been in operation for 30 years, shipping a full conventional line of lettuce and mixed produce. Misionero also grows and ships Certified Organic Specialty Salad Mixes, Baby Peeled Carrots, Leaf Lettuces and Broccoli. All products are shipped domestically as well as internationally, year-round from Salinas, CA, Huron, CA, and Yuma, AZ. "Thirty years ago, I felt there was a place in the Salinas Valley for a produce company that could succeed if it treated its people right and always managed the choice between growth and quality on the side of quality." - Floyd Griffin, Founder The Name "The name? I've always liked history. And we're in close proximity to four of the early California missions that stretch from Mexico to Sonoma. I was at the Soledad Mission one day and I was thinking about a name for my company and 'Mission' seemed right. It implied adventure, challenge and discovery. It also implied a sense of continuity with the history of the area. So I named it Mission Packing because at the beginning we were basically grower/harvesters, and we concentrated on that end of the business rather than on sales. At the same time, I decided the label for our produce would be Misionero because I hoped that in some ways we would become missionaries in the field of produce. As the company grew, it made sense to focus on sales with the same intensity that we focused on growing and harvesting. We brought in some bright young people to help us. That's when we started Mission Sales. It was a separate company because I've always believed young people should have initiative and a chance to succeed on their own. As both companies grew, we found having two names - Mission Packing and Mission Sales - confused some people. So we decided to leverage the tremendous equity we had in our label and have both companies operate under the name Misionero Vegetables. It keeps continuity by having the name of our company and our label the same. And it simplified things. Simplicity. It's a sound way to manage change." -Floyd Griffin, Founder Progressiveness Misionero is best known for its progressive nature in all facets of the industry. Misionero was one of the first to use an extensive Integrated Pest Management Program (I.P.M.), and is currently the only produce shipper in the Salinas area with its own on site state accredited laboratory. "We didn't think of ourselves as visionary when we founded the lab. Today, of course, with increasing media, consumer and government attention on food safety, it puts us a step ahead of the industry. But in the beginning, we were just looking for a practical way to guarantee the integrity of our produce." -Floyd Griffin, Founder All lots (in all growing areas) are tested, cleared, and documented as pesticide residue safe prior to the entry of packing crews. In addition, our organic processing facilities are tested daily for microbial contaminants. As consumers become increasingly aware of environmental issues such as food safety, the benefits of sustainable agriculture and land fill solid waste, Misionero Vegetables has made steps to meet their needs. Using fully recyclable lettuce cartons and sustainable agriculture techniques and practices in our organic as well as our conventional farming operations, Misionero strives to stay on the forefront of earth friendly technology. Customer Commitment As an example of our commitment to meet customer needs, we now offer our items according to buyer specifications. Being an organic specialty salad mix grower, packer, and processor in both Salinas, CA and Yuma, AZ allows us to continue to offer year-round "one stop shopping" for customer convenience. Our product is grown on the highest quality ground from the renowned Salinas "Blanco" area to the Gila Valley in Yuma, AZ, giving us the best opportunity to meet your high quality standards. "If your goal is quality, you've got to start at the beginning - which is the seed. We probably do more trials of seed varieties than any company in the industry. Next comes the grower. From the day our company was founded, we've sought out and built relationships with the best growers in every area that we grow in. Quite simply, if you don't have great growers, you can't sell quality. However, just growing a quality product isn't enough. You have to protect it. We continually invest in new technologies to transport it from the field and in state-of-the-art facilities to cool it before it's shipped. We call 'quality time' any time you can improve quality while saving your customers money." - Stephen Griffin, President A Company is Only as Good as it's People... and it's people are only as good as their ability to realize their vision for the company. Your insistence on quality is what has made us successful.