Founded just sixteen years ago, NewStar Fresh Foods might be considered a young company, but is built on a legacy that spans for centuries, resulting from the aggregation of such noted Salinas and Pajaro Valley farming families as Sig Christierson of Major Farms, Brian & Kurt Violini of V&V Farms and Ken Higashi of Higashi Farms.
NewStar Fresh Foods was founded in 1996 as a result of the merging of two leading Salinas Valley fresh vegetable grower/shippers, and a rich collaboration of Salinas Valley farmers. The merging of complementary facilities, administrative and operational structures, and a superior land base of growers enabled NewStar Fresh Foods to immediately establish a strong presence in key markets and production regions. The strength of product offerings included a broad line of commodities, and bolstered NewStar's industry leading position in its flagship items: Green Onions, Asparagus, and value-added Spinach and tender leaf greens.
Over the years, NewStar continued its founding belief of investing in technologies and facilities that enhance its distribution and processing capabilities. In 2000, NewStar acquired a leading competitors Salinas Valley operation, enabling expanded sales and distribution, and firmly securing NewStar as the industry leader of superior quality iceless Green Onions. In 2001, NewStar built a distribution and value-added processing facility in Yuma, Arizona, and in May 2004, NewStar expanded the Salinas facility with a new, state-of-the-art value-added processing facility. Concurrently, NewStar's Mexican operations were upgraded to meet the growing demand for iceless green onions.
NewStar's roots are steeped in innovation, having built a reputation as the innovators of packaged Spinach (Fresh Choice® brand), and pioneered the development of Iceless Green Onions. Today, NewStar stands out as the world's largest shipper of iceless Green Onions, and continues to focus on industry leadership in value-added Spinach, Asparagus, and tender leaf products.
Since its formation in 1996, NewStar Fresh Foods grows and harvests on farms in all of the premier growing regions, and has grown to become a leader in providing superior quality value added produce. NewStar maintains stringent standards for food safety and product quality throughout the growing, processing and shipping processes with a solid grower/owner base, a dedicated supply-chain management team, state-of-the-art facilities, an unbroken product cold-chain, and a corporate focus on delivering both world-class produce and stellar customer service.