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1. Taylor Farms Donations Support Young Faces of ALS and Corey’s Crusade

   August 4, 2016 11:37 pm Leave a Comment

   For the sixth consecutive year, Taylor Farms is very pleased to contribute $25,000 to the Young Faces of ALS and $250,000 to Corey’s Crusade foundations, to bring global awareness to this terrible disease that strikes people of all ages. ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) is a disease of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that control voluntary muscle movement.   

   

   Taylor Farms’ active engagement in the battle against ALS includes support since 2008 for the efforts of the ALS Therapy Development Institute (ALS TDI). Our involvement with this organization is spurred by the close friendship of our Chairman and CEO, Bruce Taylor, with a family who has been closely affected by ALS.

   When the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge took the nation by storm via social media in 2014 to promote ALS awareness, Taylor Farms employees from New Jersey to California took part using recycled water from our plants.  In just eight weeks, millions of participants nationwide raised $115 million for ALS research.  Funds from this effort supported research that led a major recent breakthrough — identification of a new ALS gene that now ranks among the most common genes that contribute to the disease, providing scientists with another potential target for therapy development.

   To date, we have donated $1.5 million to support the crusade of Corey Reich, who was diagnosed with ALS going into his junior year at Middlebury College, at the young age of 21. Corey helped establish Young Faces of ALS. He, his family and friends have been on a crusade to end ALS ever since.

   Corey’s Crusade is a key Global Affiliate of ALS.net, raising more than $5 million since 2008 through a variety of events and campaigns. Corey has also played a key role in the ALS.net partnership with Major League Baseball and its clubs, by bringing awareness to the disease that befell baseball great Lou Gehrig.

   Ted Reich, Corey’s father, is a member of the board of the ALS Therapy Development Institute and currently serves as the Institute’s treasurer. Corey’s Crusade gets support from private individuals, major corporations and companies like Taylor Farms, and foundations worldwide.

   We at Taylor Farms believe that young people like Corey Reich can show us all the ways to achieve goals, however daunting they seem.  

   

   We are proud to do our part in helping bring an end to this debilitating disease.

2. Taylor Farms Plays Active Role In Annual PMA Foodservice Event

   August 2, 2016 5:51 pm Leave a Comment

   
   With the inviting theme “Innovate the Plate,” the annual Produce Marketing Association (PMA) Foodservice Conference and Expo — the only such event focused on fresh produce in foodservice — drew nearly 2,000 participants to the Hyatt Regency Monterey, July 29-31.
   

   

   Taylor Farms played a large role in the event as a platinum sponsor, displaying a variety of products at our booth and providing processing facility and field tours. We also hosted a dinner and fielded a team to run a 5K race raising funds for the PMA Career Pathways Program that encourages college students to seek careers in the fresh produce and floral industries.

   

   Romaine Field Tour

   The PMA conference participants had a range of networking opportunities and learned from top chefs and industry experts. Bravo’s “Top Chef All-Stars” winner Chef Richard Blais discussed the country’s top menu trends and New York Times bestselling author and marketing expert Jonah Berger presented strategies to grow sales by building better relationships with customers.

   Throughout the conference, Taylor Farms offered plant and field tours of the Salinas Foodservice processing facility to explain how product gets from the field, to the bag, to the consumer. During the tour, we showcased some new items and sampled lemon cauliflower cupcakes and chocolate cauliflower cupcakes made from our Cauliflower Creations.

   

   At the expo we debuted a new booth displaying our full line of products, from specialty salad blends to cut vegetables and showcased our new products- Mire Poix kit with diced onion, diced carrots and diced celery; Superfoods Blend; and we also introduced shredded beets in two new salads- Spinach with Shredded Beets and Carrots and Romaine Blend with shredded beets and carrots.

   

   Foodservice booth display

   The company also hosted its first-ever onsite dinner at corporate headquarters for more than 240 customers, vendors and industry friends.

   The 5K PMA Race for Talent on June 30 was another important part of the event. Each year runners, sponsors and sideline supporters make this event a huge success. Proceeds provide crucial support for the development and execution of PMA’s Career Pathways, a webinar series, and leadership development programs designed to attract the best and brightest students to consider a career in the fresh produce and floral industry.

   

   Taylor Farms Runners at the 5K PMA Race for Talent

   Taylor Farms was pleased to be an active partner in this important industry event.

   

3. Best Wishes From Taylor Farms On International Day of Friendship

   July 30, 2016 5:48 pm Leave a Comment

   Dear Friends,

   Everything we do here at Taylor Farms is about providing fresh, healthy food so millions of people can share the enjoyment of a good meal with family and friends.

   Today, as countries around the world mark the International Day of Friendship proclaimed by the United Nations, it’s a perfect time to celebrate the company of those around us who make our lives richer, fuller and more enjoyable.

   

   We’re always honored to be part of your gatherings, large and small. Thank you to our consumers for having the confidence in our family here at Taylor Farms to provide you fresh, wholesome and delicious healthy foods. Thank you to our employees who work diligently everyday as we strive to be America’s favorite maker of salads and healthy fresh foods. And lastly, a special thanks to our local communities for your continued support.

   Best wishes from your friends at Taylor Farms.

   Bruce Taylor
   

4. Taylor Farms Supports Career Pathways Program To Attract Next Generation of Talent to Agriculture Industry

   July 29, 2016 4:16 pm Leave a Comment

   In an increasingly complex, technology driven business environment, Taylor Farms and others in our industry work hard to seek out, retain, inspire and advance the people we need to help us stay competitive as we move into the future.

   That’s why we strongly support programs like the Produce Marketing Association’s (PMA) Center for Growing Talent and its Career Pathways Program, now in its tenth year. PMA collaborated with industry leading companies to build the program as a talent and age gap was recognized.The produce industry needed to find a way to bring the best and the brightest talent into the industry.

   

   Taylor Farms has contributed over $150,000 to help fund the program. Today, 13 students from Hartnell College, Chico State and San Jose State are here in Salinas to tour our facilities, learn more about us, and consider the opportunities open to them in the industry. This is the second year this tour has been conducted.

   Career Pathways is a proven success, growing from 24 participants the first year to 806 today, including this year’s students. So far, more than 350 new young professionals have been attracted into our industry’s workforce, including two Taylor Farms Retail employees, Christina Barnard, Director of Marketing and Rachel Molatore, Business Development Manager.

   Each year, eight Career Pathways programs operate in conjunction with major industry conventions and trade shows. Each Career Pathways student pairs up with industry mentors to help  immerse themselves in the industry and to facilitate networking opportunities that aid in their placements for internships or careers in agriculture.  

   “Mentoring Career Pathways Program participants has allowed me to give back to an industry that has supported me while finding amazing fresh talent for Taylor Farms,” said Michelle Story, a past mentor.

   The PMA Center is celebrating its 10th year of growing talent in the industry with a “10 for Talent” campaign, asking 10,000 industry professionals to donate $10 to raise $100,000 in support of the ongoing programs to attract, develop and retain talent.

   

   Taylor Farms is proud to help Career Pathways encourage talented young people to become part of our vital and growing industry.

   

5. Taylor Farms Supports Career Pathways Program To Attract Next Generation of Talent to Agriculture Industry

   12:42 am Leave a Comment