ABOUT THE LGMA
The California Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement (LGMA) is a food safety program for leafy green handler members, as well as their growers, harvesters and other service providers. The LGMA incorporates sciencebased standards with government oversight and a system for continuous improvement. LGMA members produce the vast majority of the nation’s lettuce and leafy greens, totaling more than 55 billion servings per year.
LGMA MEMBERS
CALIFORNIA GROWING REGIONS
CENTRAL VALLEY
SALINAS
SANTA MARIA
VENTURA
OXNARD
CENTRAL COAST
IMPERIAL VALLEY
CHRIS DREW, OCEAN MIST® FARMS
“Farming in the Salinas Valley isn’t just about crops—it’s about cultivating a legacy. This fertile land, often called ‘America’s Salad Bowl,’ provides the perfect climate and soil for growing an abundance of fresh produce, sustaining families, and feeding the nation. And lettuce is a huge part of that. We’ve been growing and expanding our full line of leaf and head lettuces in the Salinas Valley since the 1970s.”
JOHN JACKSON, BEACHSIDE PRODUCE
“The Santa Maria, Arroyo Grande, and Lompoc Valleys all provide superb coastal/temperate weather for growing leafy green products. The area produces lettuces for nine months of the year and a variety of other leafy greens year-round. Supported by multi-generational farming expertise, this region ensures consistent quality, satisfying both discerning customers and regulatory bodies alike, making it a trusted and sought-after hub for leafy green procurement.”
MEGAN CHEDWICK, CHURCH BROTHERS FARMS
“Growing leafy greens in the Imperial Valley is vital to our business as it allows us to supply product year-round. Its climate is perfect for winter production months, and it has accessible water supplies and land leases, making it an area we keep coming back to. Plus, we know that Imperial Valley growers adhere to LGMA metrics, giving us peace of mind and confidence that food safety is a top priority.”
SANTA MARIA VALLEY
SALINAS VALLEY
IMPERIAL VALLEY
2023/2024 MEMBERS
68 Produce, LLC, Salinas
Agro-Jal Farms, Inc., Santa Maria
Amigo Farms, Inc., Yuma, AZ
Babé Farms, Inc., Santa Maria
Baloian Farms, Fresno
Beachside Produce, LLC, Guadalupe
Bella Vista Produce, Inc., Santa Maria
Bengard Ranch, Inc., Salinas
Bonipak Produce Co., Santa Maria
Boskovich Farms, Oxnard
Braga Fresh Family Farms/ Braga Fresh Foods, Soledad C & E Farms, Inc., Salinas Church Brothers Farms, LLC/ True Leaf Farms, Salinas
Cinagro Farms, Inc., Fillmore Classic Salads, LLC, Salinas Coastal Fresh Farms, Westlake Village Coastline Family Farms, Inc., Salinas
Creekside Organics, Inc., Bakersfield
D’Arrigo Brothers of California, Salinas
Dan Andrews Farms, LLC, Bakersfield
Deardorff Family Farms, Oxnard
Dole Fresh Vegetables, Salinas
Duda Farm Fresh Foods, Inc., Salinas
Durant Distributing, Santa Maria
Dynasty Farms, Salinas EpicVeg, Inc., Lompoc Field Fresh Farms, Watsonville Fresh Choice Marketing, Inc., Oxnard
Fresh Express, Inc., Salinas
Fresh Kist Produce LLC, Nipomo
Fresh Venture Farms LLC, Oxnard
George Amaral Ranches, Inc., Gonzales
Gold Coast Packing, Santa Maria
Golden West Vegetables, Inc., Oxnard
GreenGate Fresh, LLLP, Salinas
Grimmway Organics, Bakersfield
Harbinger Group, LLC dba Misionero, Salinas
Heritage Farms, LLC, El Centro
Hitchcock Farms, Inc., Salinas
Ippolito International, Salinas
J. Marchini Farms, Le Grand Jayleaf, LLC, Hollister
Joe Heger Farms, LLC, El Centro
Kenter Canyon Farms, Inc., Sun Valley
Lakeside Organic Gardens, LLC, Watsonville
Mainas Farms, LLC, Holtville
Mann Packing Company/Del Monte Fresh, Salinas
Marmolejo Farms, Inc., Oxnard
Mike Abatti Farms, LLC, El Centro
Muranaka Farms, Moorpark
Muzzi Family Farms, Moss Landing
Ocean Mist® Farms, Castroville organicgirl, LLC, Salinas
Pablo’s Produce, Inc., Oxnard
Pacific Fresh Produce, Inc., Oxnard
Pacific International Marketing, Salinas
Pajaro Valley Fresh Fruit and Vegetable
Distributing, LLC, Watsonville
Peter Rabbit Farms/Amazing Coachella, Inc., Coachella
Premium Valley Produce, Inc., Scottsdale, AZ
Ratto Bros., Inc., Modesto
Ready Pac Foods Inc./Bonduelle, Irwindale
River Fresh Farms, LLC, Salinas
Royal Rose, LLC, Salinas
Sabor Farms, LLC, Salinas
Salad Savoy Corporation, Salinas
San Diego Farms, LLC dba Fresh Origins, San Marcos
San Miguel Produce, Inc., Oxnard
Silva Farms, LLC, Gonzales
Spinaca Farms, Inc., Gilroy
Steinbeck Country Produce, Spreckels
Sun Coast Farms, Santa Maria
SunTerra Produce Traders, Inc., Newport Beach
Sunsation Farms, Inc., Monterey
Talley Farms, Inc., Arroyo Grande
Tanimura & Antle Fresh Foods, Inc., Salinas
Taylor Farms, Salinas
The Nunes Co., Inc., Salinas
The Salad Farm, LLC, Salinas
TLC Custom Farming Company, LLC, Yuma, AZ
Vessey & Company, Inc., Holtville
Visionary Vegetables, LLC, Salinas
Western Harvesting, LLC, King City
Zada Fresh Farms, LLC, Salinas
VISIT LGMA.CA.GOV FOR AN UP-TO-DATE LIST OF CERTIFIED MEMBERS
LGMA CERTIFICATION
The value of LGMA Certification is that it’s not only good for the health of the industry and the consumer, but it’s also good for business. Through a rigorous set of processes and guidelines, the Certification builds trust across the supply chain, from the grower, packer, and shipper to the retail fresh produce department, foodservice operator, and the ultimate consumer.
LGMA members must maintain 100 percent compliance with the LGMA food safety standards to be certified. The LGMA requires that members correct all findings cited during audits and that preventive measures are continually in place to protect public health.
This Service Mark signifies that the member has been verified to be in compliance with the LGMA food safety practices. Members of the LGMA are only allowed to
use the Service Mark after they have been audited by California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) auditors and submitted any corrective actions to the LGMA Compliance Officer. Buyers can verify that handlers are members of the LGMA by checking the website and by looking for this Service Mark on bills of lading.
LGMA is vitally important to leafy green growers in California because it is an important guide and resource to enable them to grow safe and quality produce. Having government-trained inspectors auditing routinely, helps farmers achieve their goals of continuing to minimize the risk of contamination.
This association has the ability to help growers feel even more confident in the food safety programs that they have in place on their farms.
LGMA’S REVOLUTION
For four years I’ve stood at the helm of the California Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement (LGMA). In that time, I’ve witnessed a revolution within our industry driven by our member’s commitment to the continual advancement of food safety.
This report highlights some of the cutting-edge projects underway at the California LGMA, all of which advance the safety of leafy greens. The timeline insert demonstrates our commitment to continuous improvement, and the evolution of food safety standards as new science or findings informed our efforts.
When asked if we are making a difference, we need only point to our timeline insert to demonstrate that commitment to produce safety.
To do our part in continuing to lead this charge, we have implemented several key programs.
Following the strategic plan conducted in 2022, LGMA worked
diligently to advance the priorities identified in the plan. From our Smarter Audits, Traqtion database, Romaine Test & Learn program, renewed training programs, and buyer/regulator/legislator collaborations, we have moved this association forward at a rapid pace.
The goal of Smarter Audits is to evaluate our current audit checklist and identify areas of improvement in a multi-phase approach. LGMA members should be focused on the field, not paperwork. By lasering our focus on the most critical elements, we’re getting to the least common denominator so there’s less paperwork to review and more data to understand our path forward.
And for the first time ever, Romaine farmers will be sharing data to advance leafy greens food safety in our Romaine Test & Learn Program.
As always, it takes committed industry partners to be successful, and we are grateful for all that help in our advancements.
TIM YORK, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, CALIFORNIA LGMA
REVOLUTIONIZING DATA
Romaine Test & Learn represents the most significant change the LGMA has made to benefit food safety since its inception. The program is an unprecedented win for the leafy greens industry, and for the agriculture community as a whole. It will allow our members’ individual testing data to collectively provide meaningful, aggregated data to better understand potential risks. This first-of-its-kind program creates the foundation for how we share and analyze industry-wide data.
The program was inspired by the Aviation Safety Information Analysis and Sharing program that helped revolutionize commercial aviation through the aggregation and sharing of safety data. To our knowledge, the Romaine Test & Learn Program is the first of its kind in the fresh produce industry.
We have started gathering Romaine pre- and post-harvest pathogen test results from LGMA members who are currently conducting testing. A data analysis committee, made up of industry food safety experts and scientists will provide
valuable insights to the project and help provide context to the data collected.
Although we don’t yet know what we will find, this foundational project will help create the mechanism for the industry to share information and create the process for how to learn from the information being aggregated.
Within this report, we’ve also included a timeline of LGMA’s efforts since our inception. We are often asked, “How do you know LGMA is making a difference in reducing foodborne illness in leafy greens?” This has been a challenge to answer because we cannot point to any one single thing as the answer.
The LGMA food safety program is complex, robust, and ever evolving. Over the past 18 years, we have followed data, learnings, and science to pivot as needed to improve our metric/standards. This timeline provides a road map of our journey and the significant work undergone by our members over years—all with the goal of providing the freshest and safest leafy green possible.
JAN BERK, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, SAN MIGUEL PRODUCE; CHAIR, CALIFORNIA LGMA
FOOD SAFETY
VERIFICATION AND ENFORCEMENT
Audits are how the California LGMA verifies that our members are using the LGMA Food Safety Standards in their growing and harvesting operations. The goal of the LGMA program is to conduct a scheduled audit of each member approximately every two months
AUDITS
during active harvest. Additionally, the program aims to conduct an unannounced audit of each member annually. All audits are conducted by the California Department of Food and Agriculture, with oversight from the United States Department of Agriculture.
COMPLIANCE
MEMBER AUDITS | 2023 – 2024
The LGMA compliance process is both rigorous and unique: LGMA members are required to maintain 100 percent compliance with the food safety standards. That means every audit citation must be corrected.
CATEGORY
GENERAL REQUIREMENTS RECORDS
PERSONNEL
QUALIFICATIONS & TRAINING
ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENTS
WATER USE
SOIL AMENDMENTS AND CROP INPUTS
FIELD SANITATION
FIELD OBSERVATIONS
FERTILITY
The LGMA does not score our member audits, but to put the number of citations into context: The LGMA conducted 417 audits and found members to be out of compliance 298 times which is approximately .7 citations issued per audit conducted. All citations are required to be corrected.
CITATIONS EXPLAINED:
INFRACTION – the least serious violation, which can usually be corrected during an audit
MINOR – a less serious violation that does not necessarily result in unsafe product
MAJOR – a serious violation, but that does not necessarily result in unsafe product
FLAGRANT – a violation that significantly increases the risk of delivering unsafe product
ENFORCEMENT
The LGMA Compliance Officer reviews every audit, assigns citation levels, and works with government auditors to ensure that every citation has been corrected. If a citation is severe, or if smaller citations are not corrected, the Compliance Officer will start the decertification process. Decertification can last from two weeks up to a year.
ALYSSA
LICATA, COMPLIANCE OFFICER
“California growing regions experienced several heavy rain events in January and March of 2023 that resulted in flooding on or near some leafy greens ranches. The LGMA conducted member outreach and provided resources to help educate on best food safety practices. The LGMA also increased the cadence of its audits in April of 2023 by conducting field only audits that included flood related questions to verify that members were complying with the LGMA standards. All flooded ranches were verified to be in compliance with LGMA requirements.”
DECERTIFICATION
There were no decertification actions taken during the 2023 – 2024 year. However, one company did refuse an unannounced audit. This is extremely rare and the company was issued a Major Citation.
If a company is decertified, they cannot present themselves as a certified LGMA member, nor use the LGMA Service Mark. Government agencies and produce buyers rely on LGMA certification for supplier verification. Loss of certification potentially means a loss of sales, including product being turned away from international borders. An up-to-date list of LGMA members and their certification status is always available at www.lgma.ca.gov.
OPERATING EXPENSES
Included here are the audited operating expenses for the fiscal year April 1, 2023 – March 31, 2024.
• ADMINISTRATION:
$1,036,697
AUDITS & CDFA FEES: $1,029,989
COMMUNICATIONS: $353,696
TECHNICAL: $286,996
DC OUTREACH: $116,282
TOTAL: $2,823,660
$1,036,697 $1,029,989
$353,696 $286,996 $116,282
BOARD AND STAFF
2023–2024
ADVISORY BOARD
• Tony Alameda
• Matt Amaral
• Tony Banegas
• Jan Berk
• Todd Brendlin
• Megan Chedwick
• Kathleen Chrismer
• Chris Drew
• Scott Grabau
• John Jackson
• Drew McDonald
• Colby Pereira
• Ron Ratto
• Jack Vessey
ALTERNATE MEMBERS
• Steve Church
• Larry Cox
• Cynthia Dominguez
• Armando Figueroa
• Nob Furukawa
• Steve Junquiro
• Brian Mansfield
• Tim McAfee
• Gurmail Mudahar
• Jake Odello
• Ryan Reed
• Marcus Shebl
• Chato Valdes
LGMA STAFF
• Tim York Chief Executive Officer
• Greg Komar Technical Director
• Alyssa Licata Compliance Officer
• Brooke Palmer
Administrative Assistant
• Connie Quinlan
Program Coordinator
• Jennifer Scherpinski
Project Coordinator
• April Ward Communications Director
