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MARKET PROFILE
Atlanta Produce Market Re ects Vibrant Metropolitan Area
Georgia’s capital is a well-established regional hub with strong local ties.
BAy B o b J o h n s o n
tlanta is among the most vibrant produce hubs in the country, receiving loads of fresh fruits and vegetables from farms around the state and far beyond, and shipping the bounty back
out to markets throughout the Southeast. ere is also an expanding desire for Georgia Grown produce at Atlanta’s gourmet restaurants, which feature dishes made from seasonal produce harvested by nearby farmers. But this city’s bustling produce business is de ned by its role as a reliable source of produce for a region extending, at times, all
the way up the Eastern Seaboard.
“Atlanta is the hub for produce in the
Southeast,” says Andrew Scott, vice president for business development at Nickey Gregory Company Atlanta. “With three major inter- states crossing through downtown Atlanta, you can cover a lot of Southeastern cities overnight with fresh produce deliveries.”
Nickey Gregory is a full-service distrib- utor, boasting more than 400 fresh produce items stored in facilities in Atlanta and Miami and shipped throughout the South- east in its eet of climate-controlled trucks.
“We have some regional customers that will drive to the Atlanta Farmers Market to pick up orders, but many we deliver on our own eet of trucks,” says Scott. “You can also have fresh produce own into and out of the world’s busiest airport, located four miles away from the market. Cross docking also has become an important service we provide for growers/ship- pers that have LTL [less than truckload] orders. We deliver overnight to 10 Southeastern states on our own eet of trucks. You call us by noon, and we will deliver that night or the next day to your warehouse.”
e 150-acre Atlanta Farmers Market, established in 1958, has grown to become one of the largest fruit and vegetable distribution
centers in the country. It is the crown jewel in the network of nine permanent regional facil- ities the Georgia Department of Agriculture established and maintains in order to help the state’s rural producers.
“Business on the market has grown, and space [60 major tenants] is at a premium,” says Je Howard, markets manager for the Georgia Department of Agriculture, Atlanta. “ e tenants on the market want more space to grow, and we receive calls daily from outside businesses wanting to relocate to the market.
“Businesses here primarily serve the Southeastern United States. However, we receive produce from all over the United States, Canada and the world. More than 100 tractor trailers arrive daily servicing whole- salers on the Atlanta Farmers Market. Here at the market, consolidation has provided opportunities for tenants to expand their services and business.”
A GROWING PRODUCE HUB
Georgia is among the fastest-growing states in the country, as the population nearly tripled from 1950 to 2010 to become the ninth most populous state in the country and rising.
e population in the Atlanta metro- politan area is also increasing steadily and, according to United States Census data, the city proper is on pace to overtake Philadel- phia as the eighth largest city in the country some time in 2022.
“With the buildout of the Savannah ports, Georgia and Atlanta are becoming more and more of a hub for produce in the Southeast,” says Matt Jardina, vice president for sales/business development at J.J. Jardina
Co., Forest Park, GA. “ ere is a vibrant economy in Georgia and a growing popula- tion with more and more companies looking to do business in Atlanta and the surrounding areas. e state’s market we operate out of continues to grow and be recognized as a great place to do business.”
J.J. Jardina is a third-generation family wholesaler specializing in apples, pears, grapes, berries, melons and stone fruit since the business started nearly a century ago a little north of Atlanta in Gainesville, GA.
“We are selling to more customers across our base, and we have also extended our product o ering beyond just fruit,” says Jardina. “ ough fruit is, and will continue to be, our No. 1 focus, we are now targeting vegetable items such as potatoes, onions, peppers, squash, asparagus, cabbage and tomatoes, etc. We are also o ering organic and continue to build out our locally grown options with various Georgia growers and national shippers.”
Open 24 hours a day and seven days a week, the Atlanta Farmers Market has a restaurant and welcome center but is largely devoted to wholesale and retail storage space occupied by virtually all the major shippers in the region.
“ e Farmers Market is the place to come; it’s like going to the bar Cheers from the tele- vision show,” says Bryan ornton, general manager of Coosemans Atlanta, which has o ered specialty produce since 1993. “People come here, and we also deliver out of here. We service approximately a 150-mile radius around Atlanta. We cover national grocery chains, smaller chains and the independents.”
As with other wholesalers, ornton praised Gary Black, the Georgia State Commissioner of Agriculture, for helping
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ATLANTA