Our friends at Champion Produce Sales in Parma, ID, have a new logo for the new year, and Dwayne Fisher took some time to explain the design and what motivated the company to adopt it.
“Year in and year out it has become very clear to us that foreign supplies of onions that are imported into the U.S. are creating financial hardships on domestic onion growers, our own family farms included,” Dwayne said. “With record amounts of onions coming in from Mexico and Peru in 2021, we felt it was time to speak up and fight for our American onion industry.”
He continued, “We have witnessed various companies, including right here in our own Treasure Valley, importing foreign onions to increase company volumes and maintain lower FOB prices. In referencing this activity with our other grower partners, we were surprised by how many growers didn’t even realize this was happening or the fact that they didn’t feel like they could say anything about it.”
Therefore, Dwayne said, “In developing our new logo, we wanted a clear message sent to our customers, our growing partners and our end users that onions from any of the Champion Produce Sales team of packing facilities and growers are 100 percent American soils, 365 days a year.”
Dwayne added, “You can debate many parts of this issues, and everyone is free to structure their business plans according to their own desires, but for us without strong returns for our own family farms and our growing partners the American onion industry is going to be in trouble. The bottom line is when foreign onions come into our marketplace, they never strengthen our FOBs. They only drive them down. Our job on the marketing side of Champion Produce Sales is to get the highest value possible for the 100 percent American onions entrusted to us.”
Dwayne also referenced escalating inputs, and he said, “As we have witnessed the expense side of our P/Ls skyrocket, now more than ever it is critical that we keep our farms and growers financially solvent. We feel like the ‘America First’ motto is something that resonates with people, and we understand that onions need to have the same priority.
“Our new logo makes it clear where we are putting our priorities, our commitment, and who we are striving to keep financially afloat –
American onions, grown on American soils!”
The company’s new logo “falls right into line with our signature jumbo label, Old Glory,” he said, adding that Champion will also have a new label for the 2022-23 season.
When asked if any changes or expansions are in the works, Dwayne said, “We will continue to be committed to our family farms and growers who are working harder than ever to grow an amazing crop of onions and are having to spend record resources to do it. We will continue to implement new technologies as feasible, but again technology comes with a cost, so the farm has to be profitable to upgrade and implement advancements.
His characteristic optimism was evident, and Dwayne said for 2022, “I think one thing we can all expect… is that ‘America First’ will have a resounding impact from onions to elected leaders. The one thing we certainly should have learned from the pandemic is that we cannot rely on foreign supplies of anything, especially food.”
Dwayne said, “Everything starts at the farm level. Without the farms, we don’t need packing sheds or storage facilities or any of the other amazing infrastructure that allows us to be so dang good at what we do. Our message to every American grower out there is without you and your products there isn’t any business model in our industry that works. Understand that, speak up, and ask yourself who is the increased volume coming in from foreign countries benefiting? I have never seen it help my own family farm’s income statement. Champion Produce Sales is 100 percent American soils, 365 days a year.”
