Retail veteran Paul Kneeland joined Elevated Foods earlier this year to help small and medium-sized growers sell to large buying groups.
As vice president of sales, he said he brings retail experience to the sales side of Elevated Foods and hopes to be able to help retail buyers understand how unique the company is.
Kneeland brings decades of retail experience from companies such as Gelson’s Markets, Ahold-Delhaize USA, Kings Supermarkets, and Roche Brothers.
Steve Brazeel started Elevated Foods about five years ago, but it has taken off thanks to a $20 million USDA grant under the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities program.
Brazeel, who also owns Sunterra Produce Traders BB #:165824, said Elevated Foods will allow smaller growers to come together with the platform and align their operations to the requirements of large buying groups, which includes regenerative and climate-smart growing practices.
Already, about 50 growers have joined Elevated Foods, and about 100 more are in the pipeline, Brazeelsaid.
Growers are mostly in the West and Mississippi River Delta, and their crops include watermelon, sweet potatoes, and squash, with the goal of suppling buyers as soon as this fall, Brazeel said.
Growers who sign up with the project will implement climate-smart production practices including no- and reduced-till, nutrient management, and soil carbon amendment activities, on a large-scale Brazeel said.
Kneeland said retailers want to buy from smaller growers, but they have to commit to buyers’ standards.
“There’s a need in retail for differentiation,” Kneeland said. “Retailers want to connect better with communities.”
He said Elevated Foods will help growers market themselves in social media and in-store events and highlight their growing practices. It also helps them with education, certifications, and recordkeeping.
“Retailers want to engage more with local farms, and they’ve made it tougher for smaller growers to comply with their standards,” Brazeel said.
Elevated Foods can solve these issues, he said.
Elevated Foods also serves as a brand that these growers can use, Brazeel said, as many don’t prioritize branding. Growers have already started using the brand, such as watermelon growers in Florida and artichoke growers in California.
As for the grants, Elevated Foods is required to distribute most of it directly to its grower-partners, and the company must account for how it’s spent.
Brazeel said he looks forward to connecting the program with retailers later this year, and with the help of Kneeland’s knowledge and retail connections, the Elevated Foods brand should allow large retailers to differentiate themselves with unique products.
“Our brand will highlight the growers and local produce, not just regenerative growing practices,” Brazeel said.
