September/October 2023 - 6

RECYCLING
A CENTURY OF
SUSTAINABILITY
Duda Farm Fresh Foods has grown its legacy crop,
DUDA FARM FRESH FOODS FOCUSING
ON FUTURE WITH RECYCLING GOALS
By Melinda Waldrop
Managing Editor
WHEN ANDREW DUDA TOOK
HIS first crop of celery to market in
1926, he probably wasn't thinking of
sustainability goals.
But sustainable practices have kept the
company he founded, Duda Farm Fresh
Foods, growing produce - including
its legacy celery crop - for 97 years.
Now, the company is ramping up that
environmentally friendly focus by
honing in on recycling goals as it nears
its centennial.
In 2019, the company took an indepth
look at sustainability. Working
with produce industry consultant
Measure to Improve, Duda Farm
Fresh Foods identified sustainable
6
SEPTEMBER /OCTOBER 2023
packaging characteristics and created a
data collection process for all primary,
secondary and tertiary packaging.
The company, which farms thousands
of acres in Georgia, Florida, Michigan,
Arizona and California and produces
nearly 33% of the celery grown in
the U.S., also established the Growing
Greener Generation team. Staff from
operations on the East and West Coasts
helped collect data to establish the
company's Sustainable Packaging
Baseline in 2021.
BY THE NUMBERS
The company found that while 98% of
its secondary and tertiary packaging is
reusable or recyclable, 50% of its primary
packaging (the packaging that goes home
with the consumer) fits that category.
celery, since 1926. The company also produces broccoli,
cauliflower, citrus, lettuce, radishes and sweet corn.
Photos courtesy of Duda Farm Fresh Foods.
" In 2019, we saw a lot of customers
coming to us with their own sustainability
goals that really centered around
packaging, and we had to look inward
to say, OK, we have to help our customers
meet these goals as well as our own in
being good stewards of the environment, "
said Nichole Towell, senior director of
marketing and packaging procurement
at Duda Farm Fresh Foods.
With baseline data established,
the company turned its focus to four
recycling goals:
1. Label ing 100% of its primary
packaging with its How2Recycle label
by 2025.
2. Achieving 90% recyclable, reusable
or industrial compostable primary
packaging by 2025.
3. Having 20% post-consumer recycled

September/October 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of September/October 2023

The Process
A century of sustainability
Safety starts with sanitation
Sorting solutions
Waste not, cut costs
Center for Produce Safety
PMMI
The Pulse
Calendar
Advertiser Index
What’s on the Web
September/October 2023 - 1
September/October 2023 - 2
September/October 2023 - 3
September/October 2023 - The Process
September/October 2023 - 5
September/October 2023 - A century of sustainability
September/October 2023 - 7
September/October 2023 - Safety starts with sanitation
September/October 2023 - 9
September/October 2023 - 10
September/October 2023 - 11
September/October 2023 - Sorting solutions
September/October 2023 - 13
September/October 2023 - 14
September/October 2023 - 15
September/October 2023 - Waste not, cut costs
September/October 2023 - 17
September/October 2023 - Center for Produce Safety
September/October 2023 - 19
September/October 2023 - PMMI
September/October 2023 - 21
September/October 2023 - The Pulse
September/October 2023 - What’s on the Web
September/October 2023 - 24
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https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/september-october-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/2024-digital-buyers-guide
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/july-august-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/may-june-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/march-april-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/january-february-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/november-december-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/september-october-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/2023-digital-buyers-guide
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/july-august-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/may-june-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/march-april-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/january-february-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/november-december-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/september-october-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/2022-digital-buyers-guide
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/july-august-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/may-june-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/march-april-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/january-february-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/november-december-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/september-october-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/august-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/july-august-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/may-june-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/march-april-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/january-february-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/november-december-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/september-october-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/august-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/july-august-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/may-june-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/march-april-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/january-february-2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/november-december-2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/september-october-2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/august-2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/july-august-2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/may-june-2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/march-april-2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/PRO/january-february-2019
https://www.nxtbookmedia.com