Pasadena-Based Citrus Company Says Supply of Its Fruit May Grow By 10 Million Boxes This Year

A Pasadena-based citrus company that says it ships more than 75 million boxes of produce around the globe and sees its fruit sold nationwide at McDonalds said its grow strategies will yield its largest-ever supply this year.

Sun Pacific, which refers to their easy-peel clementines as “Cuties” and their kiwis as “Mighties,”
is looking to further establish itself in the retail world as a new season for its trademark fruits begins near the end of October.

Headquartered on Green Street in Pasadena, Sun Pacific owns and operates land that expands from Bakersfield to the Sequoias in the San Joaquin Valley of California.

Last year, the company yielded a crop that was 15 to 20 percent larger than the previous year, and are now looking to raise the stakes even more, said Bob DiPiazza, the President of Sun Pacific to Produce Retailer.

“We expect that crop to be a little larger than last year,” DiPiazza said in the interview. “We’ve been planting Cuties since we launched them, so each year we have additional acreage that comes into production and gives us anywhere from 10% to 15% more total supply based on acreage we’re growing. And our volume will be significantly up from our outside growers. So we’re looking at a much larger supply for the second half of the season.”

The brand will be entering its fourth season as a part of McDonald’s, according to Produce Retailer’s report.

“You can purchase Cuties a la carte, and they’re one of the choices in the Happy Meal,” DiPiazza said in the interview. “McDonald’s has been very pleased with the take rate — how often people ask for Cuties as one of the sides in a Happy Meal, and how often they ask for them a la carte.”

Sun Pacific also sells other fruit products, such as grapes, lemons, oranges and tomatoes, according to their official website.