Fresh Link Tomato makes it debut

Integrated Fresh Solutions, a marketer of fresh tomatoes to the wholesale, retail and foodservice industries, announced Feb. 11 that it has formed a new company, Fresh Link Tomato, which provides sourcing opportunities from major tomato-growing regions.
IFS, a holding company based in Dallas, owns a portfolio of companies that are vertically integrated in the produce supply chain. Michael Leach, vice president of IFS, said that the inspiration behind the formation of the new company comes from the dramatic changes the tomato business has been experiencing.
"Changes are taking place both in the area of the players and in how the industry functions," he said. "We believe there is an opportunity to provide value to customers in all segments of the produce industry. Through grower deals, relationships and extensive industry experience, we are the source able to match crops with customers needs."
Mr. Leach said that IFS is a source-driven organization that markets entire and partial crops for numerous growers in Florida, California and Mexico. Michael R. Smith, vice president of sales and sourcing, leads the company. Mr. Smith has been in the fresh tomato industry for over 20 years, according to Mr. Leach, who said that Mr. Smith has successfully marketed crops for a multitude of individual growers. Most recently, Mr. Smith owned and operated a company that was contracted to handle the marketing and sales aspects of crops for a major Florida-based tomato grower and a larger tomato grower in California.
Mr. Smith is a board member of both the Florida Tomato Committee and Florida Tomato Growers Exchange.