MARINA, CA - Growth in our industry is always good to hear, both from the earth and within companies. Sakata Seed America is plowing the way toward a brighter future as it revealed a new, permanent Lettuce Distribution Facility, located in Marina, California. To spearhead its efforts, the seed company appointed Jonny McIntier as the new Lettuce Product Manager to manage the lettuce program.

With a resume of growth widely known within the vegetable seed industry, McIntier was appointed to the position within the past few weeks. He boasts over 20 years of experience in the field. During that time, McIntier served at Bayer, where he specialized in technical development and sales for crops including lettuce, broccoli, melon, carrot, peppers, cauliflower, and watermelon.

Justin Davis, Director of Sales and Marketing, commented on this recent appointment.

“McIntier is a fantastic addition to the team; his knowledge is vast in product development and management, and he has a thorough understanding of breeding techniques, product launches, and life cycles. He will be based out of our Yuma, Arizona, facility, keeping him close to another major lettuce growing region,” Davis said.

According to a release, Sakata acquired Vanguard Seed, a prominent lettuce company, in 2020. Sakata quickly scaled its lettuce seed program, all while leveraging existing R&D, pathology, sales and marketing, supply chain, and production teams to streamline future breeding efforts and efficiently meet market demand.

The new Lettuce Distribution Facility will be located in Marina. It is central to the Salinas Valley, which allows for easy seed pick up for customers. The facility will be fully operational beginning March 21, and offers over 20,000 square feet, providing ample warehouse space, temperature-controlled storage, and an office area—all to accommodate a growing team and promising crop venture.

“We’re dedicated to success in the lettuce category; success for the grower/shipper and success for the end consumer. As a known leader in broccoli and brassicas, we saw obvious synergy with the lettuce segment, which is only strengthened by our prominence in the Salinas Valley,” said Davis. “The next phase is to continue investment in the lettuce product development team and infrastructure expansion.”

Cheers to Jonny McIntier for his latest appointment, and we cannot wait to see what’s in store for the industry as these developments continue.

Sakata Seed America