The Taylor Farms Retail Salinas plant was previously a Smucker’s jam processing facility and was renovated in 2010 to become a state of the art cold processing facility. The plant is 165,000 sq. ft., 25,000 sq. ft. of raw material storage, 70,000 sq. ft. of processing area, 70,000 sq. ft. of finished good storage space and 19 shipping dock doors.
The team moved into the plant in April 2011, at 50% capacity, with 400 EEs, with current capacity at 1,100 EEs. The facility processes 6 million pounds a week, 6 days a week, with 30% of that production organic. They ship 7 days a week, 1.1 million cases per day! The team employs 1,160 people year-round.
The Salinas Green Team officially commenced on May 10, 2019. All Green Team members were present and each signed a Zero Waste Pledge, committing each team member to actively participate in helping the facility reach and maintain their goal of Zero Waste certification. The Zero Waste SOP was implemented, defining zero waste as a minimum 90% diversion from landfills, incinerators and the environment. Zero Waste is a goal that is ethical, economical, efficient and visionary, to guide people in changing their lifestyles and practices to emulate sustainable natural cycles, where all discarded materials are designed to become resources for others to use. The SOP sets a goal for continuous improvement and employee engagement. All material management data is tracked through the Sustainability Dashboard.
“Although a recycling program already existed at our Salinas facility, it was still a challenge with a lot of moving parts for us to fully embrace the Zero Waste program. With the support of our sustainability team, we built
a really strong Green Team that had representation from every department which created accountability and engagement. I’m most proud of the positive change in culture we have instilled in all Taylor Farms employees, the message that recycling matters and that they can apply the lessons learned in their homes and in our community to keep our beautiful planet green. I’m really proud of the success we’ve had in getting Zero Waste certified, hands down the biggest success of my professional career with Taylor Farms.”
— Victor Sotelo, Zero Waste Program Manager, Taylor Farms Retail Salinas