Surviving a difficult economy while growing her business has been a challenge for Jane MacDonald. Not only has she persevered, however, but the founder and president of Monterey Farms has just moved her company into a new and larger processing facility in south Salinas.
So she would not lose any production time this month, MacDonald moved from the Sand City location where she started the business in 2002 to the new location in a single weekend.
Monterey Farms does nothing but process artichokes. For two decades, MacDonald worked in the food service industry, and she understood the labor that went into taking fresh artichokes and working them down to the hearts which could be then used as appetizers or in recipes.
"I knew because this was such a labor-intensive process that many chefs just didn't want to do this, so they were just opening up canned or bottled artichokes," she said. "The artichokes would reflect the taste of the oil or brine they were packed in and they weren't always that great."
Wanting to create a more "natural" product that would have both good texture and taste, MacDonald came up with "ArtiHearts," which are sold in vacuum-sealed packets and can be used with pasta, frittatas, risottos, salads or as hors d'oeuvres.
The artichoke hearts are offered in four flavors: natural, herbal, buffalo and grilled. They can be either eaten right out of the bag or heated and served in any number of creative ways.
MacDonald also created a number of different artichoke products that would appeal to food services and chefs and be sold in bulk. When she started the company, the innovative entrepreneur focused only on restaurants. She didn't add a retail component with smaller pouches until 2005.
Looking back at the economic roller-coaster ride of the past five years, the mother of two college-age daughters says she survived "by the grace of God" and some fortuitous business decisions.
At one time the business was about 70 percent food service and 30 percent retail, MacDonald explained.
"Before the recession really got started I had changed our logo and downsized our retail containers from eight to six ounces," MacDonald said. "Along with a new, fresh logo, the pouches were more affordable."
When the long recession began, food service accounts quickly reflected the economic sucker punch. But because people were now staying home more and cooking for themselves, retail sales increased, she said.
Also, as a way of attracting large chain stores, Monterey Farms implemented an additional food safety program including third-party audits. Once in place, that extra measure of safety helped MacDonald sign on Whole Foods and some eastern food chains.
Today, thanks to an increase in business, MacDonald has a more balanced clientele with both retail and food service accounts.
Although she was reluctant to reveal particulars just yet, the president of Monterey Farms said the firm will be releasing a new retail product sometime early this year.
Monterey Farms processes between eight and 10 bins of artichokes per week throughout the year. As part of its "green" approach, the firm gives the parts of the plant that aren't used to a local rancher, who feeds the material to his animals.
"We've really enjoyed being in Sand City and this has been a great start-up facility," MacDonald said, but she won't mind having the additional space in the Salinas location and her commute will be easier, too.
"To continue our growth we needed to move, and with 7,000 square feet we'll have a bigger kitchen, more freezer space, and we'll be able to handle shipping easier," she explained. "I have to admit, though, that I am excited but also nervous about the change." |
