With more than 60,000 square feet of warehouse space in Nogales, AZ, Big Chuy Distributors & Sons manages to maintain full control of its product line — including specialty packing — and deliver hallmark quality.

Big Chuy grows seeded, seedless, mini- and yellow-fleshed watermelons 12 months out of the year, mostly in the heart of the Mexican growing region, with a focus on food safety and a quality assurance program that meets or exceeds industry standards. Third-party audits ensure the highest standards achievable.

Ladera Ranch, CA-based Dulcinea Farms LLC, a subsidiary of Syngenta Seeds Inc. in Boise, ID, has raised the bar for the category with its year-round program of proprietary mini- and seedless watermelons.

Marketed under the “Pureheart” brand, the line is the product of Syngenta’s best research and development. The line was developed by asking one simple question: What qualities are most important in a watermelon?

For the first time since its founding in 1960, there is a president at Springfield, MO-based Tom Lange Co. who is not one of the company’s original “big three.”

The late Tom Lange was the company’s original president. Though Mr. Lange passed away in 2001, two of the company’s principal founders, Chairman Emeritus Farrell “Dutch” Gay and Chief Executive Officer and former President Phil “Rock” Gumpert, are still involved in operations, and Executive Vice President Mike Smith — considered the architect of the company’s international expansion — has been onboard since 1980.

With ideal growing conditions this spring, Brent Harrison of Nogales, AZ-based Al Harrison Distributors expects high volume and high quality for April and May. The trick, he said, will be managing the market to ensure adequate returns to growers.

With more than a dozen grower members producing organic seed in seven states — and as many diverse growing regions — Family Farmers Seed Cooperative is working to provide an alternative seed source for farming operations.

Steve Thomas