Wish Farms

Wish Farms is a Plant City, Florida based year-round supplier of strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and blackberries. It is a third-generation family owned and operated company that began in 1922.[1]

History

1900s to 1950s

In 1904, Harris Wishnatzki, immigrated to the United States from Russia at age 19, and began selling fruits and vegetables from a pushcart in New York. By 1922, Harris’ operation grew and he teamed up with another fleet of pushcarts owned by Daniel Nathel. They established Wishnatzki & Nathel, a wholesale business selling fruits and vegetables. Harris began to establish buying and selling in Plant City, Florida in 1929 which led to a permanent move in 1937.[2] Harris had three sons: Joe, Lester and Ernie. Joe and Lester began working for the family company after they graduated in 1936 and 1939, respectively. Joe and Ernie both served in WWII in the 1940s. Joe returned to work after the war, but Ernie was killed a few days before the war ended during the Battle of Bulge in Belgium, May of 1945.[3] In 1955, Harris Wishnatzki passed away and the second generation, Joe and Lester, took company leadership.[4][5]

1950s to 2000s

Joe's son Gary Wishnatzki, began working for Wishnatzki & Nathel in 1974. In 1987, Gary opened their first growing operation, called G & D Farms.[6] Gary Wishnatzki became the President of Wishnatzki & Nathel in 1990. In 2001, the Wishnatzki and Nathel families split the company with the Wishnatzki’s overseeing the Florida division, which took the name Wishnatzki Farms.[7]

2000s to present

In 2002, Wishnatzki Farms began producing and selling frozen strawberry products. In 2005, the company became the first to offer organic strawberries grown in Florida on a commercial scale.[8] By 2010, Wishnatzki Farms rebranded itself as Wish Farms with the mascot “Misty the Garden Pixie”.[9][10] Since 2010, Wish Farms has been the official sponsor of the Florida Strawberry Festival’s Soundstage, an event stage for concert performances.[11] In efforts to solve the farm labor shortage, Gary Wishnatzki founded Harvest CROO Robotics in 2013, developing an automated strawberry picker.[12]

Products

Wish Farms is a year-round supplier of conventional and organic varieties of strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries.[13] Wish Farms’ grows berries across North and South America including Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, New Jersey, Michigan, California, Canada, Mexico, Chile, Argentina and Peru, to make year-round production possible.[14][15][16] Wish began growing organic strawberries in Duette in 2005, and in 2018 produced 90 percent of Florida’s organic strawberry production.[17] In 2014, they expanded their organic supply to a year-round commodity by producing organic strawberries in California and organic blueberries in Florida.[18] In 2016 the company opened an organic blueberry operation under the name Misty Organics in Alturas, Florida. Starting production in 2018, the berries are grown in containers under cover, which allows for a harvest window between the South American and southeastern United States harvests.[19]

References
  1. Nickel, Ashley. "Wish Farms completes berry program with raspberries". Packer. Farm Journal Media, Inc. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
  2. Drotleff, Laura (1 September 2007). "Wishnatzki Farms". Growing Produce. Meister Media Worldwide. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
  3. Group, SUZIE SCHOTTELKOTTE Ledger Media. "Polk residents remember day of Pearl Harbor attack". The Ledger.
  4. "Strawberry pioneer remembered for work, philanthropy | Plant City Observer | Plant City Observer". Plant City Observer. 29 November 2015. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
  5. "Plant City digest: Strawberry farming pioneer dies at 96". Tampa Bay Times. Tampa Bay Times. 23 May 2013. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
  6. Johnson, Matt. "Mosaic to mine Duette farmland". Bradenton Herald. Bradenton Herald. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
  7. Drotleff, Laura (1 September 2007). "Wishnatzki Farms". Growing Produce. Meister Media Worldwide. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
  8. "Organic strawberries finally paying off for Wish Farms". 10 January 2013.
  9. TIMES, JESSICA VANDER VELDE ST. PETERSBURG. "Pixies and Produce: Strawberry Grower Gets Creative With Marketing Push". The Ledger. Gatehouse Media.
  10. Group, KEVIN BOUFFARD NYT Regional Media. "Strawberry grower rebrands company to Wish Farms". The Ledger.
  11. Donnel, Jessica (6 March 2015). "Wish Farms is the Official Soundstage Sponsor of the Florida Strawberry Festival". And Now U Know.
  12. "Harvest CROO Robotics - Robotics Business Review". Robotics Business Review.
  13. Donnel, Jessica (31 August 2017). "Wish Farms Introduces New Raspberry Program". And Now U Know.
  14. "U.S. blueberry growers facing tough July market, says Wish Farms - Freshfruitportal.com". Freshfruitportal.com. 20 July 2018.
  15. "Wish Farms Expands Its Blueberry Reach in Michigan". Growing Produce. 15 July 2018.
  16. "Produce Growers | Berry & Vegetable Growers | Wish Farms Produce Growers". Wish Farms.
  17. "Organic strawberries finally paying off for Wish Farms". Tampa Bay Times. Tampa Bay Times. 10 January 2013. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
  18. "Wish Farms Now Offering Year Round Organic Berries". And Now U Know. 21 April 2014.
  19. Hutcheson, Geneva (22 February 2018). "Wish Farms New "Misty Organics" Blueberry Farm". And Now U Know.
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