TRADE ASSOCIATE MEMBER UPDATE

STEFANELLI ENTERPRISES

Keeping it Fresh

By Barbara Wunder, FFVA communications manager

FFVA trade associate member Jim Stefanelli says his company stands out because he provides a personal touch.

It’s important to know yourself well when deciding to go into business. Jim Stefanelli could have stuck with his career at a successful tomato repacking business in South Florida, but decided he was better suited to helping others in the fruit and vegetable business manage the quality of their products.

Stefanelli, owner of Stefanelli Enterprises, offers products that accomplish important goals. Ethylene control filters, for example, with applications for packaging, shipping and warehouse-distribution, significantly reduce ethylene build-up. (Ethylene is a naturally occurring gas produced by many fruits and vegetables. If ethylene is allowed to build up in the atmosphere surrounding the produce, it will cause those commodities to prematurely ripen and decay.)

Stefanelli’s wife’s family owned Select Tomato Company, located in the area of the Miami produce center. He spent 16 years at the firm. However, he found he didn’t really have the temperament for the business. “It’s a tough deal. It’s labor-intensive. You may only have red tomatoes on the days when everybody wants pink tomatoes and so forth. You have a couple of quiet days followed by a third when you are totally slammed trying to fill orders.” So he decided to go into a related field, based on the knowledge of the produce business he had already gained.

The EC-3+ Filtration system works best in large cold storage units, up to 100,000 cubic feet. The EC-3+ system reduces ethylene levels by up to 70 percent.

In 1982, Stefanelli began his association with a company that manufactured ethylene scrubbers from the U.K. and “pounded the pavement” selling these scrubbers. Soon he expanded his product line to include in-transit temperature recorders.

By 1990, he had made a full change from the U.K. scrubbers in favor of California-made ethylene control. And since the mid-1990s he has been selling his temperature recorders under the Stefanelli label.

With the professional handling of perishables and food safety in mind, the KES AiroCide machine was recently added to the product line. The AiroCide machine, using a different technology, will also filter ethylene and airborne bacteria.

AWARENESS GROWING

Stefanelli says awareness of ethylene has grown over the last 25 years. “In the early ‘80s, it was a real education process,” he said. “But now, it doesn’t sound like you’re making up some name that sounds like it came from a sci-fi movie. Removing ethylene is a good way of extending shelf life and maintaining freshness, because you’re simply filtering from the atmosphere a buildup of this gas produced by fruits and vegetables.” He emphasizes that the process of removing ethylene does not alter the product. “The ethylene control product is certified by the California Organic Board and other organic organizations, and it’s USDA-approved for use with fruits and vegetables,” he said.

Stefanelli sells mostly to customers in Florida, but business extends up the East Coast and into Texas and California. “There is now a growing market for the newer digital temperature recorders as well as the food safety products – ethylene control and AiroCide” he said.

THE PERSONAL TOUCH PLUS EMPATHY EQUALS CUSTOMER SERVICE

The market is growing for devices such as this electronic temperature logger, says Jim Stefanelli of Stefanelli Enterprises.

Stefanelli says his company stands out because he provides a personal touch. “When you call here, we answer the phone. If it’s after hours, the call goes to my cell phone,” he said. “You don’t get 20 voice prompts. It’s all handled by people, which may sound a little primitive, but I prefer that when I call someplace,” he said, adding that if a call goes to his voicemail, he or one of this staff will return it promptly. “That’s because I empathize with my customers. I did what they do now.” He understands the stresses and the challenges that growers, packers and shippers experience.

“People who aren’t in the agriculture industry don’t really get it,” Stefanelli said. “They don’t even notice things like freezes. They don’t understand that a grower spends a lot of time, among other things, checking weather, looking at the sky and wondering ‘What am I in for? I was just getting ready to harvest.’ It’s a tough business.”

To learn more about Stefanelli Enterprises, visit http://www.stefent.com/.

The manufacturer of the ethylene control product sold by Stefanelli sells also maintains an educational Web site that includes a section geared toward students working on science projects. That link is: http://www.ethylenecontrol.com.

And of course, Stefanelli welcomes your phone calls. You can reach him and his staff at (954) 458-4023 or (800) 332-STEF.