Partnerships with Local Growers Bring Produce to Stores in 24 Hours or Less

EL SEGUNDO, Calif., July 22 /PRNewswire/ -- Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market is expanding its popular "Farm to Store in 24" program, bringing more produce from California farms to its stores in less than 24 hours. The grocer is working with local growers to bring additional fruit such as peaches and nectarines as well as vegetables into the program as summer turns to fall. Fresh & Easy's "Farm to Store in 24" program started with a simple concept: getting the freshest produce possible to its customers in the shortest amount of time. In choosing partners for the program, Fresh & Easy's produce team identified local growers who share the grocer's passion and commitment to bring customers high-quality food at affordable prices. All "Farm to Store in 24" products come from California farms, and depending on the season, as much as 65% of all of Fresh & Easy's produce comes from California.

"Getting produce from the farm to the store in 24 hours or less is an incredibly tricky task, which makes it important to partner with strong local growers who share our commitment to quality produce," said Justin Hill, Fresh & Easy's produce manager. "We are working closely with these growers here to put in the extra care required to expand our 'Farm to Store in 24' offerings whenever we can."

This summer Fresh & Easy has been offering strawberries and table grapes through the "Farm to Store in 24" program. With the table grape season in the Coachella Valley wrapping up, Fresh & Easy is now getting "Farm to Store" grapes from Pandol Bros. in Delano. Andrew & Williamson (A&W) grows strawberries for the program in Ventura County and Watsonville, always within sight of the Pacific Ocean. San Diego-based A&W is family-owned and operated.

To let customers know when produce is available on shelves within 24 hours from leaving the farm where it's grown, Fresh & Easy places a special logo on "Farm to Store in 24" products. The company also recently created a video about the program, available to view on YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/talkingfresh#p/a/u/0/v9J1_oyoKqY.

About Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market

Fresh & Easy operates more than 150 stores in California, Arizona and Nevada. In addition to wholesome, fresh prepared meals, meats and produce, Fresh & Easy offers everyone's favorite national brand products and household items, all at unbelievably low prices. The grocer's popular fresh&easy brand products contain no artificial colors, flavors or added trans fats and use preservatives only when absolutely necessary.

On average, Fresh & Easy stores use 30% less energy than a typical supermarket – helping save customers money while helping the environment. Fresh & Easy uses LED lighting in external signs and freezer cases, offers customer recycling in every store, and uses advanced refrigeration and freezer units to cut back on energy usage. The company also recycles or reuses all of its display packaging, sending the majority back to its distribution center's on-site recycling facility.

Fresh & Easy has created more than 4,000 jobs in California, Arizona and Nevada. Entry-level positions start at $10 an hour in California and offer quarterly bonuses of up to 10% as well as a 401(k) with company match. Fresh & Easy believes everyone deserves access to affordable and comprehensive healthcare and provides all employees the opportunity to work at least 20 hours per week, which entitles everyone to vision, prescription drug, dental and medical coverage with Fresh & Easy paying at least 75%.

For more information about Fresh & Easy, visit www.freshandeasy.com. Also follow the company on Twitter at: www.twitter.com/fresh_and_easy and become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/freshandeasy.

SOURCE Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market

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