The Journey From Tough Beginnings to Owning and Running a Billion-Dollar Agriculture Business

Welcome back to another episode of the Startup Junkies Podcast! This week, Caleb Talley and Jeff Amerine chat with special guest Sarah Frey, CEO, and founder of Frey Farms. Frey Farms is one of the nation's largest fresh produce suppliers and grows fresh produce in the Midwest, Southeast, and West Virginia. From a recent appearance on CBS to creating her book "The Growing Season: How I Built a New Life -- And Saved an American Farm", Sarah Frey has made an impact on many people telling her remarkable entrepreneurial story. In this episode, you will get to hear about Sarah's inspiring journey to save the family farm, an in-depth conversation around everything pumpkin related, and how COVID has affected the agriculture industry. Listen in to this great story! Shownotes (1:00) Introducing Frey Farms (11:17) Frey Farms, the largest pumpkin provider in the country (16:14) Educating the public on the pumpkin as a part of a meal (19:20) The sales model of Frey Farms (27:00) Using imperfect produce (31:32) How Sarah’s childhood experiences prepared her for future success (35:32) The future of Frey Farms (38:40) Sarah’s advice to her younger self   Links Caleb Talley Jeff Amerine Matthew Ward Sarah Frey Frey Farms Sarah's Homegrown      Quotes “Food was simple.  It was clean, and it was delicious.  Nothing ever went to waste on our farm, because we couldn't afford to waste anything on the farm where I grew up when I was a little girl.  And it’s those same principles that apply today to our business on a much larger scale.  And I think there is an opportunity to tell that story...to educate the consumer on this is who we are.  This is how we grow your food.  This is what’s important to us. And I think that translates to more customer loyalty at the grocery retailer.”  (20:17)