York

From my observations of him, Tim York has the personality and thoughtfulness to step into any leadership job in the entire supply chain and excel. As it stands, the industry veteran has been tabbed to serve as the chair of the board of advisers to The Center for Produce Safety at UC Davis.

From a press release:

The Center for Produce Safety at UC Davis has named Tim York, president of Salinas-based Markon Cooperative, as chair of the center’s new board of advisors. With 30 industry, academic, and regulatory members named to the advisory board of the Center for Produce Safety, UC Davis is poised to further advance its research and education partnerships on foodborne illnesses such as E. coli.

York brings a strong agricultural and food processing voice to the Center for Produce Safety. “Tim York’s leadership on the advisory board will allow UC Davis, other research centers, the produce industry, and regulatory agencies to work together to establish the critical scientific foundation for ‘best practices’ that provide a safe food supply for the public,” said Devon Zagory, interim executive director of the Center for Produce Safety.

“The Center for Produce Safety is a critical step forward for the produce industry,” York said. “The center’s mission is to provide ready-to-use, science-based solutions that prevent or minimize produce-safety vulnerabilities. I am pleased to have been asked to serve the industry in this capacity.”

Markon Cooperative, Inc., based in Salinas, Calif., is a leader in procuring fresh fruits, vegetables, and juices for food companies throughout North America. Under York’s leadership, Markon has long been a leader in food safety, quality control, and innovation. York formerly served as chair of the national Produce Marketing Association’s board of directors and served on the U.S. Department of Agriculture Fruit and Vegetable Industry Advisory Committee.

At the Center for Produce Safety’s first advisory board meeting, Zagory and York worked with board members to establish priorities for the center, such as developing university and produce-industry partnerships, assimilating research data on produce safety, and establishing an ongoing research program.

The Center for Produce Safety (www.cps.ucdavis.edu) works closely with the Western Institute for Food Safety and Security (www.wifss.ucdavis.edu), also based at UC Davis, to address numerous food safety issues, including foodborne illnesses. The center was established in 2007, and will appoint its permanent executive director in February 2008.

TK: What follows is John Chadwell's excellent piece about Tim York in the 2007 Packer 25 leadership profile.

As far as resumes go, Tim York's is on the slim side. After all, he's 51 and has only held down two jobs in 30 years. On the other hand, there is no shortage of people willing to be listed on York's resume as references. It could be said that he isn't one much for jumping from job to job. Another way to look at it is that he is so good at what he does, he has been strongly encouraged to stick around as long as he likes. York was 21 when he went to work as the purchasing director for H. Hall & Co., a Salinas grower-shipper. In 1985, though, he found a home, as it were, at a new company just opening its doors in Salinas, Markon Cooperative Inc. Markon was the first produce purchasing agent for the foodservice industry and is now composed of nine leading independent foodservice distributors in the U.S. and Canada. Collectively, the co-op accounts for $12 billion in annual sales. "I think he has been a key force of Markon's success over the years," said Eric Schwartz, president of Dole Fresh Vegetables, Salinas. "When it comes to business acumen, he is very sharp and forward thinking, which is different for an industry that tends to be very reactive sometimes." There was a time, though, that York had plans other than working in the produce industry. As he left high school, his career path almost took another route. "I wanted to be a school teacher," he said. "My mom was a school teacher, my sister is (one) and now my daughter is a school teacher." He said that when he was growing up, there was one memorable teacher who made a difference in his life. "I think about a teacher I had at San Gabriel High School where I grew up," York said. "His name was Mr. Police. He was my mathematics teacher. He loved math, and his enthusiasm and the way in which he taught it made me love math. I saw the power of what a wonderful influence a good teacher can be." For some reason that he can't recall now, he didn't pursue teaching and found himself in the world of produce. As president of Markon, York has been vocal the last few months as part of a coalition of foodservice and retail buying organizations insisting that the major produce trade associations develop a single set of safety standards for the industry after it was nearly crippled by the devastating E. coli outbreak linked to fresh spinach. "Food safety will continue to be an issue for us in developing better guidelines and implementing them throughout the industry," he said. "We're going to continue to see food safety dominate much of the media around fresh produce." Schwartz said York has been the driving force pushing the retail food safety group to get leafy greens' standards implemented. "He's doing now what a lot of the trade organizations should have been doing from the very beginning," Schwartz said. "He stepped in and led that charge." Bryan Silbermann, president of the Produce Marketing Association, Newark, Del., said York has never been shy about speaking up for something he believes in. "He felt there was a need to get buyers together to discuss how they could address some of these food safety issues and try to do it in a way that didn't have suppliers running off in every direction," he said. "He really believes in industry service, which was made clear by his service on the PMA board. He is very willing to throw his energy into issues." York served for 10 years as a board member for PMA. He served as chairman of its foodservice division, as an executive committee member and in 2002 as chairman of the board. "His willingness to step up, his knowledge of the industry and his proximity to the supply side of the business has caused him to be well regarded," Silbermann said. Two other important issues besides food safety that York said will affect the industry in 2007 are transportation and labor. "Transportation will continue to be a major challenge for us as an industry," he said. "This will include fuel costs and the availability of transportation. AgJobs was recently reintroduced to the new Congress. Hopefully, we'll get good legislation that helps with our needs for labor. I think, though, that labor will continue to be an issue." With consumers continuing to be concerned about food safety, York believes there will be more of a movement toward locally grown produce. "Organic used to mean local, but doesn't necessarily mean that any more," he said. "Local is the new organic and will continue to be so." He said in 2007 consumers will demand a wider selection of products, particularly varieties of citrus. "Clementines a few years ago weren't even on the map. Now you go to any supermarket and you'll find them on the shelves," he said. "With the diverse cultures we have in America, we're seeing demand for more exotic fruits and vegetables. We're seeing a demand for more intense, traditional flavors, whether it's Mexican or Spanish or Moroccan cuisine." -- By John Chadwell
More to the story * Most admired: York said he admires J.T. Snow, former first baseman for the San Francisco Giants, because he was an excellent player who was committed to his craft and did it well. He also gave back to the community. He donated seats for underprivileged youths to come to the ball games. York said Snow used his God-given talents well and understood how privileged he was to be in the position as a professional baseball player.
* Hobbies: York enjoys water skiing, snow skiing and fly fishing. He also likes to run with buddies on weekends. He ran in the San Diego Marathon in 1999 and the Portland Marathon in 2005.
* Lesson learned: Not listening to his gut when it came to hiring some people over the years. He thinks he has very good instincts about people and needs to trust his instincts more.
* Most memorable moment: Going to Israel with his church group in 1996 and walking the road that Jesus traveled carrying the cross.
* Family: York and his wife, Lisa, have been married for 27 years. She is a nurse at a family practice. They have one daughter, Margaux, who is 24 and is engaged to be married in August. Their son, Weston, is 13.