Our Story

TransFresh^® Corporation was originally formed in 1966 as a partnership between Whirlpool Corporation and Bruce Church Incorporated, a major lettuce grower based in Salinas, California. The company was developed as B2B service-based, using modified atmosphere packaging to provide produce shippers with the “best possible solution” for transporting fresh perishables to market. The word “Tectrol^®” was derived from a Whirlpool research and development division named “Total Environmental Control” and became a registered trademark owned by TransFresh^® Corporation. 

In 1968, the first pallet bag of Tectrol^® treated fresh strawberries was shipped under the Red Coach label. The system showed tremendous value, exceeding the expectations of the market. It was soon adopted by numerous shippers, with TransFresh^®profits reinvested into Research and Development.

By 1971, Bruce Church purchased Whirlpool’s share of TransFresh^®. In 1973, Bruce Church Inc., Bruce Church Systems, QUALI-SEL, Inc., and TransFresh^®were all organized under a single family holding company named Fresh International Corporation.

Throughout the ‘80s, innovative solutions were introduced rapidly across TransFresh^® product lines. Modified atmosphere services for both the Tectrol^®Pallet and Marine Services Divisions continued to grow while TransFresh^® labs began to turn out solutions which allowed processed salads to be packaged and sold into the food service trade. In 1989, the TransFresh^® packaged salad solution led Bruce Church, Inc. to introduce Fresh Express retail packaged salads. This technological breakthrough created the first individually packaged, ready-to-eat fresh garden salads marketed to retail stores and available nationwide. Fresh Express went on to lead this new value-added category and today Fresh Express remains a dominant industry leader, with more than 14 million consumers enjoying their products weekly.

In 1990, TransFresh^® introduced the very first process controller, “TransFresh CA,” which was capable of reading and controlling atmosphere mixes inside refrigerated sea vans during an entire ocean transit period. Meanwhile, the Tectrol^® Pallet Services Group introduced new and highly efficient ways to process pallet units of fresh berries.  As the Fresh Express salad business grew rapidly, the TransFresh^® division maintained pace selling the core technology services of Tectrol^® MA modified atmosphere pallets and TransFresh^® CA controlled atmosphere refrigerated sea vans.

In 2001, the family ownership of the Fresh International Companies opted to sell all companies to Performance Food Group. 

In 2005, Performance Food Group sold the same group of companies to Chiquita Brands International, Inc.

In 2014 TransFRESH sold the marine CA Division to its long-term Chilean associate Liventus Global.

And in 2014 TransFRESH introduced a new adaptation of Tectrol^®, developed specifically to meet the needs of the blueberry industry for long term storage.

Following several productive years, in 2015, the Cutrale-Safra Group acquired Chiquita Brands International, Inc. and transitioned its holdings to a private investment concern. Fresh Express and TransFresh^®continue to operate as wholly owned subsidiaries.

Today TransFresh^® continues to develop scalable, high-performance solutions for the perishables industry, with a focus on deploying best-practice technologies for helping customers maximize commercial efficiency, margins and profitability.

Much of TransFresh^® Corporation’s long-term success is attributed to the Tectrol Service Network, which offers a blend of proprietary equipment, technical support, and data-driven insights to solve the unique logistical challenges of shipping fresh produce over long distances…. namely, the ability to identify, adapt and provide real solutions that add economic value for Grower Shippers and Retailers.