Salinas, CA: John D’Arrigo, President, CEO and Chairman of the Board for D’Arrigo California has been honored by the University of Arizona, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences as an influential visionary and agricultural leader. John was bestowed the prestigious Eugene G. Sander Lifetime Achievement Award for his leadership in the agricultural industry, his service to the community and contributions to the University of Arizona’s, Yuma Center of Excellence for Desert Agriculture.
“We are honored to present John D’Arrigo the Eugene G. Sander Lifetime Achievement Award. John is one of the true leaders of agriculture in the United States and an invaluable partner to the Yuma Center of Excellence for Desert Agriculture,” stated Shane C. Burgess, Vice President for the Division of Agriculture, Life and Veterinary Sciences, and Cooperative Extension for the University of Arizona. The inaugural award was given in 2011 and is presented to an individual who has demonstrated superior performance in activities reflected in the mission of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at the University of Arizona.
In 2013, John D’Arrigo was one of the founding members of the Yuma Center of Excellence for Desert Agriculture known by its acronym YCEDA. YCEDA is an innovative public-private partnership that connects top scientists to the desert agricultural industry. YCEDA focuses on high-priority issues identified by industry stakeholders, including but not limited to increasing production efficiencies through disease and water management, food safety, crop yield maximization, and advanced ag technology.
“I am honored and humbled to have received the Eugene G. Sander Lifetime Achievement Award. My experience working with University of Arizona and YCEDA has been one of the most productive and rewarding public-private partnerships to date,” stated John D’Arrigo, President and CEO of D’Arrigo California. “YCEDA is an excellent example of an effective and efficient public-private partnership bringing
scientific research and the produce industry together to solve real-time agricultural issues experienced in the desert growing regions.”
###
About D’Arrigo California
From the day the company was founded in 1923 by Stefano and Andrea D’Arrigo, two immigrant brothers from Messina, Sicily, innovation has been its hallmark. In addition to its conventional and organic vegetable product line and wine grapes, D’Arrigo offers strategies and solutions to its customers in everything from seed research and development, food safety and sustainability, to entirely new approaches to packaging, harvesting and shipping. The company’s brand, Andy Boy®, is known for signature products like broccoli, broccoli rabe, fennel and romaine hearts. D’Arrigo California grows not only conventional and organic products year-round, but also provides services that include cross docking, consolidation, custom growing and commercial cooling. Visit www.andyboy.com to learn more.
About University of Arizona
The University of Arizona, a land-grant university with two independently accredited medical schools, is one of the nation’s top public universities, according to U.S. News & World Report. Established in 1885, the university is widely recognized as a student-centric university and has been designated as a Hispanic Serving Institution by the U.S. Department of Education. The university ranked in the top 20 in 2018 in research expenditures among all public universities, according to the National Science Foundation, and is a leading Research 1 institution with $687 million in annual research expenditures. The university advances the frontiers of interdisciplinary scholarship and entrepreneurial partnerships as a member of the Association of American Universities, the 65 leading public and private research universities in the U.S. It benefits the state with an estimated economic impact of $4.1 billion annually. For the latest on the University of Arizona response to the novel coronavirus, visit the university’s COVID-19 webpage.
About College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, University of Arizona
With an education and research portfolio that stretches from soil sciences, to resource management, to retailing, and from beneath the soil to outer space, the University of Arizona’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences offers 20 undergraduate degree programs across five schools and five departments. CALS research touches on nearly every aspect of modern life and has played a pivotal role in Arizona’s and the global economy over the course of its 134-year history. Uniquely positioned in the southern Arizona desert to offer solutions to problems affecting much of the world in the 21st century, the college continues to build on its heritage of advancing the frontiers of science to improve the human condition.
