PennRose Farms to Launch Rowdy Rabbit Organics at OPS

PennRose Farms, a Wellington, Florida-based grower-owned supply chain management company, is launching its new organic brand, Rowdy Rabbit Organics, at Organic Produce Summit in Monterey, California, on July 13.

“Launching Rowdy Rabbit Organics is a monumental highlight for PennRose Farms, and we could not think of a better place to debut than at OPS,” said Senior Vice President of Sales Doug Johnson. “We are excited to bring our fun, charismatic brand to the show and share our mission to inspire healthy living, while delivering excitement in organics. We’re wild about organics and hope to encourage others to be as well!”

Doug Johnson, Senior Vice President of Sales, PennRose Farms

Established in 2014, PennRose Farms was built on a strong foundation of values, the collective abilities of an experienced team, and farms producing premium-quality fruit and vegetables. “Since then, we have become a leading year-round grower/shipper by collaborating with the industry’s top growers, agronomists, and sales talent to deliver an exceptional experience for our customers and premium product for consumers,” Johnson said.

“We are excited to bring our fun, charismatic brand to the show and share our mission to inspire healthy living, while delivering excitement in organics. We’re wild about organics and hope to encourage others to be as well!” - Doug Johnson

Organic Commodity Manager Sam Jones III noted that the organization began distributing organic West Mexico vegetables from its Nogales, Arizona facility this winter. “Our plan is to introduce organic production from Baja and California this summer through Otay Mesa while continuing to ship from Nogales,” he said. “In conjunction with our western summer program, we will also start shipping summer organics from our farms in Georgia and North Carolina.”

Sam Jones III, Organic Commodity Manager, PennRose Farms

Jones added that the organic product line consists primarily of cucumber, soft and hard squash, bell and hot pepper, eggplant, and cabbage. “We also offer organic tomatoes including cluster, roma, vine ripe, and grape,” he said. “We wanted our organic offering to complement our conventional products, allowing customers more flexibility. With farms across the US and Mexico, PennRose Farms is able to bring year-round supplies of Rowdy Rabbit Organics to customers across North America. Over the next 12 months, our plan is to significantly expand acreage while diversifying our commodity mix and pack styles.”

Rowdy Rabbit Organics cucumber, tomato, and yellow squash

Johnson said the brand and its name “came together very organically—no pun intended! It was pivotal to us that we develop a brand that felt a bit different and represented organics in a fun, playful way.”

“We wanted our organic offering to complement our conventional products, allowing customers more flexibility. With farms across the US and Mexico, PennRose Farms is able to bring year-round supplies of Rowdy Rabbit Organics to customers across North America." - Sam Jones III

The “Rowdy Rabbit” brand name is designed to not only appeal to loyal organic consumers, Johnson said, but to attract new organic consumers as well. “So we took a traditional garden icon and gave it a more modern twist. It became clear early on that Rowdy Rabbit’s playful branding would allow fresh and fun to converge in a way that allows us to create bold, easily identifiable, display-ready packaging and deliver best-in-class consumer marketing in the organic space to ultimately drive sales and increase velocity,” he said.

Rowdy Rabbit Organics roma tomatoes

Penrose Farms prides itself on its core values of commitment, accountability, respect, leadership, and stewardship. “Daily practice of these values has fostered a culture that takes pride in going above and beyond not only for customers but for employees, our grower partners, and the lands where we farm,” Johnson said. “We know it’s not just the premium quality that contributes to our success but also the exceptional individuals who have joined us on this journey. The long-term success of everyone is central to our philosophy. Naturally extending to Rowdy Rabbit Organics, these values combined with our farming base will allow us to provide distribution throughout North America with our exciting new brand.”

Jones added that PennRose Farms continues to make significant investments in a measured way with the intent to create strategic positions for its customers. “Our goal is to be able to provide customers with Rowdy Rabbit Organics from the largest growing regions across the country while continuing to develop local/regional farms,” he said. “By increasing organic acreage in multiple growing regions, we are able to decrease transportation costs, reduce our carbon footprint, and provide the customer with the freshest produce possible.”

Rowdy Rabbit Organics sweet mini peppers

Johnson said PennRose Farms is committed to identifying methods to improve yields, reduce costs, and develop more sustainable packaging.

The company is bullish on organic produce and expects continued growth for the category. “We believe demand for organic produce will continue to rise as consumers look for wholesome foods to improve overall wellness and as they become more aware of organic farming practices which support environmental stewardship,” Johnson said. “Rowdy Rabbit Organics is not just about delivering exceptional produce; it’s about inspiring people to have fun making healthy choices. We feel we can be a small part of this larger movement and continue to drive interest and engagement in organics.”