Schmieding Produce Co. Sold to Florida Group

H.C. Schmieding Produce Co., a wholesale distributor of fruits and vegetables, has been acquired by Florida-based Woerner Holdings Inc.

The multimillion-dollar deal was finalized April 1 for an undisclosed amount.

Chris Gryskiewicz, the chief financial officer of WHI, said H.C. Schmieding, which has about 30 employees, will continue to be headquartered in Springdale at 2230 N. Thompson St. The company ships potatoes for a network of growers, and also supplies watermelons, carrots, pumpkins and other fruits and vegetables to processors, chain stores and terminal markets throughout the country.

 “This is a people business, and [H.C. Schmieding] has relationships with growers and retailers and packing houses throughout the country,” Gryskiewicz said. “We want to use this as a platform to grow in the food business.”

WHI, a diversified management and investment company with interests in agriculture, real estate and marketable securities investments, maintains its headquarters in West Palm Beach.

The late Lawrence H. Schmieding, who died in 2009 after a two-year battle with cancer, started the produce company in 1961. He was later CEO of the Schmieding Foundation, well-known for its philanthropic efforts, which largely focused on programs for children and the elderly.

Gryskiewicz explained that Lester Woerner, the CEO and namesake of WHI, was a successful businessman in the produce industry in the 1980s and 1990s, and had a working relationship with Schmieding.

“He sold potatoes to Lawrence Schmieding,” he said. “They had a very good relationship and he looked at Mr. Schmieding as something of a mentor.”

After Schmieding’s death, the produce company was placed in a trust. Woerner approached the trustees only a few weeks ago expressing his interest in buying the company, an interest he’d had for several years.

“It was certainly one of the fastest [acquisitions] I have ever been through,” Gryskiewicz said.