Randy Turley Family Farms Receives Wayne Scott Memorial Grower of the Year Award

Randy Turley Family Farms Receives Wayne Scott Memorial Grower of the Year Award
Abingdon, VA. - Friday, Mar 13, 2020.

Food City is well-known for their locally grown produce initiative.  Through a partnership with local farmers, the retail supermarket chain offers their customers fresh-from-the-field fruits and vegetables during local growing seasons.  Many items are delivered directly from the farm to the store the same day they are picked.  What began over ten years ago with a small number of items, supplied by a handful of area farmers has now grown into a multi-million dollar operation.  Today, Food City purchases an average of over $5,000,000 annually in fresh produce from local growers.

“We pride ourselves in selecting the best possible products for our customers,” says Steven C. Smith, Food City president and chief executive officer.  “Our local farms are known for producing some of the finest products in the country.  Buying locally is the logical choice.  It provides our customers with the freshest produce possible, while lending additional support to our local economies.  In many instances, our locally grown produce arrives at the store the same day it was picked.  It simply doesn’t get any fresher than that”.

In 2007, Food City created the Wayne Scott Memorial Grower of the Year Award.  The award is named in honor of Unicoi County farmer Wayne Scott, one of the first to partner with the retail supermarket chain.  Wayne Scott’s leadership, passion for the business and dedication to delivering the “best produce possible” are just a few of the reasons for his tremendous success.  The award recognizes one outstanding grower each year. 

“Scott Farms was among the first to partner with our company and Scott’s Strawberries continue to be one of our most sought-after products,” says Smith.  “Wayne Scott was one of the finest, most honorable men I have ever had the privilege of doing business with.  We thought it befitting to honor his memory and dedication to the agricultural industry with this annual award”.

Randy Turley is a 4th generation farmer.  He grew up on his family’s farm, working alongside his parents, growing and harvesting tomatoes.  At an early age, his parents instilled in him the value of hard work, which cultivated a passion and dedication for growing and selling top quality products.  At the age of 16, Turley began driving a truck loaded with bushel baskets, filled to the rim with Grainger County tomatoes for sale to area produce stands and mom and pop stores.  After graduation, he started a small welding business from home, while  continuing to farm part-time with his parents – but he dreamed of owning his own farm and going full time.  In 1993, Turley was blessed to purchase his own property and begin farming full time with his wife and children at his side.  At that time planting, picking and harvesting 5,000 tomato plants seemed impossible.  Little did they know that their business would grow into the success story that it is today.  Turley loves what he does and is grateful to have the opportunity to grow and produce famous Grainger County tomatoes.  He and his wife Sherry own and operate their tomato business just off of Lakeshore Drive in Grainger County.  They have two grown children, Casey & Philip and are expecting their first grandbaby.  Food City is proud to have partnered with Randy Turley Family Farms for the past two years.

Food City purchases produce from a number of local farms, including those in Grainger, Blount, Hawkins, Unicoi, Jefferson and Sullivan counties in Tennessee; Scott and Carroll counties and through Appalachian Harvest co-op for locally grown organics from the growers in Scott County, Virginia.

“We enjoy a great partnership with a variety of local farms,” comments Bucky Slagle, director of produce operations for Food City.  “And we are proud to be the exclusive retail outlet for a number of them and of course our customers love the added convenience,” says Slagle.
 
Food City purchases a wide variety of items from local growers, including tomatoes, corn, cucumbers, cabbage, half runner beans, okra, peppers, squash, gourds, pumpkins, cantaloupes, watermelons, blackberries, strawberries, pears, raspberries, select organic produce and more.
 


Headquartered in Abingdon, Virginia, K-VA-T Food Stores (Food City’s parent company) operates 132 retail outlets throughout southeast Kentucky, southwest Virginia, east Tennessee, Chattanooga and north Georgia.