Jackson Farming Company

What Jackson Farming Company does

Jackson Farming Company is a privately held, family-owned grower/packer/shipper of fresh produce headquartered in eastern North Carolina near Fayetteville, with primary shipping infrastructure in Autryville, NC. Founded in 1981 by Brent and Debbie Jackson on five acres, the company has grown into a second-generation operation with multi-state production spanning Pennsylvania to Florida, now one of the consistently recognized top fruit and vegetable farms in the Southeast United States.

The company's product portfolio centers on seven commodity lines: watermelons, cantaloupes (including the Infinite Gold variety), honeydews, pumpkins, broccoli, sweet potatoes, and row crops (cotton, tobacco, peanuts, and grains). Operations are vertically integrated through in-house packing, cooling, and curing infrastructure—including a custom-built enclosed food-grade cantaloupe packing line, a 32,000 sq ft machine shop, seven forced-air cold storage units, electronic watermelon sizing, and 150,000 bushels of sweet potato curing capacity. The company also operates Grace Grains, a licensed grain-buying subsidiary (corn, soybeans, wheat). Food safety and traceability are core to the value proposition: JFC carries GFSI, PTI, GS1 Registered, ECGA Certified Eastern Cantaloupe Grower, and GLOBAL G.A.P. certifications, and uses Famous, FoodlogiQ, and iTrade for shipping and traceability, with daily contamination testing across packing lines, coolers, equipment, and irrigation water.

The business model is enterprise B2B direct sales to local/regional and national chain store retailers across the Eastern U.S., with no public pricing and no disclosed revenue or funding. Revenue derives from fresh produce wholesale (one-time per shipment) and grain purchasing commissions. Marketing is content-led (website, blog including 'View With Ms. Debbie,' and active social channels on Facebook, X/Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and Instagram). The company is family-controlled with no parent company, no institutional investors, and no disclosed external shareholders; in 2019 it expanded its sweet potato business via the acquisition of the Wayne E Bailey sales team and brands.

Name

Jackson Farming Company

Legal name

Jackson Farming Company

Website

https://jfcmelons.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1981

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Jackson Farming Company is a family-owned, vertically integrated grower, packer, and shipper of watermelons, cantaloupes, honeydews, pumpkins, broccoli, and sweet potatoes, selling B2B to national and regional chain store retailers across the Eastern United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Fresh Produce

NAICS

Vegetable and Melon Farming (1112), Oilseed and Grain Farming (1111), Other Vegetable (except Potato) and Melon Farming (111219)

SIC

Agricultural Production-Crops (100)

akta.pro primary industry

Root & Tuber Vegetable Farming (Carrots, Beets, Radish, Turnip, Sweet Potato) (AFAGADAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Mixed Cereal & Grain Farming (Multiple Grains) (AFAGAAAH), Other Specialty & Industrial Crop Farming (Emerging/Regional Specialty Crops) (AFAGAGAO)

Keywords

• Fresh produce farming
• Watermelon production
• Sweet potato packing
• Cantaloupe growing
• Row crop farming

Headquarters

HQ city

Autryville

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Fresh produce sales: Revenue generated from growing, packing, and shipping produce including watermelons, cantaloupes, honeydews, pumpkins, broccoli, sweet potatoes, and row crops (cotton, tobacco, peanuts, grains) to local/regional and national chain store retailers.
2. Grain purchasing and sales: Grace Grains division purchases corn, soybeans, and wheat from local farmers as a licensed grain buyer.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Jackson Farming Company is a vertically integrated grower/packer/shipper of fresh produce, primarily watermelons, cantaloupes, honeydews, pumpkins, broccoli, and sweet potatoes, grown across multiple states from Pennsylvania to Florida. The company also produces row crops (cotton, tobacco, peanuts, wheat, soybeans, corn) and operates Grace Grains, a licensed grain-buying subsidiary that purchases corn, soybeans, and wheat from local North Carolina farmers.

Product overview

Jackson Farming Company is a grower/packer/shipper of fresh produce with a diversified agricultural portfolio. Its core products are led by watermelons, cantaloupes, honeydews, pumpkins, broccoli, and sweet potatoes — each sold under its own branded product pages. The company also grows row crops (cotton, tobacco, peanuts, grains) for diversification and operates Grace Grains as a licensed grain-buying sub-brand. All products move through the company's state-of-the-art packing lines, cold storage, and traceability infrastructure.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• JFC: Jackson Farming Company brand name abbreviation used on social media and company communications.

Products and services

• Watermelons Seedless and seeded watermelons shipped to retail customers in bins or cartons with PLU numbers, electronically sized to ensure correct weight per bin. Season runs June–September and production spans Florida, Georgia, and North Carolina.
• Cantaloupes Athena, Western type, and Infinite Gold cantaloupes grown on black plastic with drip irrigation, washed in a chlorinated water bath, pre-cooled and shipped within 24 hours of harvest. Season June–August, shipped exclusively from North Carolina.
• Honeydews Honeydew melons with pale green flesh and creamy yellow skin weighing 4–8 pounds, shipped in 5ct and 6ct cartons. Season June–August, shipped exclusively from North Carolina.
• Pumpkins Jack-O-Lanterns, pie pumpkins, Howden specialty pumpkins, plus fall gourds, Indian corn, and fall squash. Season September 1–October 31, shipped from North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Delaware.
• Sweet Potatoes Covington Orange, organic, and white sweet potatoes in #1, #2, and Jumbo sizes, plus microwavables, steambags, and mesh bag formats. Year-round availability, shipped from Autryville, NC and Chadbourn, NC.
• Broccoli Broccoli crowns and bunches in 20 lb cartons and 20 lb RPC, grown exclusively in North Carolina for spring (May–June) and fall (October–December) harvests.
• Row Crops Diversification crops including Cotton, Tobacco, Peanuts, Wheat, Soybeans, and Corn, grown to supplement the company's fresh produce portfolio.
• Grace Grains Licensed grain-buying operation originating from the 1998 acquisition of Rebel City granary and the 2003 acquisition of General Grain (House-Autry). Purchases corn, soybeans, and wheat from local farmers in North Carolina.

Quantifiable outcome

• Cantaloupe facility upgraded to 34,000 sq ft with food grade equipment
• +2 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Wayne E BaileycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019In 2019, Jackson Farming Company expanded its presence in the sweet potato industry by acquiring the Wayne E Bailey sales team and brands. This acquisition strengthened JFC's position in the sweet potato market.
• FamouscoreTechnology or IntegrationUses Famous platform for shipping and traceability operations as part of their comprehensive traceability program.
• FoodlogiQcoreTechnology or IntegrationUses FoodlogiQ for traceability and compliance tracking as part of their food safety and traceability infrastructure.
• iTradecoreTechnology or IntegrationUses iTrade for supply chain visibility and trading partner connectivity as part of their shipping and traceability systems.
• Eastern Cantaloupe Growers Association (ECGA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJFC was an active participant in the creation of the Eastern Cantaloupe Growers Association in 2013. The company is a certified member and adheres to elevated standards for growing and packing cantaloupes, helping shape industry food safety standards.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Fresh Express: Largest US processor and shipper of packaged salads and fresh vegetables serving retail and foodservice customers. Broader produce incumbent with comparable traceability certifications and national chain relationships.
• Grimmway Farms: Largest US carrot and organic produce grower/packer/shipper with national retail programs. Operates as a broad produce incumbent overlapping with JFC in fresh vegetables, packing infrastructure and national chain relationships.
• Bolthouse Farms: Major producer of carrots, salad dressings, smoothies and fresh produce with vertically integrated farming and processing. Broader produce incumbent with comparable grower/packer/shipper capabilities but a much larger consumer brand portfolio.
• Mann Packing Company: Grower/shipper of fresh vegetables and value-added produce serving retail and foodservice. Comparable B2B fresh produce supply chain, though larger and with broader value-added capabilities.
• Driscoll's: Global market leader in berries with vertically integrated grower network supplying retail and foodservice worldwide. Comparable vertically integrated grower-to-retail model with strong food safety standards, though focused on a different produce category.

Direct peers

• Tanimura & Antle: Multi-product grower/shipper of fresh vegetables and leafy greens selling direct to retail and foodservice customers. Highly comparable vertically integrated grower/packer/shipper model targeting national chains, though larger and California-based.
• Crown Jewels Produce: Specialized grower/shipper of watermelons, cantaloupes, honeydews and mixed melons. Direct competitor in JFC's core melon categories with similar seasonal sourcing across multiple US regions.
• Pacific International Produce: Multi-category fresh produce grower/shipper including melons, vegetables and row crops with national retail distribution. Comparable vertically integrated model serving retail chains.
• Wish Farms: Florida-based grower/shipper of berries and other fresh produce supplying national retail and foodservice channels. Comparable grower/packer/shipper model targeting major chains with strong food safety programs.
• Misionero Vegetables: Vertically integrated grower/shipper of leafy greens, vegetables and specialty produce serving retail and foodservice customers. Similar integrated production, packing and shipping operations with comparable certifications.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/JFCmelons
• Facebookfacebook.com/JacksonFarmingCompany
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/jacksonfarmingcompany
• Instagraminstagram.com/jacksonfarmingcompany
• Pinterestpinterest.com/jacksonfarmingcompany

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Jackson Farming Company