Liberty Fruit

What Liberty Fruit does

Liberty Fruit Company, Inc. is a family-owned fresh-produce distributor and value-added processor headquartered at 1247 Argentine Boulevard, Kansas City, Kansas. Founded in 1965 by Issie and Mary Caviar and now led by third-generation President Allen Caviar, the company employs 350+ people and distributes hand-selected premium fruits and vegetables alongside custom-cut and repacked produce to wholesale, retail, and foodservice customers across eight Midwestern states — Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and South Dakota. Its core products are Custom Fresh Cuts (made-to-order daily processing of fresh fruits and vegetables), Custom Case Repack (hand-selected produce repacked to customer specifications including custom bagging, overwraps, and private labeling), and a broad fresh-produce catalog of more than 1,200 commodities including 100 organic and 150 specialty varieties, sold under the Liberty Fruit name and the retained Carol's Cuts private-label brand for processed produce such as fruit medleys, trays, and cantaloupe chunks.

Operations are anchored by a 180,000 square-foot multi-temperature zoned warehouse with 24/7 remote monitoring of temperature and humidity, SQF, HACCP, FSMA, and USDA Organic certifications, and a proprietary delivery fleet enabling next-day delivery on orders placed by 5 p.m. The business runs three revenue streams — fresh-produce distribution, custom fresh cuts, and custom case repack — all priced on a transactional B2B order basis (no public pricing) and supported by an online ordering platform (orders.libertyfruit.com) with customizable business reports, an experienced consultative sales team staffed by former corporate chefs and foodservice operators, and industry engagement through Produce Marketing Association, United Fresh, Produce Alliance, and Produce Blue Book. Distribution is direct-to-customer across the Midwest with no reseller or broker layer, and the company has remained privately held by the Caviar family across three generations, with no institutional or private-equity ownership on record.

Name

Liberty Fruit

Legal name

Liberty Fruit Company, Inc.

Website

https://libertyfruit.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1965

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Liberty Fruit Company is a family-owned fresh-produce distributor and custom-cut processor in Kansas City, Kansas, supplying wholesale, retail, and foodservice customers across eight Midwestern states from a 180,000 sq ft multi-temperature facility with next-day delivery.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Fresh Produce Distribution

NAICS

Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Merchant Wholesalers (424480)

SIC

Wholesale-Groceries & Related Products (5140)

akta.pro primary industry

Fresh Produce Distribution (CRAOABAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Fresh-Cut & Value-Added Produce (Washed, Peeled, Sliced, Packaged) (AFAKAFAA), Natural & Organic Foods Distribution (CRAOABAH)

Keywords

• Fresh produce distribution
• Wholesale produce supply
• Custom fresh cuts
• Foodservice produce
• Value-added produce

Headquarters

HQ city

Kansas City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Fresh Produce Sales: Wholesale distribution of hand-selected premium fruits and vegetables ripened to customer specifications, sold to retail, wholesale, and foodservice operations.
2. Custom Fresh Cuts: Value-added processing service providing custom-cut and packaged fresh produce prepared to order for foodservice and retail operations.
3. Custom Case Repack: Hand-selection and repacking of premium produce to exact customer specifications including custom bagging, overwraps, and labeling.
4. Organic and Specialty Produce: USDA Organic certified produce and specialty produce varieties available for daily ordering.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Liberty Fruit distributes hand-selected premium fresh fruits and vegetables (1,200+ commodities, including 100 organic and 150 specialty varieties) from a 180,000 sq ft multi-temperature warehouse in Kansas City, KS, to wholesale, retail, and foodservice customers across eight Midwestern states. The company provides made-to-order Custom Fresh Cuts and Custom Case Repack services, along with value-added food service and retail support such as private labeling and merchandising, delivered next-day across Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and South Dakota.

Product overview

Liberty Fruit Company operates as a fresh produce distributor offering a unified portfolio centered on hand-selected, premium fruits and vegetables with next-day delivery across eight Midwestern states. The core product line consists of Custom Fresh Cuts (custom-cut produce prepared daily for foodservice, retail, and wholesale) and Custom Case Repack (hand-selected produce repacked to exact specifications). These are supported by Value Added Food Service and Value Added Retail modules offering HACCP-compliant processing, SQF certification, custom packaging, private labeling, and merchandising support. The company also supplies raw fresh produce across 1,200+ commodities including 100 organic and 150 specialty varieties. All offerings are anchored by the company's 180,000 square foot multi-temperature warehouse facility and next-day delivery logistics.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Carol's Cuts: Private label brand for processed produce products including fruit medley, fruit trays, and cantaloupe chunks.

Products and services

• Custom Fresh Cuts

Quantifiable outcome

• 424 tons cardboard and 20 tons white paper recycled annually through green practices
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• Produce Marketing AssociationminorOthersGold Circle member of PMA, participating in industry events, conferences, and networking opportunities within the produce marketing industry.
• United Fresh Produce AssociationminorOthersMember of United Fresh for industry advocacy, best practices, and produce industry standards engagement.
• Produce AllianceminorOthersIndustry partnership for produce procurement and supply chain optimization.
• Produce Blue BookminorOthersCredit and business information services partnership for the produce industry.
• Minnesota Crop Improvement Association (MCIA)minorOthersOrganic certification partner providing USDA Organic certification services for produce handling operations.
• U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)minorOthersUSDA Agricultural Marketing Service partnerships for fruit and vegetable standards, factbook resources, and organic certification.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• FreshPoint: Sysco-owned national fresh produce distributor serving foodservice operators across the U.S. Most directly comparable to Liberty Fruit by business model, customer base (foodservice/retail), and custom-cut / value-added service mix, but operating at substantially larger national scale.
• Four Seasons Produce: Mid-Atlantic regional fresh produce distributor serving retail, foodservice and wholesale customers with a strong value-added and organic produce program. Closely matches Liberty Fruit's regional mid-market scale, custom repack capability, and certifications-led positioning.
• Robinson Fresh (C.H. Robinson): C.H. Robinson's fresh produce division providing sourcing, supply-chain management, and distribution across North America. Comparable in produce focus, multi-channel customer base, and custom repack/labeling services, though operating with much larger logistics and grower-network scope.
• The Produce Connection: Regional fresh produce distributor headquartered in the Midwest serving retail, wholesale and foodservice operators with broad-line and specialty items. Comparable to Liberty Fruit on regional scale, customer mix, and value-added capabilities.
• Ital USA: Texas-based regional fresh produce distributor serving retail grocers and foodservice operators across the South-Central U.S. Similar mid-market distributor model with multi-temperature warehousing and fresh-cut services.
• Specialty Produce Group / Coosemans: Specialty and ethnic-produce focused distributor serving retail and foodservice customers with fresh-cut and custom packaging capabilities. Comparable on value-added and specialty produce orientation, though primarily Western U.S. oriented.

Broad incumbents

• KeHE Distributors: Large U.S. distributor of natural, organic, specialty and fresh products to retail and foodservice operators. Overlaps with Liberty Fruit on fresh and organic produce distribution, though operating nationally and across broader food categories.
• Shamrock Foods Company: Aspen- and Phoenix-based broad-line foodservice distributor with a fresh produce division. Comparable in foodservice channel and fresh-cut capability, though broader in product mix and Southwestern/Mountain-West geographically.
• Sysco Corporation: Largest U.S. foodservice distributor (parent of FreshPoint) with broad-line offering that includes fresh produce, fresh-cut and specialty lines. Relevant incumbent benchmarking for pricing pressure and channel overlap in foodservice.

Others

• PRO*ACT: National produce distribution cooperative/network that aggregates independent regional produce distributors (Liberty Fruit is a member via Produce Alliance / industry affiliates). Relevant as an industry ecosystem and buying-group peer rather than a direct customer competitor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/libertyfruit
• Facebookfacebook.com/libertyfruitcompany
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/liberty-fruit-co-inc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 record

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 Liberty Fruit