Since 1944

History

Caruso Produce is a third-generation, family owned, produce wholesaler located in Tualatin, Oregon.  Sam Caruso started the company in 1944 with his brothers, Tony, and Joe.   The original warehouse was in the heart of southeast Portland.

The brothers owned Portland’s premiere produce warehouse.  Caruso Produce sourced fruits and vegetables from local farms and from California and Mexico as transportation was beginning to move from rail lines to long-haul trucking.  Refrigerated trailers had yet to be perfected. Trucks coming from the south used an ice bunker in the nose of the trailer with a vented front wall, allowing air cooled by the ice to blow over the produce.  This method worked remarkably well.

In 1973, Sam handed over the business to his sons Joseph and Michael.  With the addition of Arnie Franks, the three owners grew the business further and in 1994 moved the company into its second location in Tualatin, Oregon.

2015 saw those owners retire and hand over the reins to Joe’s son, and now, current president, Samuel Caruso.  With Matt Weber and Jason Robbins as partners, the company grew even bigger and required a larger facility, this time in Canby, Oregon.