Top 10 Produce LLC

Nationally Known to be Locally Grown, by small American Farms Labeling by Agri-Label & Tag: 1-866-401-3944

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PTI Q & A

Scroll Down For Answers to these Frequently Asked Questions:


  • Are Growers required to have their own company prefix issued by GS1?

  • May I get traceability to the case level only? 

  • Do I have to label all of my produce?

  • Will our growers maintain their own distributor and retail relationships?

  • Do you need your own GS1 company prefix certificate to sell produce to Wal-Mart and other large retail stores?
  • What is the Reserve Brand?

  • How will you market my produce without me losing my local appeal?

  • Why do you require tracking to the item level for the Top 10 and Reserve Brands when the Produce Traceability Initiative only specifies traceability at the case level?

  • I am a large grower feeling like the PTI is taking a pound of flesh out of my business.  Can I work with Top 10 Produce LLC to implement a cost-effective traceability program?

  • Does Top 10 Produce LLC make any money from the sale of labels?
  • What happens if a grower has their own brand, that they want to keep?


Are Growers required to have their own company prefix issued by GS1?

No.  The Grower uses the Brand Owner’s number and in our case the brand is Top 10.  So, unless the grower has their own brand that they want to show to the consumer on the tracking label (whether on the case or the item), there is no need for a grower to have their own company prefix.


May I get traceability to the case level only? 

No problem.  We are flexible to your needs.  Smaller growers may trace to the case only using our “Grower’s Reserve” brand case labels our larger growers may trace to the case only by using our brand called “Locale”.


Do I have to label all of my produce?

No, you don’t have to label any of your produce if you don’t want to.  Our growers are free to sell as much or as little as they prefer to label under our brands, and they are also free to sell under other brands, or their own brands simultaneously with our brands.


Will our growers maintain their own distributor and retail relationships?

Yes our growers’ business will be “business as usual” in all aspects.


Do you need your own GS1 issued company prefix certificate to sell to Wal-Mart and other large retail stores?

No.  You may sell under a brand.  There was information circulating this false rumor online, though the actual source of these false rumor is unknown, it appears to us that it stems from Wal-Mart’s preference for suppliers utilizing something called “1Sync”, but who knows for sure.  We will not subscribe to 1SYNC until requested by our grower’s buyers (because it is expensive) but we have the luxury of that option.  This is because we label to the item level and our gs1 issued company prefix on our items matches our company prefix on our cases.  We will provide Wal-Mart or any other buyer with our GS1 issued company prefix certificate, so this is a non-issue for you if you grow with Top 10.  Also, if you need a GLN, as required by Wal-Mart let us know so that we can assign a GLN to you as a supplier and so we can get set up with 1-Sync or another data pool that is acceptable to Wal-Mart and others.  Most of our small suppliers are not selling to Wal-Mart so there has been no reason for us to spend the money on a data pool yet.  However, it seems inevitable that we will have to so don't hesitate to ask and to tell us which data pool you prefer for us to join.


What is the Reserve Brand?

Reserve is our top label and is saved for the truly exceptional.  Growers select their own Reserve, if any, from each harvest, never to exceed 25% of any  label order.


How will you market my produce without me losing my local appeal?

Top 10 Produce LLC unites you with other smaller growers like you into a strong, unified, American brand dedicated to smaller local growers - "Top 10".  We encourage each of our Growers to maintain their individual identity.  We know that it is your family history, your commitment to quality, and your local appeal that makes our company exceptional in this industry.  Each grower’s identity will be preserved to the item level for all Top 10 and Reserve brand produce and you can control the content that we present to consumers through our extended packaging enabled by the small barcodes on the produce.


Why do you require tracking to the item level for the Top 10 and Reserve Brands when the Produce Traceability Initiative only specifies traceability at the case level?

Top 10 and Reserve are brands marketed to the consumer, and the consumer only sees the item, and item level traceability creates brand value.  First of all, having item-specific labels enables our growers to sell to all retail outlets that require item labeling when there will be a supply vacuum of item traceable produce and our produce will command a premium.   Top 10 Produce does not plan to keep that premium; our growers earned it and we intend for them to keep it.  For Top 10 Produce LLC, business as usual means continuous improvement to our growers’ bottom-lines.   We believe that profitability for small growers is fundamental to the creation of a sustainable agricultural system.


I am a large grower feeling like the PTI is taking a pound of flesh out of my business.  May I work with Top 10 Produce LLC to implement a cost-effective traceability program?

We welcome all growers, so long as they are independent growers who own or lease the land on which the produce is grown.  However, the Top 10 brand is marketed as the “small farm brand” catering to local growers, so the Top 10 trademark is limited to use by small farms and we request that all produce sold under the brand is sold locally.  Larger growers may sell under our “Locale” Trademark, which is traceable to the case, but has the flexibility of traceability to the item level also.


Does Top 10 Produce LLC make any money from the sale of labels?

No, Top 10 Produce makes no money from the sale of any labels.  This is a very important point because the fact that we take no money from the sale of Top 10 and Reserve labels means there is no issue with a grower choosing to order no labels in a given season.  However, Top 10 does receive a per label license fee for any grower using the “Locale” Trademark and this fee is incorporated into the price of the Locale label to keep things simple.


What happens if a grower has their own brand, that they want to keep?
The items in a case can be labeled with the grower's own brand, so long as those items are not required to have a barcode by the buyer.  This still is 100% in compliance with the Produce Traceability Initiative, which only goes to the case level.  However, if the grower needs barcodes on their items because their buyers require item barcodes, then they would need to use the Top 10 brand on the item, and the grower would be identified 1) by the grower number 2) when the consumer scanned the item with a cell phone and 3) when the consumer put the grower's number into our direct-to-consumer website.  Once the local community "has a grower's number" (so to speak) the Grower's personal brand will be every bit as powerful as it ever was because the consumer knows exactly who or what farm grew that produce.

The other alternative is the grower can sign up directly with gs1 and if you want to do so,  just click the link on the bottom left of our "Produce Traceability" page here and then click on the "consultant" link on that page to be taken directly to the rest of their website.  They will fill you in on all of the pricing details and other issues that you will need to consider and address in your program implementation.