Fred Lobue

LoBue Bros.
Lindsay, California

 A Family Business

“Dad, I want your job.”

-- Roxanne LoBue Parrish (at age 16)
Controller, LoBue Bros.

Farm

LoBue Bros.

The LoBue Bros., Inc. Company, a fourth generation family farm, provides quality citrus across the United States and internationally .
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The Family Business

When asked how Fred got into the produce business, he sums it up in one word, “Legacy.” At a very young age, Fred started working on the citrus ranch. “I loved it. I got to drive a tractor at 10 years old!”

Fred’s grandfather, Philip LoBue immigrated from Italy in the early 1900’s. In America, he started out growing cherries, prickly pears and vegetables, but was always interested in citrus because that is what his ancestors grew in Sicily. Philip made the transition to citrus when he bought an orange grove near Lindsay, California in 1934. The LoBue Bros., Inc. Company, a fourth generation family farm, has been there ever since providing quality citrus across the United States and internationally.

Fred's Career Path

“Well, I did take the LSAT and passed, but I realized it wasn’t lawyering I wanted to do. I wanted to be in the produce business.”

Fred especially liked the packing house. “There is a lot of action in processing … the trucks, the machines, the technology that sorts all the different sizes and grades of fruit. But I also spent time in the front office. At sixteen, I was typing railroad bills of laden. I majored in Industrial Management at San Jose State which focused on equipment, accounting, and insurance. Eventually, I managed all of the operations for the company.”

Message to Consumers

“That we spend a lot of money and energy to ensure the safety of our food; that the food we grow is the food that feeds our family and our employees’ families, too. It is also very important for us, as a family business, to make sure we treat our employees and customers the same way we’d want to be treated ourselves.”

Family

Fred and his wife of 25 years, Donna, have four children, three of whom are in the family business. Donna and Fred gave their children the opportunity to work at the company, but “never forced them to choose a career in produce.” During their summer breaks, Roxanne, Vincent, Eric, and Mike would often be seen in the office, in the packing house or out in the orchards. Fred and Donna have ten grandchildren.

“I like to work, especially now, because I’m doing the things I like to do, not that I have to do – my kids to that work.” The LoBues divide their time between their homes in Lindsay and in Morro Bay.