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Freshway Foods has been a fresh-cut processor and trusted supply chain partner for customers east of the Mississippi for three and a half decades, because we have focused on building a reputation for superior customer service and our solutions-oriented sales approach. We are quick to respond to customer needs and our nimbleness allows us to think outside-the-box to find solutions that fit each unique situation.
Matthew Gilardi and half-brother August Palmisano made the journey from their family home in Sicily to America in 1895. The brothers entered Ellis Island in early November and eventually made their way to Cincinnati and on to Sidney, Ohio. There, Matthew and August Gilardi established a fruit business in the basement of a building at the corner of Ohio and Court streets in downtown Sidney, Ohio.
Matthew, along with his wife and children, worked to prosper in Sidney. Anthony “Tony” Gilardi, opened his first produce business with the help of his brothers after being honorably discharged from the U.S. Army.
After losing his first produce business during the Great Depression, Tony and his wife were able to re-establish the A.M. Gilardi and Sons Wholesale Fruits and Vegetables in Sidney. Later, sons Matt and Frank joined the business and it moved to East Court Street in Sidney.
In the 1960’s, a new store was built adjacent to the old store, which was converted into a restaurant. Matt ran the restaurant and fruit store, and Frank managed the wholesale end of the business. Matt and Frank would drive to Michigan and Cincinnati to buy fruits and vegetables. After years of operating the produce and restaurant businesses jointly, Matt Gilardi Sr. and Frank Gilardi Sr. separated the businesses in the late 1970’s
In 1988, Frank Gilardi Jr. and his brother, Phil Gilardi purchased the assets of their father’s wholesale business, and began Freshway Foods with a truck and five orders for vegetables processed for delivery. In the early days of the business, they worked out of a small, 7,000 square foot processing facility. By 1992, the business had expanded to the point where it had outgrown the current processing facility, and a new building was constructed. A second facility was added in 1996.
In 2000, Frank and Phil broke ground on the company’s current facility, which today consists of over 100,000 square feet of state-of-the-art refrigerated processing and distribution space.
As the business continued to grow, the Gilardi’s recognized the need for their own transportation and logistics company that could offer reliable, on-time service, and Freshway Logistics was born. Today, their fleet consists of over 50 energy efficient trucks.
From humble beginnings, Freshway has grown to become a reputable, innovative supplier of fresh-cut processing, repacking, transportation and logistics to leading foodservice and retail companies in the eastern half of the United States. With over 400 dedicated associates, we are also one of the largest employers in the Sidney/Shelby County, Ohio area.
