SAHUARITA, Ariz. – President and Chief Operating Officer of the Green Valley Pecan Company, Bruce Caris, received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Pecan Shellers Association (NPSA). The award was presented to Caris by Dick and Nan Walden, along with his coworkers and friends on Sept. 16 at the farm in Sahuarita. Representatives from pecan shellers and growers from across the country shared their support to this recognition in pre-recorded messages.
According to NPSA, the Lifetime Achievement Award is, “the highest honor NPSA can bestow upon a member of our association in recognition of an individual’s significant contributions and lasting influence for the pecan industry.”
“The NPSA Lifetime Achievement Award is most deserved by Bruce Caris because he has earned the respect and trust of not only everyone at FICO and Green Valley Pecan Company but of the entire industry. He has brought together pecan growers and shellers in ways no other has been able to do. We are all in a better place because of Bruce’s leadership,” said Dick Walden, Chief Executive Officer of Green Valley Pecan Company.
After completing his MBA at the University of Arizona, Caris, pursued a career in sales, starting in the wine industry as a regional sales representative mainly in the West Coast. Eight years later, in 2000, he joined Green Valley Pecan Company as vice president of sales and marketing. His skills and ability to relate to people of all levels and backgrounds, soon led him into a new and current position: President and Chief Operating Officer.
With knowledge in the industry as a grower and sheller, Caris was able to bridge the gap between the two, helping develop the industry’s current marketing order, the program administered by the Department of Agriculture that helps growers and shellers work together to solve marketing problems that they cannot solve individually. Furthermore, his work for the industry as a whole, has helped pecans, a native nut to North America, reach consumers around the world. Caris has served as Chairman of the Board of Directors at NPSA, as well as Vice President of the American Pecan Council.
For more information about Green Valley Pecan Company, please visit GreenValleyPecan.com, or follow the Green Valley Pecan Company on Facebook (/GreenValleyPecanCompany) and Twitter (@PecanStore).
