Jim Leach, 32
Director, Foodservice & Southwest Sales , Oppy , Coquitlam, British Columbia
June 10, 2025 | 3 min to read
SHORT BIO
Hometown: Salinas, CA
Hobbies: Spending time with fiancé, friends and family, Cooking, Golfing, Exercising, Following the stock market
Family/Community: St. Theresa Catholic Church, Houston
Motto in life: Treat others how you would like to be treated. To whom much is given, much is expected!
Leach was born in California’s Salinas Valley, the seventh generation of his family to be raised in Monterey County. He spent his high school summers working for Taylor Farms. While studying agricultural economics at Purdue University, he worked during the summers both for Taylor Farms in Nashville and PepsiCo in Chicago.
Upon graduation, he joined BASF in its professional development program in Raleigh, NC. He transitioned to Yuma, AZ, for a sales role with BASF. With a desire to be more connected to produce, he took a position with Oppy in September 2016 as a business development representative. Soon after joining Oppy, he was accepted to participate in the Fresh Produce and Floral Council Apprentice Program. In 2017, he took the opportunity to transition to Oppy’s sales team and then decided to pursue his MBA at Pepperdine University through a night program.
After graduation, he obtained an open position in Houston, TX, to manage Oppy’s sales office and South-Central U.S. After two years as sales manager, he was promoted to lead all sales for the entire Southwest U.S. region, in addition to managing the entirety of Oppy’s national foodservice sales, for which he now serves as director.
Q: How did you begin working in the produce industry?
I grew up in the industry, and I have had a love for produce since I was a child. My grandfather, Howard Leach, was a grower-shipper with several produce companies in the 1970s and 1980s, and my father, Alec Leach, worked for several companies, including with my grandfather, and then joined Taylor Farms in 1997 and is still there.
I did explore opportunities outside of the industry, but at the end of the day, there is nothing like produce. The passion for produce that people in the industry have is unlike anything I have ever experienced. It is not an easy industry, but the people make it all worthwhile.
Q: How has the industry changed during your tenure?
Not only has the industry transitioned to providing more digital experiences at the retail and restaurant level, consolidation on the supply side has also been widespread. Additionally, the faces of the industry have changed and will continue as younger professionals progress into managerial and leadership roles.
Q: What accomplishment are you most proud of in your career?
I am most proud of going to graduate school while still working full time. I knew taking two years off wasn’t an option, considering I didn’t want to put my career on hold, and so I chose to pursue both simultaneously. I owe a debt of gratitude to my colleagues at Oppy who covered for me when I was periodically unavailable; my family and friends for their support; and of course, my classmates.
Q: What advice would you give someone new to the produce industry?
No day is going to be the same, but if you approach it with the right attitude, you can do anything. At the end of the day, if you do everything within your control, are honest and dependable, I believe you can go far. Produce is an industry comprised of the best people in the country, and it really is unlike anything else. Some advice I was given by my grandfather is that your reputation can take 30 years to build and 30 seconds to burn, be mindful of that and carry out each day with that in the back of your mind.
NOMINEES
