[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 68 (Thursday, April 26, 2018)]
[House]
[Pages H3578-H3579]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    HONORING THE LIFE OF RICK ANTLE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Denham) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. DENHAM. Mr. Speaker, I sadly rise today with fellow colleagues 
because we lost a friend way too soon.
  Rick Antle was an ag visionary, community leader, family man, and to 
Sonia and I, a mentor and a friend. His passion and dedication made him 
not only a leader in California's Salinas Valley, but in the entire ag 
industry nationwide.
  At the age of 26, he became the president and CEO of Tanimura & 
Antle, one of the largest ag companies in the entire country. He would 
grow this to become the largest leafy greens and vegetable producer in 
the region. He set it up as an ESOP, making it an employee-owned 
business. This is now a four-generation legacy that farms over 35,000 
acres, distributing to North America, Europe, and Asia.
  Rick worked right alongside his sons, Brian and Jeffrey. He 
constantly pushed different innovations, even ideas that were against 
conventional practice, things that were sometimes mocked or said that 
they would never work, but are now the important innovations that lead 
the rest of the industry.
  Rick emphasized the importance of support and investing in employees, 
whom he always saw as the backbone

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of his company. His company's 800-person Spreckels Crossing housing 
complex has since become a blueprint for other farmworker housing 
projects across the country.
  On a personal note, I would just say that Sonia and Tonya--Sonia and 
Tonya, as they were known to most in the industry--worked side by side. 
Rick and I worked side by side as well.

                              {time}  1015

  Not only was Tonya a mentor to Sonia, Rick was a mentor to me. I 
learned a lot about business. I learned a lot about friendship. I saw 
the pride in his generational family. He is going to be missed by many 
here in Washington, D.C.; in the Salinas Valley; around the country; 
and certainly as a family man. Brian and Jeffrey, I know that they are 
going through tremendous pain, as are Anthony and Natalie. He thought 
the world of his family and certainly thought the world of his 
employees.
  Mr. Speaker, I now yield to the gentleman from California (Mr. Costa) 
for any remarks he may have.
  Mr. COSTA. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding, and I 
join with Congressman Jeff Denham and Congressman  Jimmy Panetta to 
celebrate a life well lived.
  Rick Antle was truly an icon in not only California agriculture but 
American agriculture. He was a leader. Rick and Tonya always put their 
family first, and what a family it was. To be a part with them, with 
their children and with his father, Bob, I have fond, fond memories 
over the years of working together on public policy affecting 
California agriculture.
  They farmed not just in the Salad Bowl but in the San Joaquin Valley. 
Their efforts to bring value added and innovation is legendary in terms 
of the incredible food products that we enjoy today at home. His 
efforts with employees set the gold standard, creating housing 
initiatives so that the 800 employees at Tanimura & Antle would have 
the kind of housing that farm workers deserve to have.
  The list goes on and on and on, but I just wanted to join today and 
pay my respects to our friend Rick, and to his family. Tonya, we know 
this is a very difficult time for all of you, but we just want you to 
know that our thoughts and prayers are with you. We thank you for all 
of the contributions you have made over the years. Rick was a leader in 
California agriculture. And I just personally want to say thank you for 
all the good advice you have given me over the years. We will miss Rick 
Antle.
  Mr. DENHAM. Mr. Speaker, I would like to yield to the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Panetta).
  Mr. PANETTA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today, along with my good friends 
and colleagues Mr. Denham and Mr. Costa, to recognize somebody, as you 
can tell, who clearly impacted not just the lives of the three of us 
but the lives of many people on the Central Coast of California, the 
Central Valley of California, and across this Nation.
  Today we obviously commemorate, we celebrate, Rick Antle and what he 
has done for the Salinas Valley agriculture industry and what he and 
his family at T&A did to claim that area as the Salad Bowl of the 
World. Let me tell you, he did it through innovation, and he did it 
through ingenuity, in dealing with the specialty crops and the 
technology and practices that are needed in order to grow those types 
of crops.
  He was on the forefront of innovation when it came to precision 
farming, from growing hydroponic lettuce to plant tape, to a Robovator. 
The farming at T&A used less water and less pesticides, and that led to 
less harm to our environment. Yet they still continued to grow a vast 
amount of vegetables.
  I can tell you it wasn't just his investments in innovation that set 
Rick apart; it was his ingenuity and foresight that inspired him to 
implement standards to protect our community, our environment, to 
invest in making his employees' lives better, and to strive to impact 
policies that would improve the agricultural industry.
  Rick clearly was a steward of our environment, from T&A's packaging 
and energy use, to maintaining soil health, to monitoring water usage. 
T&A was dedicated to ensuring long-term sustainability to benefit our 
community, our planet, and yes, our next generation.
  Rick was committed to making his employees' lives better, from 
providing that state-of-the-art housing that my colleagues mentioned to 
offering employees stock options so that they could be a part of that 
company, they could have a stake in that company.
  Yes, Rick was always a tireless advocate for the agriculture 
industry. We definitely valued his voice and his advice. And I can tell 
you, like I said, it wasn't just us but clearly his family that he 
influenced. I will never forget his son Brian talking about the best 
piece of advice that he got from Rick. It was when he was in high 
school. Rick was getting him out in the fields. And Rick's advice to 
Brian was: Look, the best fertilizer a farmer can have is his farmer's 
own shadow. Being there, showing up. That is what Rick did.
  As you can see, Mr. Speaker, Rick was and he is a legend, not just on 
the Central Coast, not just in the Central Valley, but in the 
agricultural community. Carrie and I will miss him, and we know that 
his spirit will continue to be felt, not just in the Salad Bowl of the 
World but in all of our worlds.
  Mr. DENHAM. Mr. Speaker, let me just, in closing, say my wife and I 
extend our condolences and prayers for Rick's loving wife, his mother, 
their children and grandchildren. On behalf of all who knew him and 
benefited from his tireless efforts, we thank them for graciously 
giving us some of their time to spend with Rick and the many things 
that we all learned from him. Mr. Speaker, I will just say special 
prayers and condolences.

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