Brothers Know
How Things Grow

In the early 1900’s, Amadio and Julia Ciruli immigrated to the United States from Schiavi, Abruzzo, Italy, a small town near the Adriatic Sea. They went west, settling in Pueblo, Colorado, where they bought ten acres of farmland on a mesa south of the Arkansas. The Cirulis had four children. When the oldest of the children, Charlie, turned nine, he was given total responsibility for farming five of the ten acres. Times were tough then, so Amadio told his son: “You must make a profit,” And Charlie did.

As a young man, Charlie worked as a produce buyer for Piggly Wiggly, the first full-service supermarket in the U.S., later to become Safeway. Motivated by a strong sense of independence, he opened a grower-shipper business. Safeway was his first client. In 1940, Charlie formed Ciruli Brothers Growers & Shippers in Pueblo, building what was to become the largest Colorado grower-shipper business through the 1950s and 60s. Under Charlie’s leadership, the company expanded into Arizona, and farmed an additional 2,500 acres of mixed vegetables, lettuce, carrots, onions, watermelon and cantaloupe.

Chuck had an early start in the produce business working on his dad’s ranches and packing sheds in Arizona and Colorado. By the time he was in high school, he had already moved up to the sales desk of his father Charlie’s business, Ciruli Brothers. Chuck has dedicated his career to increase fresh mango consumption in the North American market. He was a key participant in the development of hot water baths in the Mexican mango industry, and his efforts alongside the Fresh Produce Association were instrumental in the establishment of the National Mango Board where he was the first ever chairman of the board.

Growing up together besides their father in the fields and offices of Ciruli Brothers and Amex Distributing Company, Chuck & Chris gained a thorough understanding of the business’ operations by the time they officially joined in the early 1990s. As the CEO of Ciruli Brothers, Chuck directs the company alongside his brother. Chuck is mainly responsible for direction, strategy, and finance. As Chief Operations Officer, Chris is now responsible for overseeing the company’s shipping, warehousing, sales, and business development with strategic accounts. Committed and insightful, Chris also dedicates time to serving the industry and the local communities.