Family Tortilla Company Grows Despite Recession

In San Leandro's industrial zone, a state-of-the-art factory that employs 150 people -- and is hiring -- bakes more than 2 million tortillas a day under family owners who are already grooming their fourth generation.

When the Chamber of Commerce installs new officers Thursday night, Manuel and Carol Berber will be honored for guiding the tortilla factory through an expansion that defies the lack luster economy.

Chamber President Dave Johnson said the award symbolizes the dynamism of the city's industrialists, who are investing in projects like Lit San Leandro -- the data superhighway that is the brainchild of software entrpreneur , the city's Business Person of the Year.

"We've got a lot going on in San Leandro but we've got to do a better job of getting the word out," said Johnson, calls 2012 the year of branding and marketing the city.

That is exactly what the Berber family hopes to do with Mi Rancho, which has evolved over the last 73 years into a prosperous, if invisible, baker of corn and flour tortillas used by restaurants and other food service companies.

Now, company president Manuel Berber, 53, who is already grooming sons Andrew, 24, and Alex, 22, to succeed him, says Mi Rancho aims to become a household brand.

"Within the last two years we've branched out in a major way," said Berber, who now sells Mi Rancho tortillas in Safeways, Whole Foods and other grocery stores. "We know there's a niche out there that hasn't been touched."

To understand that niche one has to step into the 85,000 square-foot factory where workers in white coat and hair-nets tend the nine production lines turn out those 2 million tortilla a day.

Tortilla-Making 101

In essence, Mi Rancho is creating organic, Kosher and flavored tortillas made according to recipes that, Berber hopes, will elevate their product above the commodity level to a preferred -- and premium-priced -- brand.

The process for making corn tortillas -- which account for about 60 percent of production -- illustrates Mi Rancho's approach.

Berber said the company's process begins with whole, dried corn kernals as opposed to the corn flour more commonly used by tortilla factory.

That choice allows Mi Rancho to create tortillas with more texture and flavor, but also adds steps to the manufacturing process.

At Mi Rancho, the first step involves steaming the corn kernels in industrial cooking pots. Lime juice is added to the mix to help the kernels open.

Next, the slurry of cooked kernels flows into cooling vats. All of this helps coax the undesirable skin loose from the kernel's sweet interior. A filtration process whisks the skin into containers. That byproduct is shipped to pig farmers as feed.

Meanwhile, the lumpy inner kernel material moves through one of two grinding machines -- one that uses steel teeth to make a coarse product for tortilla chips and the other that employs lava stones to make a finer grind for soft tacos.

In either case the end result is masa -- a corn dough that is the rolled into balls and sent through baking presses that stamp out tortillas of the desired diameter.

Fine-ground tortillas for soft tacos are simply bagged. Coarse ground tortillas for chips go through an extra step in which the circles are cut into triangles. (Follow this showing this process visually.)

Making flour tortillas is simpler because they starts with the same material a baker might use at home. Mi Rancho differentiates its products with flavor recipes, such as chili tomato or spinach herb, and other tricks.

What recession?

Berber said the company has been planning its retail expansion despite the economic downturn, and has invested upwards of $3 million in the last three years to increase its capacity.

Mi Rancho is now running two shifts. Carol Berber, 51, who handles finance and human relations, said the company will be hiring in 2012 to add a third shift. The openings will likely be weighted toward production jobs but she said there would be supervisory and professional positions. She declined to discuss wages but said the jobs would include medical and dental benefits and profit sharing.

"We have very low turnover," she said, adding that many workers have been with the company 25 years.

(Also being honored by the Chamber are Jerry Garcia, State Farm Insurance, Small Business of the Year;  Cindy Cathey, Superintendent, San Leandro Unified School District, Educator of the Year, and Dr. Sally Scrutchin, Ambassador of the Year.)

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