Jud Flowers
Jud Flowers was born and raised in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Pan American University in Edinburg, Texas, and went on to do post-graduate work at the Texas A&I University Citrus Research Center.
In 1977, he began his career in the Texas Citrus Industry as the Citrus Research & Demonstration Manager at Rio Farms, Inc. He went on to become the General Manager at Pride O Texas, from 1980-87. From there, he took up the General Manager position at Healds Valley Farms for next 20 years.
In 2007, Jud Flowers along with his business partners, TJ Flowers and Trent Bishop, branched off to pursue the dream of building their own business within the industry that he loved and had known for so long.
Currently, Jud serves as President of Lone Star Citrus Growers. With his vast industry knowledge he continues to do what has worked for him within this industry for the last 40+ years. He works very hard every day at keeping the needs of his growers, customers and employees as priority, knowing that they are the keys to his success.
Jud Flowers
President
“In 2007, Jud Flowers along with his business partners, TJ Flowers, branched off to pursue the dream of building their own business within the industry that he loved and had known for so long.”
Jud is an active member of the Texas Citrus Industry, and has served in numerous positions on a variety of boards. Jud is a current member of the Texas A&M Citrus Research Center Advisory Committee, Santa Cruz Irrigation District Board, Texas Citrus Producers Board, Industry Group on HLB and the National Farm Bureau Advisory Committee. He has also served as past Chairman of Texas Citrus Mutual, past Chairman of the Texas Produce Association, past chairman of the Texas Valley Citrus Committee, and a member of the TexaSweet Citrus Marketing board.
Jud has three children with the love of his life Margie, all of whom are involved in the family business. He is a proud grandfather of two, an active member of the Baptist Temple Church in McAllen, TX and is an avid deep sea diver, fisherman and cowboy.
T.J. Flowers
As a 2003 graduate of Texas A&M, T.J. Flowers has been in the produce business for over 16 years. During this time he has had the opportunity to work in nearly every area of the business including produce brokerage, import sales and domestic sales. Since joining forces with Jud Flowers and Trent Bishop to create Lone Star Citrus Growers in 2007, he has added operations management and production management to that list of experience.
T.J. learned early in his career that having a “customer centric” attitude on the sales desk boosts the quality and quantity of orders that come in. He applies this same outlook with Lone Star Citrus after his sales day is done and the production day kicks into high gear. That is why, during the season, you can find him at the office after-hours ensuring that all the hard work of the sales team is turned into reality through seamless production protocol. This type of oversight benefits the customer in that they get exactly what they want, when they want it, with minimal wait times…every time!
T.J. stays current in his industry knowledge and relations by networking through events and organizations such as the Texas International Produce Association and the Produce Marketing Association, and he has previously served 8 years on the board of the Texas Citrus Mutual.
Together with his wife of over 16 years, T.J. and April Flowers have two beautiful daughters – Lily and Maddie. T.J. and April enjoy travel and have made it a point to do it at every opportunity. Whether it is a concert/sports venue across state or historic landmark/museum across the ocean, these two want to see it all as part of their “work hard, play hard” philosophy.
T.J. Flowers
Vice President of Operations & Sales
Michael Harris
Michael Harris is the assistant sales manager for Lone Star Citrus Growers.
Michael has been a dedicated member of the Lone Star sales team since his graduation from Texas A&M University in 2007, where he earned a bachelor of science in ag economics. During the past 12 years, Michael has earned a long-standing and respected reputation for outstanding customer service and extensive knowledge of the produce industry. He is trusted by his customers because he believes his job goes beyond the actual sale and extends to working to ensure the timely delivery of a quality product. He knows the importance of being available to his customers and adheres to the motto, ‘The only problems I am unable to handle are the ones I do not know about.’ In 2017, Michael married his wife Julia, and they welcomed a baby girl to their family in July of 2019. Michael’s top two hobbies are spending time with his family and winning the Viva Fresh golf tournament.
Michael Harris
Assistant Sales Manager
Christopher Eddy
Chris Eddy has been around fresh produce all his life. Having grown up on his grandfather’s farm in Uvalde, Texas, his roots are in the growing, harvesting, packing and shipping of onions, carrots and cabbage. After graduating from Texas Tech University in 1987 with a BS in Agricultural Economics and from Mays Business School at Texas A&M in 1989 with an MBA, Chris worked for Topco Associates as a fresh produce inspector. He returned to Texas in 1991 to work at Duda Farm Fresh Foods on the sales team for the next 17 years as an account manager and sales manager. Chris worked at Frontera Produce and Crescent Fruit and Vegetable as sales manager before beginning his career in citrus at Lone Star Citrus Growers in 2013. It is Chris’ attention to detail and end-to-end knowledge of the supply chain that helps him ensure an efficient flow of product through our facility and to our partners.
Chris enjoys cooking, outdoor grilling, sports and spending time with his wife, Melissa, and their children, JT and Robin. Chris and his family are members of Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Parish in McAllen, Texas.
Christopher Eddy
Assistant Operations Manager
Kevin Roberts
When in middle school, Kevin Roberts was given a class assignment: Write a report about what your dream career would be. The answer was simple; he wanted to follow in the footsteps of his father, Chuck, and Uncle Jerry (JRP Produce), which meant entering the fresh produce industry. He is now approaching 40 years of experience in the industry and has been involved in several sides of the business.
His produce career began in high school while working at the Pompano Beach Farmers Market on week nights and weekends, where he transferred growers’ products to the different handlers loading and unloading trucks. In the late 80’s, he went to work for SUPERVALU in the Lakeland Fl. buying office as a buyer/inspector of primarily citrus and melons. After 12 years, he and his wife, Wendy, decided to move their two young daughters back to Kevin’s birth state of Texas.
For the first 6 yrs in Texas, he worked primarily in melons and vegetables before moving into the Texas Citrus category in which he has worked since 2007. The Lone Star team welcomed Kevin in 2020.
Kevin is the proud father of Brittany, Samantha and Vance, and he enjoys fishing, golfing and grilling at home with family and friends.
Kevin Roberts
Account Manager
April Flowers
April Flowers is LSCG’s Marketing Director and officially joined the organization in 2014. April graduated from Stephen F. Austin State University in 2002 and began her career as a high school literature and history teacher. Tasked with capturing the attention of teenagers, she quickly learned her first lesson in marketing: no matter how compelling information is, it must be presented in a meaningful and memorable way. After 7 years in education, April stepped away to focus attention on her family when she and her husband, T.J., decided to invest in LSCG. During that time, she worked part-time for Welcome Home RGV where she fell in love with niche marketing. When she joined LSCG in 2014, she oversaw the development and launch of our house brand, Winter Sweetz. Her goals in marketing revolve around providing valuable information to both the general consumer and our commercial customers. She believes in honoring the consumer while functioning as an information resource to the entire supply chain.
April is passionate about community service and is a founding member of In Bloom: Texas Women in Produce, a board member of Texas International Produce Association and Make-A-Wish RGV, President of ZTA Deep South Texas alumnae, and an advocate for the Epilepsy Foundation of America. She loves traveling with her husband and two daughters, and she takes every opportunity to do so. Whether it’s on a trip with her husband, a family vacation or a girls’ trip, April is intent on seeing every corner of the world possible.
