BRADENTON, Fla. — Tropicana is an orange juice brand that has a real Tampa Bay hometown connection.
Anthony T. Rossi started the company in Bradenton back in 1947. He wanted to share the fruit and make it accessible to everyone, so 10 years later, a steamship was carrying 1.5 million gallons from Florida to New York every week.
By 1970, refrigerated rail cars were taking it across the country. These days, according to a company spokesperson, the company has the largest privately held refrigerated rail car fleet in the U.S.
Workers at the Bradenton facility process 7 billion oranges each year, squeezing out 150 million gallons of juice and 500 million bottles of beverages annually.
