McGowan Rice
Preserving Produce Starts with the Facility

McGowan Rice approaches produce storage from the product outward. Before determining what a facility should look like, the company examines what will be stored, how the producer handles it and how the building must connect with the wider operation. Its temperature-controlled facilities are designed around product preservation, food safety and each customer's operations.

“Our goal is to build a facility for their product more than just sell a construction project,” says Mark Rice, President, McGowan Rice.

Storage Designed Around the Product

The process starts with the produce. McGowan Rice considers whether a customer handles potatoes, onions, leafy greens, fruits or other products, then examines how the produce is stored, including whether it moves in bulk or in bins. The team also looks at storage capacity, loading and unloading requirements and how the facility connects with packing operations.

Food-specific experience is central to that approach. Rice and business partner Brady McGowan bring extensive experience with these types of facilities, while project managers and consultants are selected for a client-focused mindset. Employees are also taught why specific construction details matter to product storage, helping them recognize requirements that cannot be compromised.

Food safety is built into the same thinking. Cleanability and sanitation are major concerns for producers managing biological risks and pathogen traceability. McGowan Rice considers construction materials alongside refrigeration, airflow, temperature and humidity controls to create environments that are easier to clean, maintain and manage.

The company’s role extends from initial planning through design, engineering, construction and commissioning. It manages architectural and engineering work through employees and consultants, then brings refrigeration, electrical and other specialists into the project early to address critical mechanical requirements.

That early coordination becomes especially important when automation or specialized equipment is involved. Automated storage and retrieval systems, for example, require the building to accommodate loading, unloading and equipment requirements from the outset. McGowan Rice works with technology and equipment partners during design rather than leaving those decisions until construction is complete.

Results That Reach Beyond the Building

McGowan Rice has particular experience in potato storage working nationwide, where its envelope storage approach can help reduce product weight loss. Better facility planning can also improve loading efficiency and potentially reduce employee costs, helping producers pursue stronger returns from their operations.

That value can extend beyond storage performance. In one project, a customer wanted to establish produce storage closer to its market in a region where environmental conditions made produce storage more challenging. McGowan Rice developed the facility, which eventually expanded through four additional phases. The customer reduced shipping costs and opened additional markets.

Energy decisions follow the same product-first logic. McGowan Rice evaluates insulation values, refrigeration and electrical technologies and variable-frequency drives while considering how the customer intends to manage the building. The objective is to match available technology with the facility’s actual operating requirements.

McGowan Rice remains involved after construction through maintenance, modifications, remodels and conversions of existing spaces. Its willingness to handle projects of different sizes allows the relationship to continue as producers change their facilities or operating needs.

Produce storage will continue to evolve as farming practices shift, markets move, and automation becomes more common. McGowan Rice works throughout the United States and follows those changes nationwide while evaluating construction methods, materials, insulation and building systems to determine what best fits each client. Its product-first approach underpins its recognition as Top Food Produce Storage System 2026.