BAKERSFIELD, CA - It is with deep sadness that we report the recent passing of Donald (Don) John Valpredo, Founder and impetus behind Bako Sweet’s entry into the sweet potato business. He passed on October 31 at the age of 85 while on vacation overseas.
Affectionately referred to as El Don, The Chairman, and/or The Boss, Valpredo’s entrepreneurial spirit broke the mold of his father, John Valpredo, who himself was an innovative farmer. John Valpredo was one of the original farmers in the southernmost region of Kern County after his family relocated to the Mettler area from Saugus, CA. He is remembered as a pioneer for being among the first, if not the first, to drill deep enough to find water in the area.
Building on his father’s legacy, Valpredo went on to be President of Ridge Ginning Co. and founding Partner of Kern Ridge Growers, Val-Mar Farms, and related entities. In 2008, along with his son Michael, Valpredo co-founded Country Sweet Produce, whose Bako Sweet brand owes its origin to his affinity for sweet potatoes, stemming from his Italian heritage, and Bakersfield, California. Beyond his business interests, Valpredo demonstrated a steadfast commitment to serving the industry through various directorships including Arvin Edison Water Storage District, Rancho Visitadores, and Western Growers.
Valpredo was an avid horseman, breeding and racing enthusiast. In 2019, he was inducted into the Bob Elias Kern County Sports Hall of Fame for helping build the sport in California for over forty years. As a decades-long member of the California Thoroughbred Breeders Association (CTBA) Board, Valpredo ended his service—albeit temporarily—in 1990 after having served as President for three consecutive terms from 1986-1988. In 2014 he was elected to serve an additional term as President. Valpredo was more than happy to step back into the role and steward the next generation of leaders in California’s equine community. Neverending in his willingness to serve and help shape the future of his beloved sport, Valpredo segue-wayed his original CTBA service to the California Horse Racing Board, and subsequently the Thoroughbred Owners of California Board, serving until 2011 and capping a 13-year term. He was also on the Board of Directors for the Breeder’s Cup and a member of the Jockey Club.
His passion for, and innumerable contributions to the California equine community, are epitomized in the California-bred racehorses that blaze the track during his namesake race. The Donald Valpredo California Sprint Cup is held at Santa Anita Park and has been run every January—Valpredo’s birth month—since 1990. Beyond his service, Valpredo owned and bred winners of multiple stakes over his lifetime. He and fellow CTBA board member and longtime friend, John Harris, co-bred Soviet Problem, winner of California’s Horse of the Year and Breeders Cup Sprint runner-up in 1994.
While he will forever be the patriarch of many ag enterprises, which along with his proud and steadfast service, comprise much of his legacy, thoroughbred horses were Valpredo’s true passion. Perhaps because they most closely resemble his untamable spirit, interminable grit and resolve, and/or perhaps as Valpredo once put it, simply because, “the first horse that I bred and raced so many years ago won her first race” … and away he went, always putting more into the thoroughbred world than he took out.
Valpredo was very proud of his myriad farming and equine ventures but was most proud of his family and Italian heritage. A loving grandfather, father, husband, uncle, friend, and fierce ally, Valpredo is survived by Sally, his loving wife, three children (Michael Valpredo, Natalia Fritz, and Alexis Mosely and their spouses), and seven grandchildren (Elle, Jadon, and Rome Valpredo, Buchannon, Bianca, and Leonardo Fritz, and George Moseley). His son Michael continues Valpredo’s legacy as a leader of ag enterprise, including in his role as President of Country Sweet Produce, grower-packer-shipper of the Bako Sweet brand.
A private memorial ceremony will be held in the coming weeks. In lieu of flowers, the Valpredo family invites you to honor Valpredo’s legacy of leadership and service through a donation to the National Future Farmers of America Foundation’s Leadership Fund.
Our deepest condolences go out to all those who mourn this great loss.
