Hronis, Inc.: Produce Chapter 11 Begins With 10-Debtor Filing

Hronis, Inc. and nine affiliates filed chapter 11 on March 6, 2026, in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of California, Case No. 26-10978, before Judge Rene Lastreto II. The petition places both assets and liabilities in the $50 million to $100 million range, estimates 1-49 creditors, and says the company had been negotiating a secured superpriority debtor-in-possession loan agreement with Conterra Agricultural Capital before filing.

The filing also includes the affiliate list, the special restructuring committee consent, and the co-chief restructuring officer appointments. That consent says the board created a Special Restructuring Committee on January 14, 2026 and appointed Allen Soong and Scott Avila as co-chief restructuring officers before the petition date.

Debtor(s)	Hronis, Inc. (part of a 10-debtor filing set)
Court	U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Eastern District of California
Case Number	26-10978
Petition Date	March 6, 2026
Judge	Hon. Rene Lastreto II
Estimated Assets	$50 million to $100 million
Estimated Liabilities	$50 million to $100 million
Estimated Creditors	1-49

How Hronis Filed Chapter 11

The petition identifies Hronis as a California corporation based at 10443 Hronis Road in Delano, California, with Kern County listed as the county of its principal place of business and www.hronis.net listed as its website. It checked chapter 11, not Subchapter V, and it did not file a plan with the petition. The form also lists NAICS code 1113, a crop-production classification rather than a financial or special-purpose business line.

The statistical section of the petition says funds will be available for distribution to unsecured creditors. It also places the company in the 1-49 estimated-creditor range and puts both assets and liabilities in the $50 million to $100 million band. Those are still high-level petition checkboxes rather than a full capital-structure disclosure, but they establish that this is not a small-asset filing.

The 10-Debtor Filing Group

The affiliate attachment to the petition lists Hronis Capital Assets, LP; Hronis Capital Management, LLC; Hronis Citrus, LLC; Hronis Farming, LP; Hronis Fruit Company LLC; Hronis Land Company; Hronis Ranch, LLC; Hronis Resource Management, LLC; and The Hronis Family Limited Partnership. No joint-administration order was visible in the docket reviewed on March 9, but the filing package makes clear that the bankruptcy started as a broader Hronis enterprise case rather than a standalone operating-company petition.

Outside the court record, Hronis describes itself as a Delano grape and citrus grower. Its 2023 report says it harvested 131 million pounds and owned 6,187 acres. Produce Market Guide calls it a family-owned grower and wholesaler, while Produce News described higher table-grape volumes from family-owned acreage. A 2019 profile of the Hronis brothers said the ranch covered about 8,000 acres and employed around 2,000 people.

CROs, Committee, and DIP Talks

The special restructuring committee consent included in the petition package is dated March 6, 2026. That consent says the board created a Special Restructuring Committee on January 14, 2026 and appointed Matthew English, a senior managing director of Arch & Beam Global, LLC, as the sole member and independent director. The same consent says Allen Soong and Scott Avila had already been appointed as co-chief restructuring officers authorized to act for the company.

The company also disclosed that it had been negotiating with Conterra Agricultural Capital over a secured superpriority debtor-in-possession loan agreement before filing. The consent authorizes the restructuring officers to borrow funds, grant liens, pursue a sale, settlement, reorganization, or liquidation plan, and retain Saul Ewing LLP as bankruptcy counsel plus Angeion Group as claims and noticing agent. Separately, Kosta Hronis, Pete Hronis, Demetri Hronis, and Mark DeDonato are listed as president, senior vice president of sales and marketing, vice president of operations, and CFO, respectively.

Largest Unsecured Creditors

The petition's 20 largest unsecured creditors list is led by Batth Brothers Farm at $3.44 million and Robinhood Logistics, Inc. at $3.116 million. It also includes Espinoza Farm Labor Contractor at $2.22 million, Jose Valencia at $2.194 million, the California Franchise Tax Board at $1.423 million, and Sunkist Growers, Inc. at $1.216 million. Other listed creditors include AG Peak, Homegrown Organic Farms, Lange Fresh Sales, LMG Logistics, and Total Quality Logistics.

That mix is centered on trade debt, farm labor, logistics, tax obligations, and produce-sector counterparties. What is still missing is a separate first-day declaration or financing motion explaining how those claims fit into the company's broader restructuring plan, whether the company expects to use postpetition financing quickly, and how operations across the affiliated debtor group will be funded.

What Later Filings May Show

The current public docket remains thin even though the petition package itself is more informative than a bare case-opening filing. No separate first-day declaration, DIP motion, cash collateral motion, schedules, or statement of financial affairs was visible in the docket reviewed on March 9, 2026. That means the public record still does not contain a debtor narrative explaining why Hronis filed when it did, what triggered the liquidity pressure, or whether the case is headed toward a going-concern reorganization, an asset sale, or some other outcome.

The next filings matter because the petition already signals an intended financing process. If a Conterra DIP motion appears, it would set out the facility size, maturity, interest rate, milestones, collateral package, and whether the court is being asked to approve priming liens or other lender protections. Schedules and statements should also show whether the broader Hronis debtor group is carrying the main operating liabilities, land ownership, or management functions through different affiliated entities.

Frequently Asked Questions

Did Hronis file alone? No. The petition attachment lists nine affiliate debtors, so the case started as a 10-debtor filing set.

What size balance sheet did the petition disclose? The petition placed both assets and liabilities in the $50 million to $100 million range and estimated 1-49 creditors.

Are debtor-in-possession financing terms public yet? Not yet. The restructuring committee consent says the company had been negotiating a DIP loan agreement with Conterra Agricultural Capital, but no separate motion or order setting out those terms was visible in the docket reviewed on March 9, 2026.

For more case coverage, see ElevenFlo's bankruptcy blog.