# SBA loans to specialty food and beverage distributors in California **Short answer:** SBA's loan file shows 117 loans to specialty food and beverage distributors in California since October 2019. 31.6% went through SBA Express, against 51.0% nationally. Canonical page: https://www.sbaexpress.loans/industries/other-grocery-related-products-merchant-wholesalers/california/ Data as of: 2026-06-30 These are the 117 SBA 7(a) loans to [specialty food and beverage distributors](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/industries/other-grocery-related-products-merchant-wholesalers/) in [California](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/california-small-business-loans/) approved October 2019 to June 2026. Each figure is set against the national figure for the same industry and period. State is where the business is, not where the lender is based. The file lists loans SBA approved, so it shows what lenders have done and not what any lender will do for you. Every state page for this industry uses this same period, so the pages can be compared with each other. ## How California differs from the U.S. **What this means for you.** SBA Express was a less common route here, so most of these loans went through other 7(a) loan types. ### SBA Express 31.6% of the loans in California went through SBA Express, against 51.0% nationally. SBA Express, share of loans, Oct 2019 to Jun 2026 - California: 31.6% - United States: 51.0% We compared 8 measures with the national figure for the same period, and this is the one that differs clearly. The table compares every measure. ## California next to the U.S. **California compared with all loans to specialty food and beverage distributors in the U.S., October 2019 to June 2026** | Measure | California | United States | Reading | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Industry's share of all SBA loans | 0.30% | 0.21% | No clear gap | | Median loan | $250,000 | $160,000 | No clear gap | | Middle half of loans | $150,000 to $615,000 | $57,000 to $400,000 | – | | Startups (the loan opens the business) | Fewer than 5 | 6.2% | n/a | | In business 2 years or less | 16.2% | 14.9% | No clear gap | | In business more than 2 years | 77.8% | 71.9% | No clear gap | | Change of ownership | 5.1% | 6.3% | No clear gap | | SBA Express | 31.6% | 51.0% | Clearly lower | | Lines of credit | 27.4% | 40.3% | No clear gap | | Median term | 10 years | 10 years | – | | Median spread over Prime at approval | 2.75 points over Prime | 2.75 points over Prime | – | Clearly higher and clearly lower mark a gap large enough to matter and unlikely to be chance for this many loans. Spread over Prime is the rate at approval minus Prime that day, so it is not today's rate. Rows with a dash are shown for reference. ## Who lends in California The 5 lenders below made 41 of the 117 loans approved October 2019 to June 2026, or 35.0%. A lender is listed when it has 5 or more of them, five at most. **Top lenders in California** | Lender | Loans | Share here | U.S. share | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | [U.S. Bank](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/sba-express-lenders/u-s-bank/) | 11 | 9.4% | Not in top 5 | | [JPMorgan Chase Bank](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/sba-express-lenders/jpmorgan-chase-bank/) | 10 | 8.5% | 5.7% | | [BayFirst National Bank](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/sba-express-lenders/bayfirst-national-bank/) | 8 | 6.8% | Not in top 5 | | [GBC International Bank](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/sba-express-lenders/gbc-international-bank/) | 6 | 5.1% | Not in top 5 | | [Newtek Bank](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/sba-express-lenders/newtek-bank/) | 6 | 5.1% | 5.4% | Share here is the lender's share of the loans in this state. U.S. share is its share of all loans to this industry nationally. Not in top 5 means it is not one of the five lenders with the most loans to the industry. ## Specialty food and beverage distributors in other states Other states where these loans differ clearly from the national pattern, most loans first. **Specialty food and beverage distributors by state** | State | Loans since October 2019 | | --- | --- | | [Florida](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/industries/other-grocery-related-products-merchant-wholesalers/florida/) | 64 | ## More industries in California Other industries in California with a clear difference from the national pattern, most loans first. **Other industries in California** | Industry | Loans since October 2019 | | --- | --- | | [Sit-down restaurants](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/industries/full-service-restaurants/california/) | 1,924 | | [Fast-food, pizza and counter-service restaurants](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/industries/limited-service-restaurants/california/) | 1,330 | | [Dental practices](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/industries/offices-of-dentists/california/) | 694 | | [Plumbing and HVAC companies](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/industries/plumbing-heating-air-conditioning-contractors/california/) | 639 | | [Gyms, fitness studios and recreational sports centers](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/industries/fitness-recreational-sports-centers/california/) | 632 | | [Home remodeling contractors](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/industries/residential-remodelers/california/) | 621 | | [Auto repair shops](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/industries/general-automotive-repair/california/) | 618 | | [Local trucking companies](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/industries/general-freight-trucking-local/california/) | 616 | How to read this Counts come from SBA's 7(a) loan-level data release, as of June 30, 2026. The file lists loans SBA approved. It does not list declined applications, so it cannot show approval odds. We do not publish any figure built on fewer than 5 loans. Industry is the NAICS code recorded on each loan. Location is the borrower's address in the file. Loans are those approved October 1, 2019 to June 30, 2026. SBA's fiscal year runs October 1 to September 30. Each figure is set against the national figure for the same period. A gap is called clear when it is large enough to matter and unlikely to be chance for this many loans. A comparison with no clear gap in the loans is not published. Express counts SBA Express and Export Express loans. Lines of credit are loans SBA's file flags as revolving. [How we build these pages](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/method/). ## Sources - [SBA 7(a) and 504 FOIA loan-level data, as of June 30, 2026](https://data.sba.gov/dataset/7a-504-foia)