Food And Farm News
7-9-2025
California farmers adopt a Southern staple to diversify their offerings
While most U.S.-grown okra is produced in the Southeast, California farmers such as Andrew and Eric Walker, owners of Farmboy Organics in Yolo County, have found success growing the tropical vegetable in the Central Valley. Okra isn’t the primary crop at many California farms, but its appeal to shoppers seeking ingredients for African, Asian and Southern recipes has helped the Walkers attract new customers to their booth at farmers markets. “It adds a nice, little different thing,” Andrew said, highlighting okra’s role in the farm’s crop mix. Eric added, “People who like okra really like it, and they want to find it.”
California farmers look to ‘liberate the fig from the Newton’
Most California figs end up as dried fruit, the bulk of which is turned into paste and other food ingredients, perhaps most famously at one time as the filling in fig Newtons. But the fresh fruit—in season now through October or November—is increasingly showing up in different culinary takes on familiar dishes. Figs are featured in sauces, charcuterie boards and grilled pizzas, providing new experiences for diners and marketing opportunities for growers. “We’ve really seen it go beyond the Fig Newton,” said Karla Stockli, CEO of the California Fresh Fig Growers Association.
Sonoma County farmer grows heirloom apple varieties
At Gold Ridge Organic Farms in Sonoma County, farmer Brooke Hazen is on a mission to preserve and celebrate heirloom apples. Though only 10% of his apple production is heirloom, Hazen grows 70 varieties, making him one of the largest heirloom apple growers in the country. Some varieties, such as Strawberry Parfait and Pitmaston Pineapple, mimic the flavors of other fruits. “Because heirlooms are not grown on a large scale, they are in danger of being lost,” Hazen said. “It’s important to preserve them for the genetic diversity that protects us from disease.”
Sugar beet farmers grapple with closure of processing plant
There were once dozens of sugar beet processing facilities in California, but earlier this year, Spreckels Sugar announced the closure of its Imperial County plant, the last remaining in the state. The processing plant’s closure was due to “rising costs, water challenges, labor pressures and, of course, California’s regulatory requirements and costs,” Shelby Trimm, executive director of the California Beet Growers Association, said in a recent episode of the Voice of California Agriculture podcast, which is produced by the California Farm Bureau. Trimm spoke with podcast host Gary Sack about the consequences of the plant closure for sugar beet growers in the region.
For more information about any story in Food and Farm News, contact the California Farm Bureau Marketing/Communications Division at 916-561-5550 or email news@cfbf.com. Connect with us on Facebook, X, or Instagram: @CAFarmBureau.
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