Wawona Packing Company is a top name in the California fruit production business. Wawona is based is Cutler, CA, and the company has over 9,000 acres of fruit producing tress. Wawona concentrates its efforts on producing stone fruits including peaches, plums and nectarines.
Wawona Packing Company is certified by both the USDA and the state of California as an organic grower. The company takes great pride in its sustainable and environmentally friendly practices. These practices have allowed the company to maintain a strong customer base, and its products are used by some of the top companies in the food industry. In fact, Wawona’s peaches are used by McDonald’s in that company’s peach fruit smoothies.
The environment is important at Wawona, and many efforts take place to grow fruit in an environmentally friendly way. The company utilizes solar power at both its packing and its cooling facility. The company recycles its mulch and plant trimmings, and it is involved in traditional recycling of plastics and paper. In order to conserve water, drip irrigation and soil monitors are used. This helps to make sure that the trees don’t receive too much moisture causing the water to just run off and be wasted.
Wawona Packing Company is at the forefront of the industry in the area of sustainable farming practices. Instead of using deadly pesticides to control insects, Wawona utilizes pheromones to disrupt the reproduction cycle of insects. Soil testing is used to make sure that too much fertilizer is not put on the ground. Boxes are left for the use of owls and hawks in the orchards. These birds of prey are essential in controlling the rodent population that can damage and consume portions of the fruit crop.
Wawona has a proud history as an organic producer, and they are making the moves necessary to go boldly into the future. In 2018, Wawona acquired Burchell Nursery. Burchell has been in the fruit business for over 30 years, and they are well-known for growing peaches and nectarines.
This past September, Wawona Packing Company merged with Gerawan Farming. Gerawan sells fruit under the Prima label. They are also a stone fruit producer. Under the terms of the merger, Dan Gerawan will be the CEO of the combined companies. The merger is expected to benefit the overall production chain and bring added benefits for the employees of both companies.
Wawona Packing Company has produced organic stone fruits for over 75 years. The company continues to grow and expand in a sustainable and environmentally friendly manner.
