California farmers to destroy 420,000 peach trees after Del Monte collapses

Central California peach farmers are preparing to destroy around 420,000 clingstone peach trees afterDel Monte Foods shut down its canneries earlier this year.

Del Monte, the 139-year-old canned fruit and vegetable company, permanently closed its canneries in Modesto and Hughson in April following a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing last July.

The closures left hundreds of workers without jobs and devastated growers, many of whom lost 20-year contracts with Del Monte and had few alternative buyers for their crops. Farmers could face an estimated $550 million in lost revenue, according to the Sacramento Bee.

In response, Senator Adam Schiff and Reps. Mike Thompson and David Valadao announced last week that affected growers could receive up to $9 million in federal aid to remove up to 420,000 clingstone peach trees before the upcoming harvest season, which typically runs from late May through September.

The approved emergency assistance will help growers remove about 3,000 acres of clingstone peach orchards. Removing about 50,000 tons of peaches from production could reduce oversupply and save farmers an estimated $30 million in additional losses, the officials said. The growers can then pivot to another crop.

“For generations, Central Valley family farms have relied on Del Monte’s Modesto facility to process their peaches,” Valadao said in a statement.

In a March letter to Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, Schiff, Thompson and Valadao, as well as 39 other members of Congress, said many of the impacted California farmers are multigenerational family growers who’ve spent decades building their orchards. They warned that without federal help, the situation could cause lasting harm to the country’s agricultural system.

“When a processing facility closes and 55,000 acres of fruit suddenly have nowhere to go — that’s not something a family farm can just absorb. This funding is a critical step in ensuring these important multi-generational businesses can stay afloat,” Thompson added in his own statement announcing the aid package last week.

After a court allowed Del Monte to sell its assets, Pacific Coast Producers bought Del Monte's canned fruit business. The company agreed to buy about 24,000 tons of peaches from farmers, but that still leaves about 50,000 tons without a buyer, meaning a large amount of the crop will not be used, according to the Sacramento Bee.