Great-grandparents Daniel and Babette Lichti originally purchased thirty acres of the farm in 1931 where they lived and raised their eight children. Their son Herb took over the farm in the 1940s. Herb bought an adjacent piece of property and with wife Elise they raised their three children and tended the farm. In 1980, Fran and Ted moved into their grandparents old farmhouse with their two children, Renata and Bryce.
Ted quickly made changes, both in farming and marketing practices. He moved the farm from conventional to sustainable practices outlined by California Clean guidelines. In 2006, Blossom Bluff was certified organic by CCOF. Over the past twenty years, Ted raised the variety count from about twenty to over a hundred-ninety, often choosing heirloom vareities for flavor instead of durability. He located direct outlets, including farmers markets and grocers, and Fran developed relationships with some of the Bay Area’s finest restaurants and bakeries.
Carrying the business into a fourth generation, their children, Bryce and Renata are both involved with marketing, managing accounts, & Â farmers’ markets.
Seasons
Busiest months are May – September. Sell at farmers’ markets year round.
Technology
All fruit is hand picked and packed. No machines are used.
Challenges
Weather is a big concern for organic stone fruit growers in general. A wet spring can be devastating for fruit durability. On market days, the commute (3.5 hours) can be taxing.
Principles
It is important to the Loewers to keep the family farm running and work the rural/urban connection. They love meeting the people they sell their fruit to. The unique varieties they grow and sell interest and excite their customers.Â
Community Supported Agriculture
Blossom Bluff Orchards has just started a Summer Stone Fruit CSA in partnership with T&D Willey Farms. Email for more information: csa@tdwilleyfarms.com
Future Plans
Ted and Fran’s son Bryce recently bought his aunt’s house and property and is moving back to the farm. Their daughter Renata lives in Berkeley and manages the storage/warehouse and employees there.
Length of Relationship with Oliveto
14 years
Location
50 acres between Reedley and Sanger along the Kings River
Crops
Over 180 varieties of fruit including peaches, plums, nectarines, apricots, pluots, apriums, persimmons, figs, pomegranates, oranges, citron, mandarins, and meyer lemons.
Sullivan became interested in baking bread 25 years ago as a busboy at Berkeley’s Chez Panisse restaurant where he worked while attending the University of California at Berkeley. He started baking bread as a serious hobby after being inspired by Elizabeth David’s cookbook “English Bread and Yeast Cookery.” At Alice Waters’ request he went on to bake bread in the Chez Panisse kitchen. In 1983 he and his wife, Suzie, opened their first—now legendary—bakery in Berkeley. In 1989 Acme built a larger wholesale facility on 9th street. In 1996 Acme opened a bakery in Mountain View in order to provide better service to the South Bay. In 2003 Acme joined the marketplace at the Ferry building in San Francisco.
Technology
Acme is an artisan bakery. Much of the work is done by hand. At the commercial facility in Berkeley, modern German-made deck ovens as well as a 1930s Spanish brick oven are used. Sullivan says, “people make the bread, not machines.â€
Principles
Sullivan’s aim is to bake the best possible bread. Acme rarely advertises, allowing the product to speak for itself.
Practices
Acme strives for consistency as well as quality. Rigorous training is an essential tool for achieving this consistency. “Acme uses only organic flour and works closely with farmers in evaluating and selecting the grain varieties for its flour each year. Three shifts of bakers work around the clock, seven days a week at the Berkeley bakery in order to meet customer demand.â€
“The organic flour used to make Acme’s bread is grown in Washington, Colorado, Utah and Canada, and milled in Utah. Butter and milk are purchased from Challenge Dairy, which uses hormone-free milk from California farms.â€
Length of relationship with Oliveto
since 1986
Location
Berkeley, Mountain View, San Francisco
Products
20 varieties of bread
Distribution
Available at Market Hall, Andronico’s, Whole Foods, Elephant Pharmacy, Berkeley Bowl as well as their retail bakery in Berkeley. They sell directly to various restaurants throughout the bay area.
In her mid-fifties, Cindy Callahan left a career in nursing to begin tending sheep and raising lambs initially used for brush and grass control. Following the suggestion of a friend to milk the sheep turned her on to the potential of running a sheep dairy farm.
To this day Cindy assists in the delivery of nearly every lamb on their farm. Using traditional methods studied by visiting cheese makers in Italy, Cindy’s son Liam makes every pound of cheese produced by Bellwether Farms.
Seasons
Ewes are milked until the end of November and have their lambs in January and February. Cheese is made daily, year-round.
Principles
Cindy finds being around sheep and making cheese both soothing and rewarding. The sheep are pastured and always outside. No herbicides, pesticides, or artificial fertilizers are used. Cindy says, “we use the highest quality milk available to make the best cheese possible.â€
Practices
The sheep of Bellwether Farms are a Northern European breed called East Friesian. They are taller than ordinary sheep and are known for their long pointed ears.
Cow’s milk comes from the Jersey cows of a nearby dairy. The milk of Jersey cows has a higher fat and protein count than that of Holsteins.
The mild temperatures of Sonoma are ideal for producing some of the richest and sweetest milk in the country.
Future plans
They have started making yogurt.
Length of relationship with Oliveto
15 years
Location
34 acres in southwestern Sonoma County between Petaluma and Bodega Bay
Products
Cow’s Milk Cheese (80% of production): Carmody, Carmody Reserve, Crescenza
Sheep’s Milk Cheese: San Andreas, Pepato
Fresh: Fromage Blanc, Crème Fraiche, Ricotta
Lambs are sold in the spring
Distribution
60% of income comes from retail sales. They also sell directly to restaurants.
Michele moved to the U.S. in 1998. He saw an opportunity in the Bay Area market for the cheeses he had grown up with in Italy. Fresca Italia is currently a four person company who all have a passion for great cheese. Michele goes back to Italy a few times a year to find new products and foster already established connections.
Future plans
To work with small-scale producers who keep tradition alive and provide unusual, excellent products. And to continue to find more products representative of Italian culture and make them available in the bay area while retaining a commitment to personal service.
Originally purchased in 1934, the Tenuta Columbara farm has been in the Rondolino family for three generations. Many of the structures still in use were built in the 16th century.
Principles
Producing the best rice possible, while preserving a toxin-free environment.
Practices
Under the direction of Rinaldo Rondolino, Acquerello has become certified organic with such biological introductions as herbivorous amur carp.
The rice is harvested each October and aged in temperature controlled storerooms for a minimum of one year before milling.
Golden Crescent Health Foods was founded in 1940 by Matthew and Amelia Giusto. It was the very first health food store in California. What began as a small bakery and retail health food business eventually grew to a successful multi-faceted operation with milling, baking, packaging and warehouse facilities. They have passed the business and traditions on to their two sons, Fred and Al who have helped the company grow and have increased Giuto’s name recognition across the West United States. Using modern methods of milling and blending has enabled the Giustos to increase production without sacrificing quality.
Principles
Grains used are from the same high-quality farms year after year, so the quality of the flour is first-rate and it is also reliable.
Practices
Work with an established network of farmers who grow premium varieties of grains exclusively for Giusto’s mills. Giusto’s grains maintain nearly 100% of their nutritional value. All of Giusto’s organic flours are from their own mills and are delivered fresh (organic unbleached flours require a two-week aging and maturing period.) Milled to order, most of the grain is roller milled, stone ground or hammer milled through an air-cooled system.
Length of relationship with Oliveto
several years
Location
The bulk of the milling is done in South San Francisco. Although they do operate one mill in Utah.
Products
Flour
Secondary products: pancake mix, scone mix, baking chocolate, cocoa, spices, sea salts, oils. They also create specialized flours to suit unique customer needs.
Carlo Di Ruocco and his family; wife Marie-Francoise, sons John and Luigi, and daughter Laura.
“We at Mr. Espresso remain committed to bringing you the best of this Old World tradition. We encourage our customers to take care, take time, and take pleasure in our coffees.â€
Mr. Espresso has since grown into a thriving business, now with an established countrywide reputation. Carlo, Marie-Francoise, and the next generation of the Di Ruocco family work together in the Oakland showroom and roasting facility to ensure that what they began thirty years ago will endure.
Technology
Mr. Espresso roasts its coffee in traditional old roasting machines fueled with oak wood. Mr. Espresso blends beans only after each varietal has been roasted individually and brought to its fullest flavor.
Principles
Contrary to popular belief, espresso does not mean quick, or “express.” Rather, the word refers to the fact that this densely flavored brew is made “expressly” for one person. It is crafted to be a refined expression of the essence of coffee itself.
Practices
Carlo and John choose all the beans at Mr. Espresso. Both were trained in Italy where the bean selection process uses espresso instead of an infused coffee in the tasting process. This method aims to achieve a rounder, milder balance in the finished product. Additionally, they travel overseas frequently to monitor bean quality and stay current with the world coffee market.
Paul Johnson began as a chef in Berkeley who got into the fish distribution business. He started by selling to a number of restaurants. Tom Worthington joined the business in 1980.
Challenges
Sustainability. Unreliable fish stock.
Principles
They enjoy working with restaurants and watching chefs from different cultural backgrounds approach/prepare the same product. The believe strongly in sustainability and want a healthy ocean for future generations.
Practices
They only buy from fisherman who catch their products in a responsible manner. They don’t just sell fish, they write, lecture, and educate. They aim to be more than “just†a fishmonger. They assist fleets of trolling vessels in converting to hook and line fishing which is a much cleaner method. Employees are involved in all facets of the seafood industry. They give priority to hiring people who have previously been involved in some facet of the culinary world. Consultations happen frequently with a diverse group of industry leaders such as representatives from National Marine Fisheries, National Fisheries and Fisherman’s Associations. This network also includes environmental activists, educational and health experts as well as celebrated chefs.
Length of relationship with Oliveto
several years
Location
Wholesale: Pier 33, San Francisco Retail: 1582 Hopkins Street, Berkeley
Products
Seafood from wild sources, nothing is farmed.
Organizations/Certification
HACCP compliant
All seafood comes from certified waters which are tested by the appropriate state and local health agencies weekly.
Distribution
Wholesale and retail as well as a number of restaurants.
Willis started raising rabbits in San Mateo in a friend’s backyard. Willis’ grandfather raised rabbits, so it is part of his family tradition. When he retired, he moved to Santa Rosa. In 1981, the man who processed Willis’ rabbits abruptly went out of business, leaving Willis with 300 rabbits he needed to bring to market. So, he decided to start his own plant.
Seasons/Cycles
March – June the rabbits do well and breed. In the heat of summer (July – August) and the cold of winter (November – February) the rabbits do not breed well.
Why are you in raising rabbits? Philosophy/Principles
Willis and Priscilla both enjoy being around animals even though they are demanding and take a lot of care and attention.
Uniqueness/Strategic Advantages
The Jones raise the California White breed which are known for their bulk and meat. Each rabbit has its own pen. Four licensed meat inspectors work at their processing plant, bringing a great deal of knowledge and experience to the work at the plant. They are the only Californian rabbit processing plant north of San Francisco.
Length of Relationship with Oliveto
5 years
Location
2 acres in Santa Rosa
Main Business
They own and operate a meat processing plant where they slaughter rabbits and poultry on Saturdays. Secondary business: Raising rabbits
The ranch has been in the family for 4 generations. Mac’s mother grew up on the ranch and Mac’s father grew up on a plantation in Mississippi, studied as a banker, and then went into the Navy before he married Mac’s mother and took up ranching.
Mac graduated from the University of Washington in 1976 with a degree in sculpture, a profession which he seriously considered pursuing full-time before returning to the ranch. Mac’s father had a substantial pear orchard, but Mac decided on a different route and devoted his energy to cattle.
The prospect of raising cattle the right way held his interest. He found that customers/restaurants were interested in and supportive of what he was doing, which he found affirming.
Seasons
Calves are typically born in the last winter or early spring, but Mac is beginning to calve in the fall as well. January – March are slow months for slaughtering.
Challenges
Getting the public to understand that without ranching, we will no longer have open space. Getting the public to understand that you are what you eat. That it is in everyone’s best interest for those who eat beef to eat beef from cattle raised in a healthy manner.
Principles
Mac employs a controlled, rotational grazing system, which is a sustainable way to graze. The idea is to take responsibility for the land. He does not use any hormones or antibiotics.
Practices
Mac markets cows of different ages. The taste of cow varies with age.
Length of relationship with Oliveto
2 years at time of post
Location
Potter Valley, Mendocino Country
Products
Cattle – 450 head
Secondary products: hill hogs – 100 head
Distribution
Restaurants, individuals who have storage for large cuts
Established in 1931
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