Our Musings

Why Organic?
Organic farming, despite popular belief, is nothing new.  It is a return to our forebears’ natural way of farming.  In short, Organic Farming insures the land we farm remains viable for generations to come by not relying on potentially harmful chemicals.  The bottom line is organically grown fruit just tastes better and may be better for you.  All citrus grown at Pleasant Valley Ranch is certified organic.

What differentiates our award-winning, certified organic oranges from the shiny oranges you find in your grocery store?  All kinds of things, but we’ll sum it up for you here with our Tale of Two Oranges.  You might be surprised by how different the journey of our farm-fresh oranges is compared to that of a conventional grocery store orange.

From the tree to your table, let's compare a few important elements:

1.)    Sweetness:
Commercial growers pick all the oranges from a grove as soon as the citrus reaches the legal minimum sugar level.  This minimum level is not very sweet – in fact, it’s closer to the sweetness of our lemons.  Pleasant Valley Ranch's award-winning, organic oranges are picked only after they are well above this level and have past our own family's incredibly sensitive taste-tests.  The longer the oranges are on the tree, the sweeter they get!

2.)    Appearance:
The non-organic blemish-free, shiny oranges found in grocery stores have almost certainly been processed by a commercial packinghouse.  This means the oranges are washed, waxed for preservation, and then placed into cold storage until they are delivered to your neighborhood store.  A total of 2 to 4 weeks might pass from the time the fruit is picked until it’s actually placed on the shelf at the store, which is why the fruit has to be washed and waxed.  This is also why people are used to fruit that looks delicious on the outside but then is bland on the inside.  We pick, pack and ship directly from our farm to your front door using traditional, small farm practices.  We use soft, dry brushes to ensure a wax-free, natural shine before we hand-pack the organic oranges you order from us.  A shipment of our oranges is, perhaps, the closest thing to having an award-winning tree planted right in your own backyard!

3.)    Health & Nutrition:
Appearance isn’t everything; wouldn't you agree?  So even though conventional, grocery store oranges might be big, shiny and beautiful on the outside, it’s what’s inside that counts.  Food, whether conventionally or organically produced, loses beneficial nutrients as it ages, so minimizing the time that passes between when fruit is picked and when it’s actually eaten is important.  Is conventional, cold-storaged fruit less flavorful than farm-fresh?  You be the judge.  Consider one last point when comparing store-bought fruit with our farm's organic oranges: the skin of an orange is porous, similar to human skin.  Once an orange has been covered with wax, how easy is it to wash off potentially harmful sprays that were applied to fruit before it was processed?


The Oranges Speak for Themselves
Choosing to support a small family farm that only uses organic farming practices is good for the local economy and good for the planet.  And most importantly, the fruit itself is good for your family.

We hope you’ve enjoyed our Tale of Two Oranges, but we know you only have to taste a Pleasant Valley Ranch orange to fully experience the difference between a hand-picked, organically grown orange and a conventional orange you find in the grocery store.  Orange you glad you know where your citrus comes from?