At Living Tree Community Foods we feel it is essential to support family farmers. As the Cornucopia Institute states:
“Almond farmers and handlers engaged in the sale of raw and/or organic almonds have watched their operations disintegrate as a result of the treatment mandate. Consumers and retailers have turned to foreign suppliers, taking advantage of the regulatory loophole, for untreated raw and organic almonds. (sic)”
At Living Tree Community we have been buying almonds from California family farmers since 1979. For decades, we have operated with the value that established business relations based upon a handshake, a smile and a look in the eye are surely the best foundation of a fruitful relationship. We refuse to give this up. We refuse to deal with an anonymous, multinational conglomerate in Europe. We refuse to participate in “outsourcing” almond growers to other countries.
The city of Fresno in California is in the heart of the almond growing region. Unemployment there is a shocking 17%. 35 miles west of Fresno lies the town of Mendota, where nearly half the people there are unemployed! The situation conjures images from the Great Depression and the Grapes of Wrath with farm workers idled as farmland goes fallow. This is a national disgrace! We have got to support California family farmers!
It is in this spirit that we are pleased to offer only California almonds to our customers.
