Meet The Farmers

At Living Tree Community Foods we feel privileged to support family farmers. The family farm is being systematically wiped out of existence in America. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the number of farms in the United States has fallen from about 6.8 million in 1935 to only about 2 million today. Family farms are being replaced by big agribusiness. It’s characterized by growing vegetables and fruits in windowless shipping containers in chemical soup.They call it “hydroponics”. Whereas family farmers are dedicated to building soil fertility. They are the true husbandmen of their soil, plants and animals.Their wholehearted integrity comes through in the vibrancy of their produce.

Thomas Jefferson’s words of over 200 years ago reverberate with us:

“Cultivators of the earth are the most valuable citizens. They are the most vigorous, the most independent, the most virtuous, and they are tied to their country and wedded to its liberty and interests by the most lasting bonds.” –Thomas Jefferson to John Jay, 1785.

These are just a few of the family farms we have been working with for decades. We're working hard to add them all soon.

Wayne Ferrari of Ferrari Farms

Wayne Ferrari Walnut farmer

Wayne and his father, George, started farming together back in 1963, and it’s been a family operation ever since.  Today, Wayne and his wife, Irene, continue to farm with their two sons, Jeff and Greg, and their daughter, Gina.

As a family operation, we take great pride in what we grow.  We want each piece of fruit and walnut to be the best you have ever tasted.  After all, it’s our name on the box.  We’re still small enough to allow for a hands on approach to farming.  It’s our farm.  We do things our way.   If we grow it, then we sell it ourselves.

Read more

The Makela Family

Makela family olive farmers

Our raw and organic Eight Fruit Olive Oil and organic olives are created for you by the Makela family. They arrived in California in 1778. Decades later, in 1855, their Great, Great Grandfather, Jules Goux, planted the first commercial olive grove. Today, the tradition continues with the tenth generation who are still growing organic olives on their family’s fertile land and making a magnificent olive oil.

Working with wife Cindy, the Makela’s starting packing olives in their garage in 1982. Buying olives from west coast suppliers, they created the well-known Santa Barbara Olive Company brand.

In 1990 they purchased their own 17 acres…

Read more

Pete and Tom Postelwait

Pete and Tom Postelwait grow our Organic Pumpkin Seeds

Our pumpkin seeds are grown by Pete and Tom Postelwait in the wondrous fertile Willamette Valley in Oregon.

Even though the pumpkin originated here, for years nearly all the pumpkin seeds available here were grown in China.  Now through the enterprise of family farmers, American grown organic pumpkin seeds are back.

Read more

Polit Family Farmers

Polit Family Farmers

We are a small family owned and operated farm that was established in 1983, on the fertile land of Colusa and Glenn County. We started out growing organic rice and shortly after, moved into milling, packaging and shipping. 30 years later, we ventured into growing organic olives for the production of organic extra virgin olive oil. Fresh from the groves, to our brand new, Alfa Laval olive mill; we are able to control every aspect of the process to achieve the highest quality organic EVOO. We hope you enjoy!

Read more

Judith Redmond

Judith Redmond from Full Belly Farm

Judith Redmond is one of the four family farmers who own Full Belly Farms, one of the finest organic farms in California.
This 300-acre certified organic farm located in the beautiful Capay Valley of Northern California, an hour northwest of Sacramento. Full Belly has been farmed using organic practices since 1985 and is certified by California Certified Organic Farmers.

With help from about 45 to 55 employees, the farm produces an amazing diversity of vegetables, herbs, nuts, flowers, and fruits year-round. The farm also has a flock of chickens, a herd of sheep, and several cows.

Full Belly’s system includes: growing and marketing over 80 different crops; providing…

Read more

Nic, Steve and Dave

Almond farmers, Nick and Dave

Our almonds are produced by Nic, Steve and David Koretoff, California family farmers of five generations. 

Read more

Olivia and Darro Grieco

Darro and Olivia Grieco

Darro and Olivia Grieco, Masters of the Berkeley Olive Grove 1913, Receive Gold Medals.

Olivia and Darro Grieco, the producers of this olive oil, were awarded two gold medals and a silver medal by the New York International Olive Oil Competition (the largest in the world), and three gold medals the previous year. He is a magnificent family farmer, the true husbandman of his soil, plants and animals.

Darro and Olivia have just returned from Cyprus and Greece where they received gold medals at the Aristoleo Awards and the Olympia Health & Nutrition Awards.

These two venues focus on high phenols and health and nutrition in contrast to the…

Read more