California lawmakers urge federal government to help peach growers dropped by Del Monte
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Lawmakers ask USDA for $9M to fund orchard rip-outs, tied to a $12M plan.
- Over 50,000 tons stranded—about 3,000 acres lack buyers amid lost processing capacity.
- They seek access to disaster programs, tech help and local economic support.
Congressional lawmakers from California have urged the U.S. Department of Agriculture to subsidize Central Valley peach growers still reeling from the collapse of Del Monte Foods and the closure of its Modesto cannery.
In a letter sent Friday to USDA secretary Brooke Rollins, the senators and representatives asked for the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service to provide $9 million for growers to rip out peach orchards and pivot to another crop.
The amount aligns with a $12 million tree-pull program pitched to the federal department by the California Canning Peach Association, which included a $3 million match funded by the association and industry.
Lawmakers also requested that affected growers gain access to existing disaster and market disruption programs, such as the Farm Service Agency’s Tree Assistance Program, and that the department provide technical assistance and economic development support to the communities affected by the blow to the industry.
“Many impacted growers are multi-generational family farmers who have invested decades in orchards built around stable processor relationships,” lawmakers wrote. “These operations anchor local employment and regional economies. Without a proper response, there is a risk of long-term structured damage to our nation’s agricultural base.”
A harvest without a home
The appeal to the USDA was led by Reps. Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena, David Valadoa, R-Hanford, and Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., according to a statement from Thompson, whose district is expanding to include the heavily-affected Yuba-Sutter area when the voter-approved redistricting goes into effect.
Del Monte canceled its 20-year contracts, which last year yielded about 74,000 tons of cling peaches for the company, after it declared bankruptcy last July. Now more than 50,000 tons of peaches under contract with Del Monte and delivered to its Modesto cannery from last summer’s harvest remain without a buyer.
The last remaining peach canner, Pacific Coast Producers, offered one-year contracts for about 24,000 tons of the stranded peaches, after it was announced in mid-January that no one bought the Modesto facility through bankruptcy auction.
Growers held hope that a new owner would buy the cannery, which their canceled long-term contracts — collectively valued at more than $550 million — could be picked up to supply, but without the Modesto facility in operation, the industry lacks the capacity to can and process the remaining fruit.
Expect to remove orchards
In turn, many growers expect to remove their orchards, ripping peach trees of various varieties and ages from the ground to plant another crop in their place. The 50,000 tons of unaccounted for peaches equates to about 3,000 acres of orchards growing without a buyer, according to the canning association.
The proposed $12 million tree-pull program is based on similar federal support the cling peach industry received in 2005.
The Sutter County agricultural commissioner, in a letter to the canning association, warned of the possibility of abandoned orchards, which trigger fines for their operators and cause pest-related problems that may harm neighboring farmland.
This story was originally published March 16, 2026 at 5:00 AM.
