{"id":11008,"date":"2025-12-13T20:16:28","date_gmt":"2025-12-14T05:16:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/inedc.com\/26\/?p=11008"},"modified":"2025-12-13T20:16:28","modified_gmt":"2025-12-14T05:16:28","slug":"placerville-fruit-growers-association-from-rail-era-packing-giant-to-modern-farm-co-op","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/inedc.com\/26\/culture\/placerville-fruit-growers-association-from-rail-era-packing-giant-to-modern-farm-co-op\/","title":{"rendered":"Placerville Fruit Growers Association: From Rail-Era Packing Giant to Modern Farm Co-op"},"content":{"rendered":"

PLACERVILLE, Calif.<\/strong> \u2014 When Placerville Fruit Growers Association opened its doors in 1915 on Main Street<\/strong>, it was built for a different era\u2014one defined by wooden crates, ice-cold storage rooms and railcars hauling El Dorado County fruit to markets thousands of miles away.<\/p>\n

More than a century later, the cooperative remains in operation, though its mission has evolved alongside the region it helped shape.<\/p>\n

\u201cNobody knows everything. That\u2019s part of the fun of farming,<\/strong>\u201d said John Caswell<\/strong>, manager of Placerville Fruit Growers Association, which now operates from an 8-acre facility at 4600 Missouri Flat Road<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

From Main Street to the nation\u2019s markets<\/h3>\n

Placerville Fruit Growers began as a cold-storage and packing cooperative<\/strong>, formed so local orchardists could pool resources and gain leverage in pricing and shipping. \u201cPlacerville Fruit Growers started off as a co-op because there is strength in numbers,<\/strong>\u201d Caswell said.<\/p>\n

By the 1940s and 1950s<\/strong>, that strategy paid off. PFGA grew into one of the largest packing operations in the United States<\/strong>, representing about 300 member growers<\/strong> at its peak. Pears were the backbone of the business, prized for their durability during the two- to three-week rail journey<\/strong> to East Coast markets. Oranges were also shipped.<\/p>\n

Historic photographs and county exhibits document PFGA\u2019s reliance on the Placerville Branch railroad<\/strong>, with packing sheds and rail spurs forming the backbone of the operation. During those years, El Dorado County ranked among the state\u2019s most productive pear regions.<\/p>\n

Crisis and reinvention<\/h3>\n

According to figures provided by the association, El Dorado County produced 52,000 tons of pears from 3,400 acres in 1958<\/strong>. But a devastating blight swept through orchards in the late 1950s and early 1960s, cutting production to 8,500 tons by 1962<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The collapse forced a reckoning.<\/p>\n

Growers began diversifying into apples, cherries, wine grapes, peaches, nectarines and Christmas trees<\/strong>, particularly in what became known as Apple Hill<\/strong>. That diversification, coupled with direct-to-consumer \u201cranch marketing,\u201d laid the groundwork for the region\u2019s agritourism economy.<\/p>\n

Leaders such as Ed Delfino<\/strong>, a former El Dorado County agriculture commissioner, and Joan Delfino<\/strong> helped organize growers and promote Apple Hill as a destination, reshaping how local farms survived in a post-pear economy. Early wineries, including those operated by the Boeger family<\/strong>, further shifted crop choices and market demands.<\/p>\n

PFGA adapted as well. As rail freight gave way to trucking, the cooperative continued supporting growers with supplies, storage and shared infrastructure. During the Vietnam War era, the association even rented warehouse space and packaged K-rations for U.S. troops<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere were always jobs available,\u201d Caswell said, noting that many local high school students worked summer shifts at the plant.<\/p>\n

Fire, relocation and a new chapter<\/h3>\n

In 1976<\/strong>, a devastating fire destroyed the PFGA facility<\/strong>, marking the end of an era. The loss prompted relocation to Missouri Flat Road, where the cooperative rebuilt and redefined itself.<\/p>\n

Caswell noted that the organization\u2019s survival over more than 105 years<\/strong> came down to leadership. One of those leaders was his own grandfather, who joined the co-op in 1917<\/strong>. \u201cThey had good leaders and good board members who were open to new ideas,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

PFGA today<\/h3>\n

Today, Placerville Fruit Growers Association no longer ships fruit, but it remains a critical support hub for agriculture in El Dorado County. Membership now totals about 33 growers<\/strong>, ranging from large operations to small family farms, boutique wineries, ranchette owners and home gardeners.<\/p>\n

The store carries drip irrigation systems, fencing, water tanks, fertilizers\u2014organic and inorganic\u2014sprayers, PPE, stove pellets and specialty items<\/strong>, including owl boxes made in neighboring Amador County. PFGA also offers a certified public weigh scale<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t judge,<\/strong>\u201d Caswell said of fertilizer choices, adding, \u201cWe have hard-to-find items, things you can\u2019t get elsewhere.<\/strong>\u201d<\/p>\n

Store manager Norm Hammond<\/strong>, an employee of 16 years, said he enjoys the work because he is \u201calways learning on the job.<\/strong>\u201d Sales associate Beau Cleveland<\/strong>, with four years at PFGA, said helping customers solve problems is the best part of the job.<\/p>\n

The cooperative is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.<\/strong> and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.<\/strong>, and is closed Sundays. More information is available at (530) 622-2640<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

A collective legacy<\/h3>\n

While no single celebrity name defines Placerville Fruit Growers Association, its true legacy lies in the hundreds of grower-members<\/strong>\u2014many from long-established pear and apple families\u2014who built the cooperative together. Their work endures in vintage fruit crate labels, wooden boxes preserved in local collections, and in the continued viability of agriculture across the county.<\/p>\n

As Caswell sees it, PFGA\u2019s story is ultimately about resilience. \u201cFarming keeps changing,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd we\u2019ve learned to change with it.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Once the nation\u2019s largest fruit packer, Placerville Fruit Growers Association still anchors El Dorado County agriculture more than a century later<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11009,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":{"format":"standard","override":[{"template":"7","parallax":"1","layout":"no-sidebar-narrow","sidebar":"default-sidebar","second_sidebar":"default-sidebar","sticky_sidebar":"1","share_position":"float","share_float_style":"share-normal","show_share_counter":"1","show_view_counter":"1","show_featured":"1","show_post_meta":"1","show_post_author":"1","show_post_author_image":"1","show_post_date":"1","post_date_format":"default","post_date_format_custom":"Y\/m\/d","show_post_category":"1","post_reading_time_wpm":"300","post_calculate_word_method":"str_word_count","show_zoom_button":"0","zoom_button_out_step":"2","zoom_button_in_step":"3","show_post_tag":"1","show_popup_post":"1","show_comment_section":"1","number_popup_post":"1","show_author_box":"1","show_post_related":"1","show_inline_post_related":"1"}],"image_override":[{"single_post_thumbnail_size":"crop-500","single_post_gallery_size":"crop-500"}],"trending_post_position":"meta","trending_post_label":"Trending","sponsored_post_label":"Sponsored by","disable_ad":"0","subtitle":"Founded in 1915, PFGA\u2019s century-long evolution mirrors the rise, fall and reinvention of El Dorado County agriculture"},"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":{"view_counter_number":"0","share_counter_number":"0","like_counter_number":"0","dislike_counter_number":"0"},"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11008","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture"],"yoast_head":"\nPlacerville Fruit Growers Association: From Rail-Era Packing Giant to Modern Farm Co-op - 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