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September 23, 2016 CapitalPress.com 7 Washington After a good 2016, sweet onion farmers set for 2017 Walla Walla yields were average to above-average By MATTHEW WEAVER Capital Press Dan Wheat/Capital Press A group of growers has purchased the former Chelan Fruit Cooperative packing plant in Orondo, Wash., and formed Pine Canyon Growers LLC. Group of growers starts new fruit company By DAN WHEAT Capital Press ORONDO, Wash. — A new tree fruit packing com- pany is operating in the small town of Orondo, 18 miles north of Wenatchee. The move apparently defies the industry trend of larger companies squeezing out smaller ones. Pine Canyon Growers LLC was registered with the state on June 1. It bought 15 acres and the former Chelan Fruit Cooperative packing plant in Orondo June 24 for $2.27 million, according to Douglas County assessor records. Andy Feil, co-owner of the new business, said he and his partners did not want to be interviewed. Other co-owners are: Ryan Vickery, a fieldman for Northern Fruit Co.; Starla Graham; Stephen Skylstad, all of East Wenatchee; and Josh Lawrence of Royal City. Chelan Fruit bought the plant from Orondo Fruit Co. in 2012 when Orondo Fruit went out of business. Oron- do Fruit was owned by the Griggs family for three gen- erations. Marcus Griggs, former owner, said Feil and some of his partners have or- Dan Wheat/Capital Press Bins belonging to the new grower-owned Pine Canyon Growers LLC are stacked at the former Chelan Fruit Cooperative packing plant in Orondo, Wash. chards and are packing their fruit at the plant. A spouse of one the partners appar- ently is a buyer for a Cali- fornia produce company, he said. Chelan Fruit outgrew the Orondo plant for use in its organic program, said Reg- gie Collins, Chelan Fruit general manager. Prior to selling the plant, Chelan Fruit co-packed with Feil and his partners under the name Western Traders, Collins said. Orondo area growers who began taking their fruit to Chelan Fruit in 2012 still are doing so, he said. At that time, he said about 80 percent of seven dozen growers joined Chel- an Fruit when Orondo Fruit dissolved. Griggs said he still owns the rights to Orondo Ruby, a cherry variety, and sells it through Chelan Fresh Mar- keting. Orondo Fruit packed about 1 million boxes of apples and 60,000 to 70,000 boxes of cherries annually. The only other fruit com- pany in the Orondo area is Auvil Fruit Co. Yields for Walla Walla sweet onions were average to above-average this past sea- son, oficials say. Average yield is 650 50-pound units per acre. “If anything, they’re up,” said Kathy Fry-Trommald, executive director of the Wal- la Walla Sweet Onion Market- ing Committee in Walla Walla, Wash. Farmers recently inished seeding next year’s crop, said Michael J. Locati, farmer and president of the marketing committee. Walla Walla sweets are specialty onions protected by a federal marketing order that designates a speciic growing area. Harvest ended in mid-Au- gust. Cool weather in June pre- sented some disease prob- lems, but made for a pleasant harvest, Locati said. “It wasn’t 110 degrees for 10 days like last year,” he said. Growers dealt with downy mildew, which hadn’t been seen for three decades, ac- cording to some old-timers, Locati said. “With an open winter and a cool, wet spring, it presented kind of different challenges than we’ve had in the past,” he said. “Most people got through it and, I think, were satisied with how things turned out.” Labor is also a big need. “Everything is hand-har- vested,” Locati said. Acreage held steady at roughly 500 acres. Courtesy of Walla Walla Sweet Onion Marketing Committee Walla Walla Sweet Onion Marketing Committee executive director Kathy Fry-Trommald, bottom right, poses with her aunt, uncle and husband during the Walla Walla Sweet Onion Festival in June 2016 in Walla Walla, Wash. Onion farmers are reporting average to above-average yields for the 2016 season, but cooler weather led to dealing with downy mildew for the irst time in decades. About 20 farmers raise Walla Walla sweet onions, and 10 handlers sell the onions, Fry-Trommald said. “The sales and the acreage go hand-in-hand,” Fry-Trom- mald said. “If you just plant a thousand acres with the hope of selling it, you might be re- ally disappointed. These guys try to have their sales igured out a year ahead, so they know how much to plant and not have too much.” The market is full of sweet onion options, she added, but those alternatives are high in py- ruvic acid, which make onions pungent, and “are not juicy and sweet like a Walla Walla.” Demand for Walla Wallas remains high, she said. “I think the Walla Walla sweet fan club is as big as ever,” she said. Fry-Trommald will begin receiving seasonal reports from farmers in mid-Octo- ber for their fall planting and spring estimates to deter- mine an assessment for next year’s budget. Locati expects the same acreage next year. “I think we’ve kind of found that medium,” he said. Anything he’s hoping for in 2017? “High price and good yield,” he said with a laugh. “And then someone to cut it.” Wash. FFA Foundation hires full-time director Organization emphasizes member opportunities By MATTHEW WEAVER Capital Press Marissa Dunn is the new Washington State FFA Foun- dation executive director, a position that has been expand- ed to become full-time. “FFA makes such a posi- tive difference in the lives of its members regarding their personal leadership develop- ment and their future career success,” said Dunn. “One of our main objectives is to con- nect agriculture businesses and organizations with indi- viduals in Washington FFA to create great opportunities.” The foundation also places a priority on supporting agri- cultural teachers, Dunn said. Dunn lives on a farm in Central Washington with her husband and daughter, raising apples, pears, hay and cat- tle. She grew up in Spokane County, showing sheep and competing at the state con- vention during all four years of high school. She was a state FFA oficer and a national oficer candi- date. After high school, she worked a legislative session in Olympia for the Washing- ton State Grange. “The FFA is the organiza- tion that personally gave me such remarkable opportuni- ties to learn, travel and devel- op leadership skills,” she said. “I want this organization to be very successful, and I want FFA to continue to make a dif- ference in the lives of students across the state — just like it did for me.” Courtesy of Marissa Dunn Marissa Dunn is the new full-time executive director of the Washington State FFA Foundation. Online http://waffafoundation.org/ Contact Dunn at marissa@ washingtonffa.org Dunn replaces Stewart Padelford, who held the job on a part-time basis for 6 1/2 years. The foundation irst began in the 1970s, but had been inactive for years, Padelford said. Padelford said he wanted to get the foundation to the point that the position could become full-time. “We were trying to re-en- ergize it, and I think we’ve ac- complished that,” he said. Padelford’s last day was July 30, but he has been help- ing with the transition. “I think she has all the nec- essary tools and skills to make the foundation grow,” he said. Padelford is proudest of emphasizing career aware- ness for FFA members, build- ing connections between FFA Matthew Weaver/Capital Press Stewart Padelford, the retired executive director of the Washington State FFA foundation. and the industry and develop- ing a three-day program in the summer that gives students the opportunity to meet with statewide agriculture industry leaders. Dunn said inancial sup- port and volunteers are the foundation’s biggest needs for the future. Corporate and individual investments help continue leadership programs, state career development events and to support mem- bers and state oficers travel to various events, including nationals, and purchase FFA jackets for members who can’t afford them. “If anyone has the time and passion to help his or her local chapter, it makes a tremendous difference,” she said. “Anyone who can be available to help with career development events, fairs, scholarship applications, the state convention, leadership trainings, travel and/or ad- ditional resources, we’d cer- tainly love to connect with them.” 39-1/#14
