Del Monte bankruptcy prompts massive peach tree removal in California

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

California peach growers are set to destroy roughly 420,000 clingstone peach trees after the collapse of a decades-long partnership with Del Monte Foods left farmers without buyers for tens of thousands of tons of fruit.

The move comes after the Department of Agriculture approved up to $9 million in federal relief funding to help California farmers remove about 3,000 acres of peach orchards ahead of the 2026 harvest season, according to a release from Sen. Adam Schiff and California lawmakers.

The emergency aid comes after the closure of Del Monte processing facilities in two California towns, Modesto and Hughson, a fallout following the food giant’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing last year.

Why California peach farmers are removing trees

Central California growers were thrown into crisis after Del Monte permanently shuttered its canneries in April, canceling many longtime grower contracts and leaving farmers with no major processing outlet for their clingstone peaches.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/del-monte-bankruptcy-prompts-massive-peach-tree-removal-in-california/ar-AA22yDgn

[Auggie]

1. $3,000 an acre, according to my math

$9 million divided by 3000. That doesn't sound like enough. Remove one acre of trees and dispose debris. Lot of work.

[msongs]

2. seems like another mega foods corporation would swoop in and buy these trees. after all

there must be a market for canned peaches still existing

[ultralite001]

3. 💔💔💔

TIA

[Envirogal]

4. Private equity strikes again!

Every time I hear about a legacy brand going bankrupt, I search to see if they are owned by a private equity firm, and more times than not, it is.

They take all the long-acquired assets of the brand and then sell them off, bleed the company out and load it up with debt….and then use bankruptcy laws as the fallback, as well as tax write offs.

Toys R Us, Red Lobster, and the list goes on and on.