Call it a Code Orange.
One of the most famous baking groups in the nation is out to
save what some food experts are calling an endangered species
– the Blenheim apricot.
Call it a Code Orange.
One of the most famous baking groups in the nation is out to save what some food experts are calling an endangered species – the Blenheim apricot.
The apricot variety is indigenous to the Santa Clara Valley, but the orchards that once produced this tasteful treat have long since given way to development, and now, San Benito County is the last home to the Blenheim variety.
“We are the last of the Mohicans, a dying breed,” said Mari Rossi of B&R Farms.
At one time, there were about 50 Blenheim apricot growers in the county, but now that number as dropped to about eight.
So, in an effort to educate bakers and cooks about the history and future of the Blenheim, five area growers will present The Hollister Blenheim Apricot Summit to The Bakers Dozen July 14.
The Bakers Dozen, located in San Francisco, is a nationally known baking group whose members are interested in the testing of new recipes and in the art of baking. The group, founded by students of late chef James Beard, has as some of its members Julia Child, Marian Cunningham, John Carroll, Flo Braker and Nancy Kux.
During the summit, the local apricot growers will discuss the dilemma facing the Blenheim apricots, which some have labeled an endangered species.
“The Blenheim apricot has become an endangered species,” said Barbara Anderson, organizer of the event. “It is a very elite product.”
The local producers will present the future of their products as well as discuss the economics and life expectancy of the Blenheim apricots. The Bakers Dozen will then tour two apricot production sites and offer recipes using the apricot.
Taking part in the summit are local producers, B&R Farms, Filice Farms, Gibson Farms, Gonzales Farms and Sugar Plum Farms.
During the past three years, the local apricot industry has taken a dramatic downturn because of changes in the work force and competing imports.
“Turkey is our biggest competition,” said Kay Filice of Filice Farms. “Many growers are going out of business because we can’t begin to deliver our product to market for less than what it costs us to pick.”
However, local growers said producing apricots isn’t just about profits. It has become more of a family tradition.
Gonzales Orchards, a family-run orchard business since 1947, specializes in the Hollister Blenheim apricots, but making a profit isn’t easy.
“It has not been a profitable crop,” Patti Gonzales said. “It is more a labor of love and the pursuit to maintain family traditions.”
Rossi said without other crops to rely on, B&R Farms would not make it on apricots alone.
“We struggle year after year,” she said.
Unlike other apricots, the fresh Blenheim apricot cannot be found in the grocery stores because it has only a two-week window of opportunity in which growers can sell the product. What isn’t sold is either dried or canned.
“We deliver only to the local farmer’s markets,” Rossi said.
The Blenheim apricot is sweet and tart, honeyed and intensely aromatic, and is considered one of the state’s finest varieties.
Since Blenheims ripen from the inside out, pickers have learned to pick the fruit when it still carries a faint green tinge because if it was delayed until it became fully orange, it would be so ripe it would have to be eaten, canned, or dried immediately.
“They don’t travel well, and in three days, they’re gone,” Anderson said. “In two weeks, they’re gone.”
During the 1960s, Blenheim orchards began to decline when earlier-maturing varieties that ripened from the outside in and had better shipping qualities, started to be planted in the Central Valley. However, these varieties – Castlebright and Patterson – are not as flavorful, experts said.
According to the California Apricot Council, about 95 percent of the apricots grown in the United States come from California, with more than 400 growers covering 21,000 acres in the San Joaquin Valley and northern California.
“(But) the ones grown in the valley don’t have the flavor like the Blenheim,” Gonzales said.
The Hollister Blenheim Apricot Summit will be held at 10:30 a.m. July 14 at Dorothy McNett’s Place.
