Pepper market grows as Hispanic culture influences American
cuisine
The bell pepper, for years one of the better performers but
never the star among Santa Clara County agricultural moneymakers,
last year almost doubled its worth compared to the year before.
Pepper market grows as Hispanic culture influences American cuisine
The bell pepper, for years one of the better performers but never the star among Santa Clara County agricultural moneymakers, last year almost doubled its worth compared to the year before.
The mild peppers are hot – in culinary terms – because of the increasing popularity of the sauces, salsas and condiments that incorporate them, according to George Chiala, whose family grows bells and the really hot chilies as well as a variety of other crops.
“All peppers have been increasingly popular for at least 10 years,” said Glenita Gordon, who after six and one-half years is closing her Garlic Grocery at the Premium Outlets in Gilroy at the end of month to sell her own line of gourmet foods.
Peppers – spicy and otherwise — Gordon said, have found their way into oils, marinades, sauces and salad dressings as Latin American cultures continue to influence American cuisine, and South County farmers are among the beneficiaries. Salsa long ago replaced ketchup as the No. 1 condiment, and now the Fancy Food Show, an institution in San Francisco, New York and Chicago for more than 25 years, where hundreds of gourmet food manufacturers’ showcase their best and latest products, including pepper-based goodies.
“The increase in pepper popularity is related to the consumption of prepared sauces that make fixing dinner easy. They taste good and they’re a hit with all age groups,” said Jenny Derry, executive director of the Santa Clara County Farm Bureau.
Research has sparked a lot of interest in specialty peppers, according to Maria de la Fuente, a farm adviser and director of the University of California Cooperative Extension in Santa Clara County.
De la Fuente and two associates in 1996 held a field day for pepper growers, home gardeners, food processors and seed company representatives to examine the 85 varieties of peppers they had tested for adaptability in the valley.
“Four years later, we had 150 varieties,” de la Fuente said.
“Ethnic growers, Mexican and Asians whose cuisine features spicy food, are especially interested.”
Two Mexican growers have switched their production from bell peppers to jalapenos, she said, because they are more disease resistant, command a higher price and don’t have to meet demanding esthetic standards required of bell peppers.
The new demand for peppers, especially bells, has translated into increased production in Santa Clara County.
Bell peppers, fifth in dollar value in Santa Clara County in 2000 at $8.7 million, jumped to third place in 2001 with a value of just over $16 million.
Bell acreage increased during the same period, too, from 1,744 to 1,994. Since 1998 when 1,300 acres of bells were cultivated, county production has increased more than 50 percent.
The production of all other peppers also has increased, a result of their use in a variety of foods from gourmet to run-of-the-mill food products.
Wax and chili peppers acreage in South Valley has increased from 400 in 1998 to 535 last year. The dollar value of the same increased modesty last year to $4.5 million from $3.6 million the year before.
Hot peppers get their zing from a substance called capsaicin. The degree of bite in Scoville units– the number of drops of water it requires to neutralize a drop of pepper juice.
Hotness runs from the bell at zero to the wicked habanero, which can reach 300,000 Scoville units (after chemist Wibur Scoville, who devised the system). The commonly used Serrano is rated from 7,000 to 25,000 Scoville units, while the milder jalapeno gets 3,500 to 4,500 units.
“The South Valley is a good area for peppers because of soil and climate. We’ve seen steady growth,” said Chiala, who cultivates a variety of fresh, frozen, roasted and shelf-stable crops, including garlic, strawberries and raspberries.
All Chiala peppers are picked by hand and 10 percent of them are raised organically.
Uesgui Farms is one of the major supplier of peppers of all kinds, growing its own and buying from a half-dozen small growers.
Uesugi, he said, grows peppers throughout the year – Arizona in May and June, California from July through October or November and in Mexico from November to May.
“We’re the main supplier of raw products for Pace. If you eat their picante sauce, you may well be eating a pepper grown in Santa Clara County,” Joe Aiello said.
