California strawberries are not only one of America’s healthiest and most popular fruits, but they have provided a path to the American Dream for generations of immigrants, according to a new report issued by the California Strawberry Commission.
The report documents the rich history illustrating the role strawberry farming plays in providing opportunity for immigrants.
“Perhaps more than any other crop, strawberries are defined by decades of immigrants from Europe, Asia and Mexico,” the report states. “Not only do they work in the fields as harvesters, but they benefit from the unique attributes of strawberry farming that create numerous opportunities for upward mobility, including farm ownership.”
“We celebrate strawberries as an all-American fruit that provides the opportunity to better our lives,” said Victor Ramirez, a third-generation strawberry farmer and the chairman of the California Strawberry Commission. “California strawberry farmers embody the pursuit of the American Dream by growing a crop that lends itself to achieving that goal. Their success plays out in their ability to grow 90 percent of the nation’s strawberries.”
A key theme in the report focuses on how the crop has provided opportunity for immigrants dating back at least to the early 1900s. Today, an estimated 65 percent of all the state’s strawberry farmers are of Mexican-American descent, according to the report. About 25 percent of these Latino strawberry farmers started out as field workers and worked their way up to become farm owners.
“Strawberry farming represents everything to my family,” says Luis Chavez, who came to the United States from a small town in Jalisco, Mexico. Chavez knew the path to success required hard work. After working double shifts for sixteen years, he and his family saved enough money to lease an acre to plant strawberries. While still working their regular jobs, Luis and his wife would get up at 4 AM every day to work their acre and slowly build their business. Gradually, they expanded to become self-sustaining and today they now have nearly 300 acres and employ 300 people.
According to the report, the path to ownership is possible because of several factors inherent to strawberry farming that support an environment for small farmers to operate successful businesses. These factors include lower barriers to entry, the ability to harvest a high-yield crop nearly year round on a small amount of land, and heavy consumer demand.
Alejandro Ramirez also found the courage to start a family strawberry farm. After working the fields for years with his wife, he started Alejandro Ramirez Farms.
“This is my pride,” says Ramirez. “Twenty years ago, I had nothing. The strawberry is my life. I’ve got the American Dream and I can’t ask for anything else.”