Hooray! It’s apple season here in the Pacific Northwest, so I am dedicating my very first blog post (and many recipes to follow) to the apple.
I love apples. They are juicy, sweet, tart, and delicious! They are also a healthy source of both soluble and insoluble fiber and vitamin C and are full of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, most of which are locked up in the apple’s skin.
There are about 7,500 apple varieties grown worldwide; 2,500 of which are grown commercially in the United States, primarily in the states of California, Michigan, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington. My state of Washington is by far the largest producer of apples in the U.S. and in 2019, Washington farmers grew approximately 7.5 billion pounds of apples, or about 70% of the entire U.S. crop. Now that’s a lot of apples! Surprisingly, Oregon, the state just across the river from me, contributed only about 1.4% of the total U.S. apple crop. That still equated to an impressive 150,000,000 pounds of apples, of which most were grown here locally, in the Hood River Valley.
I recently visited one of my favorite orchards in the Hood River Valley, Kiyokawa Family Orchards, to talk with owner, and third generation orchardist, Randy Kiyokawa. The Kiyokawa Family has been growing apples in the valley since the early 1900’s. They currently have about 112 acres of pear trees, 40 acres of apple trees, and 15 acres of cherries and 5 acres of blueberries, peaches and other fruits, in production. Their fruit stand and farm are open 7-days a week (during apple and pear season) where you can purchase fruit already picked or pick it yourself. You can also find their fruit at the Saturday Farmers’ Market in Hood River, Oregon and other farmers’ markets located throughout the Portland, Oregon area.
What makes Kiyokawa Orchard so special, aside from its beautiful setting, is how family-oriented the business truly is. There are four generations of Kiyokawas currently living on the farm, spanning from Randy’s mom, who just turned 97, to his grandson who is three. Randy considers his orchard employees family too, and on more than one occasion expressed how important they were, calling them “the backbone of the orchard”. When walking through the orchard with Randy, it was apparent how much he values his employees, many of whom have worked for him for years. In fact, the longest tenured employee has worked for Kiyokawa Orchards for over 40 years. Randy pays his employees well and on top of that, he offers free, year-round housing for employees and their families.
Randy is extremely busy this time of year, so it tells you a lot about who he is as a person to be willing to meet with me, a newbie blogger, during peak apple and pear season. It seems as though he has time for everyone. In the hour I spent with him on his farm, he constantly scanned the orchard, keeping tabs on it’s every moving part. I watched as he checked in with his warehouse employees, spoke to the pickers in the fields, said hello to familiar faces visiting the orchard, took a phone call from a quince grower that he buys quinces from in western Oregon, and discussed materials needed for the fruit stand with his sister. He did all of this with a smile in his eyes and a spring in his step.
We also talked about Covid and the awful week in mid-September when regional air quality, due to Oregon and California wildfires, was so bad (AQI values of over 700!) that businesses (including his) were forced to shut down. This stopped production for an entire week and they’ve been playing catch up ever since. Randy claims that he is one of the lucky ones though, and his concerns immediately turned to the neighboring vegetable farmers who likely lost considerable produce due to rot, unlike his much less perishable, apples and pears.
This year, due to Covid, restaurant sales are down to next to nothing, so the orchard is relying almost 100% on the sales from their fruit stand alone. So, I encourage you to visit Kiyokawa Family Orchard, or the family orchard or farm nearest you, to buy your fall fruits and vegetables. These family farms are depending on you and need your support now more than ever.
After an hour of chatting, Randy and I said our goodbyes. As we did so, Randy looked out across the parking lot that sat full of cars. He told me that seeing the smiling visitors and happy families at his orchard was the fuel that kept him going. Well Randy, you’re the fuel that keeps our community and local economy going. We appreciate your hard work, dedication and commitment to the fair and equitable treatment of your employees. Your apples and pears are incredible and so is your story.
To learn more about Kiyokawa Family Orchards, please visit their website at: https://mthoodfruit.com.
Also, Randy’s favorite apple is the Crimson Crisp and his favorite pear is the Taylor Gold. You can pick both of these varieties up, and well as many others, at the Kiyokawa Family Orchard in Parkdale, Oregon, or farmers’ markets located across the Portland, Oregon area. See their website for details!
1 thought on “Kiyokawa Family Orchards”
We took a day trip to Kiyokawa Orchards from Portland about a month ago. It is such a special place, and we felt so lucky that we could go visit. Their apples and pears are unparalleled. Such delicious, and special, varieties. I love the Crimson Crisp and also a variety called Elstar. We bought a 30 lb box of a variety of different apples and pears from the fruit stand. We thought “how can two of us possibly eat all these apples?!” It turns out that eating that many apples was EASY when they are that delicious. They are gone now, and we are looking forward to our next trip to Kiyokawa. Bring a picnic and take in the views of several mountains while you’re there! What an important, and impactful way to support the local farming community and economy. Way to go, Randy, for ensuring fair labor and for contributing to the greater good. One apple at a time!