Del Monte Farm and Cannery Tour

Had the best time visiting Del Monte farms and cannery in Modesto, CA last month. Had the privilege of meeting some of the Del Monte staff, their farmers along with touring the factory, peach and tomato farms with 5 other food bloggers from across the country. Del Monte delighted us with this refreshing Peach Sorbet to get our morning started.

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Photo courtesy of Del Monte Foods

What a treat to tour the cannery where many of Del Monte’s fruit products are packaged and prepared for the shelves. Here’s a shot of the canned peaches almost done.

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Photo courtesy of Del Monte Foods

The pears were as gorgeous as ever.

Del Monte Bloggers

 Our fun Del Monte group from left to right:  Kelly, Julie, Ali, Robyn, Me and Gina.

Del Monte Farm and Factory Tour-1 I learned that nearly 90% of Del Monte fruit and vegetables are grown in the United States, in the best growing regions for a consistently quality product. 100% of Del Monte’s canned peaches & tomatoes are grown in the United States. Del Monte Farm and Factory Tour-2

Del Monte picks their fruit, vegetables and tomatoes at the peak of ripeness, with the majority canned the same day they are picked to lock in nutrients and flavor. 98% of their canned fruit, vegetables and tomatoes are preservative free. According to Del Monte, fruits, vegetables, and tomatoes contain similar nutrients as fresh when prepared for the table. In some instances, such as peaches & tomatoes, the canned version may contain more antioxidants and vitamins than fresh as a result of the canning process.

Peach Farmers The peach farmers and their sweet dog Cosmo told us all about the dedication and hard work that goes into maintaining beautiful peaches for Del Monte.

Peaches and Jenn

We got to pick peaches right off the tree. I found this very amusing apparently 🙂

Lunch Decor

We had a lovely Barbecue style lunch back at the Del Monte cannery. Gorgeous fruited water and centerpieces were on each table.

 

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Friends and a beautiful lunch!

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A glimpse at some of our lunch.

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After lunch, it was off to the tomato farm. These are bright Roma-style tomatoes that were just about ready.

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Colorful tomatoes for acres and acres.

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Photo courtesy of Del Monte Foods

Julie and I picking tomatoes to take home.

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Photo courtesy of Del Monte Foods

Bloggers with the tomato farmers. Fun afternoon.

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What an absolute treat to meet these tomato farmers. They were some of the sweetest people I’ve ever met. So generous and kind. Many of Del Monte’s farmers are third generation partners with Del Monte Foods, especially in fruit where several families have grown fruit for Del Monte for more than 70 years. These vegetable & tomato growers have been with Del Monte on average thirty years. I enjoyed visiting the Del Monte cannery in Modesto. It gave me new insight about how our fruits and vegetables are brought to us. Their fruits, vegetables and tomatoes are grown in excellent soil and packed at the peak of ripeness. Del Monte has been accomplishing this for over 100 years.

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334 Responses
  1. Michaela Williams

    Pereira bros tomatoes…..Thats the farm I grew up on!!! My dad is Mike (plaid shirt) and thats my uncle Anthony and my aunt Karen showing them the ropes of tomato farming……

  2. Kay

    Beautiful photos!

    I really love eating tomatoes as is, but I also love pasta with fresh tomatoes and mozzarella, as well as sliced tomatoes on a pizza!

  3. Kathy Jones Cromer

    I love warm peach cobbler topped with vanilla bean ice cream! YUM!

    About the tomatoes, I’ll have a cheese and tomato sandwich on bread with American cheese, mayo and a nice fresh juicy tomato!

  4. Mona

    Can’t wait to try your peach cobbler for the peaches, and of course Teedo’s salsa for the tomatoes!

  5. Jenn L.

    What a fantastic visit. I *love* the fresh peaches we get to enjoy here in Washington. My favorite new (to me anyway) recipe this year has been the Peach Dumplings with Bourbon Hard Sauce recipe from the Smitten Kitchen cookbook. A friend who just started blogging posted a link to her attempt which turned out fantastically. I was so inspired I had to try it, too. Delicious!

  6. Teresa Young

    peach smoothies for sure! although I would love to learn how to make a simple tomato sauce for pasta! (:

  7. Allison C

    I like making something bruschetta-like with honey thyme roasted cherry tomatoes placed on top of ricotta smothered baguettes.

  8. Joy Bailey

    Dutch over peach cobbler – always a winner!! However – I’ve never made it. Also, love it when my bro-in-law makes peach-huckleberry homemade syrup for waffles in the morning.

  9. Caley

    I love peach cobbler/crisp, and adding peach or vanilla ice cream couldn’t hurt 😉

  10. Pamela @ Brooklyn Farm Girl

    So jealous of this trip, it would be a dream to visit such a big farm… gives me big hopes and dreams for my own rooftop garden!

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