Artisan Naturals
We've listened to our retail customers, we've listened to our end customers, and there has been a resounding answer to the question we've asked: focus on sustainability and provide fruit that tastes great. Enter Artisan Naturals - Stemilt's transitional program that includes peaches, nectarines, apricots and plutos. All (100%) of our peaches & nectarines will be farmed transitionally this year. Washington peaches & nectarines already stand above the crowd in terms of appearance and flavor, and with our move to transitional, it further enhances these fruits.
The introduction of Stemilt Growers Artisan Naturals tree fruits represents a revolution in agriculture. These naturally farmed tree fruits combine socially responsible, organic farming with the production of great-tasting fruit.
Naturally farmed Stemilt Artisan Naturals are grown with balance in mind: flavor and farming, environment and agriculture all in balance. Balanced orchards produce high-quality fruits with a greater intensity of flavors. Your customers will definitely notice the difference!
Stemilt Artisan Naturals are produced under the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s strict organic guidelines. These tree fruits are in the three-year transitional timeframe before they can be certified organic. They are grown in naturally farmed orchards that only use organic methods, applications, materials and packing protocols.
Following the 2006 harvest, Stemilt transitioned all of its peaches and nectarines into organic production. These high-quality fruits will all be packed in Stemilt’s Artisan Naturals cartons. All cartons will bear the USDA’s Certified Transitional logo. Other fruits in transition include pluots, cherries and apricots.
In 2009, all of Stemilt’s naturally-farmed peaches, nectarines and some of our apricots and pluots will become organically certified and eligible to be packed in Stemilt’s Artisan Organics cartons. Look for all of Stemilt’s transitional and organic product lines in the new Artisan cartons in the future.