Christopher Ranch Sees Elevated Demand for Organic Garlic Since COVID

In 1956, Don Christopher founded Christopher Ranch with 10 acres of garlic in Gilroy, CA, where he knew the mild Mediterranean climate would be perfect for cultivating the “stinking rose.” Over the years, Don steadily grew his operation, and by the 1970s, Christopher Ranch had become the largest garlic grower-shipper in the US.

In 1998, the company decided to start an organic garlic program after it observed “a small, but passionate demand for organically grown produce,” says Ken Christopher, Christopher Ranch’s executive vice president and Don’s grandson.

Ken Christopher, Executive Vice President, Christopher Ranch

Today, Christopher Ranch farms its California heirloom garlic on 6,000 acres, 10 percent of which are organic. While the company grows throughout the state, all of its garlic (100 million pounds!) is stored and processed in Gilroy.

“Christopher Ranch is the only family-owned-and-operated commercial-scale garlic farm left in the country,” says Ken. “That means that we have tremendous passion for our products, our employees, and our community that goes beyond the bottom line. When you see the name ‘Christopher,’ you know you’re getting a superior product that has been grown and produced with integrity.”

Christopher Ranch's organic garlic offerings

For Christopher Ranch, developing and growing its organic garlic program is a major priority. “We believe that our investments in organic garlic [are] key to our future success,” says Ken. “It’s clear that demand for organics is not a ‘fad’ and will become an ever-increasing part of our retail, foodservice, and industrial sales.”

"Christopher Ranch is the only family-owned-and-operated commercial-scale garlic farm left in the country. That means that we have tremendous passion for our products, our employees, and our community that goes beyond the bottom line." – Ken Christopher

This year, the company expects to ship over 10 million pounds of California organic garlic—both fresh and processed (crushed, chopped, and roasted)—to its customers.

“Our organic garlic is the only true heirloom garlic in the country,” says Ken. “Our garlic seed has been in my family’s possession for over 50 years, [and] our selection process for garlic seed is second to none.”

Christopher Ranch organic bin

For the last two years—ever since the onset of COVID—Christopher Ranch has seen significantly elevated demand for all its organic garlic products.

“It’s clear that demand for organics is not a ‘fad’ and will become an ever-increasing part of our retail, foodservice, and industrial sales.” – Ken Christopher

“Before March of 2020 when the pandemic swept the country, we saw a steady increase in our organic category of approximately 5 percent per year over year, which is historically strong for a mature industry like agriculture,” says Ken. “Since the COVID crisis, we’ve seen demand grow at much faster rates as more consumers are not only eating more at home but also making healthier choices for their families.”

Ken says last year’s organic garlic crop (harvested in June 2021) was “exceptional—the best quality and yields that we’ve seen in years.” Yet because demand for organic garlic has been so strong, he says Christopher Ranch has needed to source some additional supplies from Latin America. “The rapid increase in demand for our organic products outstripped even our best efforts to bring a 100 percent USA program to all of our retailers,” he explains.

However, Ken says the company does anticipate that it will be able to fully meet customer demand with its 2022 California organic garlic crop (planted last November): “We’re confident that we’ll be back to 100 percent USA-grown organic garlic for all of our Christopher Ranch organic products.”

“Since the COVID crisis, we’ve seen demand grow at much faster rates as more consumers are not only eating more at home but also making healthier choices for their families.” – Ken Christopher

Ken shares that there are some challenges when it comes to growing organic garlic. “[It’s] much more expensive and requires a lot more care than growing our conventional heirloom garlic (which itself requires significant investment),” he says. “Yields for our organic garlic harvest are usually 20-30 percent lower than conventional garlic, which extrapolated over hundreds of acres, makes a real difference in our costing.”

In order to address these costs, Ken says Christopher Ranch works “to build sustainable programs with customers that value high-end quality organic garlic, even if it is relatively more expensive than conventional garlic.”

Christopher Ranch’s organic customer base is made up of primarily retailers, but there are some foodservice and industrial customers in the mix too. Ken mentions Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s as two major retail customers who “have been leading … the way in promoting organic produce.”

“We’ve found that on the West Coast … in particular that there is a large demand for all of our organic products,” Ken says. “That being said, major metropolitan areas like New York and Chicago have also continued to pull record levels of organic garlic.”

In addition to organic garlic, Christopher Ranch also offers organic shallots and ginger. The organic shallots are grown in California, while the organic ginger is imported from overseas. “Unfortunately, ginger does not grow well in the continental United States, and in Hawaii (where ginger can be grown), there isn’t a sufficient labor force or land to harvest organic ginger at a significant scale,” Ken explains.

“The rapid increase in demand for our organic products outstripped even our best efforts to bring a 100 percent USA program to all of our retailers.” – Ken Christopher

When it comes to Christopher Ranch’s future outlook for its organic garlic program, Ken is optimistic. “While it’s still too early to definitively forecast consumer habits in a post-COVID world, it’s our belief that the days of slow, steady growth for organics [are] over,” he says. “In my opinion, growth for organics will continue to grow at rates somewhere between the old ‘normal’ and current pandemic levels. We’re doing all that we can to secure the organic ground needed to bring more organic garlic to Americans than ever before.”