Our roots run deep in the farming industry. Arnott is a 4th generation Arizona farmer who left his family’s farm in 1985 and began growing a few hundred acres of conventionally-grown row crops. In 1992, Arnott, along with his wife Kathleen, decided they wanted to reach out to the community by bridging the gap between urban and rural life. They began by offering educational tours for school groups and establishing a small, seasonal produce stand at their farm site. During its first year alone, 18,000 students visited the farm. In the second year, the number of student visitors swelled to 30,000 students. During its 11 year run, Duncan Family Farms® had become an extremely popular recreational and educational destination. In fact, the farm was one of the fastest growing ‘agricultural-tourism’ sites in the country for many years. Unfortunately, due to a change in flight activity at the nearby air force base, the agricultural-tourism program had to cease. In spite of this, Duncan Family Farms® has remained committed to being a good neighbor and an integral part of the community.
By 1994 our farm had expanded into organic production, growing organic baby leaf items including several different varieties of lettuce and greens (red and green oaks, red and green romaine, red and green leaf, lolla rosa, tango, mizuna, red chard, green chard, tatsoi, baby kale, arugula and spinach). These greens are delivered to some of the largest value-added processors in North America, Canada and the United Kingdom who provide bagged salads to the retail and food service industries. As our business has evolved, we have tried to blend the best of traditional farming with the latest in agricultural technology. Duncan Family Farms® has won numerous awards and is nationally recognized as a ‘showcase’ of progressive and environmentally-sensitive farming techniques, due to our innovative programs.
Up until 2010 we were a seasonal grower in Goodyear, AZ. It was then that we purchased additional ground in California to expand operations and to provide our customers with a year-round supply of produce. We also added a Specialty Crop program that included organic Kales, Chards, Beets, Romaine Hearts and Herbs. The additional ground in California allows us to grow our products in the summertime while maintaining our agronomic practices of resting the ground and rebuilding the soil in the off-season. Additional ground also provides geographic diversity, which allows us to expand our portfolio of produce.
Today our multi-regional operations are located in Central Arizona and the Imperial Valley, Central Coast and its inland valleys in California, Southern Oregon and Upstate New York. The geographic diversity of these organically-certified growing locations positions Duncan Family Farms® as one of the leading organic growers in the United States. Our products are shipped across North America, into Canada and over to the United Kingdom.