Durst Organic Growers
Durst Organic Growers is a prime example of a diversified, integrated and successful organic farm. Under the brand name Hungry Hollow‚ Jim Durst and his wife, Deborah, grow and market fresh vegetables to wholesale and retail outlets in and around San Francisco and other metropolitan areas in the U.S. and Canada. Durst controls all aspects of production from the time seeds go into the ground, until produce arrives at his vendors' docks-including harvesting, packing, sales and trucking.
Their fourth-generation farm is located in an area of California called Hungry Hollow at the mouth of the Capay Valley in Yolo County. The unique microclimate and soils provide the perfect environment for growing the most delicious tasting asparagus, melons and tomatoes. About half of Durst's acres in Yolo County are dedicated to fresh vegetables. The remainder is planted in processing tomatoes and alfalfa hay for organic dairy feed. As is the case at other organic farms, Durst Organic Growers' farming practices are based on the maxim "feed the soil, the soil will feed the plants." He uses cover crops to add biomass to the soil, and works in ways that minimize soil disturbance and reduce soil compaction.
Durst is also among a small handful of producers nationwide getting involved in the research and development of new technology that is reshaping agriculture. He is one of three growers participating with a team of researchers in the Sustainable Agriculture Farming Systems project at UC Davis. The project compares all aspects of three different farming systems-organic, low-input conventional, and conventional farming.
