History
Our journey dates back to the 12th century. A wild vine quietly thrived in the forest edges and river banks in China’s Yangtze Valley. Referred to as ‘yang tao’, the fruit was considered a delicacy by Chinese Khans who relished the fruit’s brilliant flavor and emerald-green color.
In 1904, seeds were brought to New Zealand by missionaries and were commercially cultivated under the name ‘Chinese gooseberries’. The Chinese gooseberry became popular with American and British soldiers serving in New Zealand during World War II. In the late 1950’s and early 1960’s, Chinese gooseberries were exported to the USA. Frieda Caplan, the “Kiwi Queen”, was the first person to promote this totally new fruit since the banana in America, and at the suggestion of an American importer and Caplan, New Zealand changed the name of the fruit to ‘kiwifruit’.
The fruit had caught the attention of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and in the 1930’s agricultural testing began in Chico, California. The first commercial planting took place in California in 1960 when grower Carl Heinke planted 12 vines next to his grapes in Paradise. The first commercial plantings of significance happened in the late 1960’s and were made by George Tanimoto, a peach-grower in the Sacramento Valley community of Gridley, and Judd Ingram in the Southern San Joaquin Valley. In 1971, the first commercial crop of California kiwifruit (1,200 pounds) was marketed by Frieda Caplan.
By the 1980s, California kiwifruit quality had become competitive with the best in the world. With only about 150 growers and less than 5,000 acres, kiwifruit is a small crop compared to many others in the state, but most of the growers have been in the business for over 30 years and are passionate about what they do.
Explore the California Kiwifruit varieties that are now widely popular.
