Day 22
I can’t believe I’ve gone 22 days without ever mentioning the amazing agriculture that makes this central valley thrive. Farming, farm markets, and distribution of their crops is the number one commerce the valley has. A good portion of our produce goes out everywhere! Don’t believe me? I’m sure you’ve definitely heard of Sun Maid raisins with your mom packing a box in your lunchbox everyday as a child. You know, the raisin brand with the lady wearing the red bonnet and the basket of grapes? Yep, that’s distributed globally and is found in one of our neighboring cities in Kingsburg.
Farm markets are one of my favorite things that happens weekly in the fall season. It’s like a mini Fresno Fair every week: live music, people selling kettle corn and cinnamon buns, and stands upon stands of fresh fruits and vegetables to buy! My favorite farm market, though, lies in Hanford. They close down an entire street in downtown Hanford and line up booths to sell food, produce, fire up the carousel, and even sell and play Magic: The Gathering cards! But, my favorite booth in Hanford always has been the farmers that squeeze and bottle unpasteurized orange juice. It tastes so sweet and delectable! We’re always told to “buy local” and I don’t think anything gets as close to buying various sundries from the farmers themselves.
Alumni and nearby residents of the university love to shop for their products too! It’s a small little shop on Barstow and Chestnut, but it sure packs a punch! They have their own sweet corn, persimmons, olive oil, wines, bacon, sausages, but the biggest seller and Fresno State’s best-seller next to athletic attire is ICE CREAM! Baskin Robbins 31 flavors can go cry itself in a corner when pitted against Fresno State’s vast array of ice cream.
This is why I love Fresno.
=ryne=
