With more than 100 years of experience and three generations of family members serving at its helm, Peri & Sons Farms knows what it takes to move premium onions to the marketplace. The company is headquartered in Yerington, NV, and has growing operations in Central and Southern California.

“Peri & Sons Farms has been practicing ‘green’ farming for over 15 years. For us, sustainable farming is not a trend or a buzz-word; it is a long-term, deeply personal commitment,” the company’s website states. “Each and every day, across our entire operation, we are proactively and systematically looking for opportunities to lessen our overall environmental impact and improve our economic viability.”

A large retail bulk display of white, red and yellow onions.The website entry continues, “For the last 10 years, we have implemented various water-conservation systems; always looking for ways to improve irrigation efficiency using the most eco-friendly methods. During the same period, we have improved our land preservation efforts and our pest management practices, and we continue to find ways to reduce our resource consumption and further implement efficient waste-management practices.

“Peri & Sons Farms is rooted in a heritage of earth-friendly farming and land stewardship that spans back three generations. We passionately believe that growing our onions in a natural, clean, safe and responsible way now will lay a healthy and economically sound foundation for generations of farmers to come; which is exactly what we’re planning.”

The company grows and markets a variety of colored and sweet onions. Jessica Peri, retail sales manager, said both conventional and organic onions are grown in California, though the company made the decision not to grow organic this season in Firebaugh. “We will have organic again [in Central California] in 2016,” she said. Organic production did continue in the Imperial Valley this season, however.

The harvest began at the end of May, and Peri said there have not been any quality issues this season. Packing ramped up at the beginning of June and she said, “It’s shaping up to be a good season. We’re in the size profile we need for our retail customers.”

Peri said it is especially important to have mediums available for prepacking so retail shelves stay full.

The harvest generally runs through August. Peri said the company cut 30 percent of production acreage out of its mix last year in order to deal with water issues. Some of that acreage was was brought back into production in 2015. As a result, she said onion volume this season will be a little higher than it was in 2014.

Onion sales transition between varieties, allowing the company’s customers to have quality onions on retail shelves throughout the year. In addition to domestic sales, Peri & Sons markets onions in Canada, South America and Taiwan. Some volume is also sent to Australia.

This season, Peri & Sons is introducing its new “eat brighter!” packaging, designed to encourage children to eat more onions.

This is the sixth year for the company’s Onion Xpress program, designed to highlight product availability and special programs during the summer months. June 1 featured “eat brighter!” bags, and June 17 features Bloomin BBQ, for men who enjoy the thrill of the grill. The supercolossal onion is wrapped in mesh and sold in special cartons.

“It’s a healthy alternative to fried onions,” Peri commented, adding that four easy-to-follow steps result in a scrumptious treat.

July 1 marks the beginning of movement for the company’s annual crop of “Sweetie Sweet” onions. In August, mixed combo bags of colored onions are promoted at retail.