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- The Madera Tribune

By Joel Cadenasso

Special to the Madera Tribune

The Sherman Thomas Ranch in Madera has made a successful transition to organic farming.

Mike Braga has been the manager at the Sherman Thomas Ranch for eight years. He started working at the ranch in 1979.

Since Braga has become the manager, the methods of farming used at the ranch have changed.

"We've almost gone completely organic in the last eight years," Braga said.

Organic farming uses natural means instead of chemicals for fertilization and pest control.

"We've seen an opportunity on the economic side," Braga said. "We were overproducing a lot of these crops."

Almonds, pistachios, prunes and figs are grown at the ranch. The ranch is split evenly between these four crops, Braga said.

Using organic methods for farming decreases the yield harvested per acre. The Sherman Thomas Ranch harvests 1,500 pounds per acre of almonds, 3,000 pounds per acre of pistachios, 5,000 pounds of prunes per acre and 2,000 pounds per acre of figs, Braga said.

The reduction in production is mitigated by the price of organically grown crops. "You get a premium if you grow organically," Braga said.

In fact, the organically grown crops have resulted in higher overall revenues despite the decrease of production, Braga said.

Braga has been recognized for his farming methods. In 2004, he earned an honorable mention for the Patrick Madden Award for Sustainable Agriculture, an award given every other year by the USDA's Sustainable Agriculture and Research (SARE) program. The award is given "for farmers and ranchers who raise food or fiber in ways that are profitable, good for families and communities and beneficial to the environment," according to the SARE website.

The prices of almonds, not just the organically grown ones, could be higher this year. "With all the rain we had this spring, yields are going to be down, and prices are going to be up," Braga said.

The Sherman Thomas Ranch was opened by Sherman Thomas in the mid-1930s. Thomas was originally from and lived in Arkansas before moving to California. He worked as a sharecropper before he bought some property and established the ranch.

The ranch has expanded since then and now encompasses 700 acres of land in Madera.