Sciabica & Sons

FARMLAND: 14 acres in Modesto, about 90 miles from the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market

PEOPLE: Joseph ("Nick") Sciabica, sons Daniel and Nick, grandson Jonathan, and cousin Ryan Jones, along with 20 full-time employees; olive picking is contracted out

ABOUT: The Sciabica Family (pronounced Sha-bee-ka) began pressing olive oil in California in 1936 using techniques that Nicola Sciabica learned in Sicily as a young man. As the oldest Californian olive oil company, the business has passed down four generations. The Sciabicas have been farming the same land since 1925.

SOIL: 1/3 Briones Variant soil and 2/3 Amador soil is fertilized with feather meal.

WEED CONTROL: Discing and mowing.

PEST MANAGEMENT: The only pests the Sciabicas have to contend with are squirrels and rattlesnakes that they control with a 22-calibur rifle. Olives are naturally resistant to disease -- they mature at 100 years and can actively produce for over 2,000 years!

WATER USE: Misters irrigate the trees with water from an onsite well.

ORGANIC CERTIFICATION: OCIA since 1991. As of 2003, certification is provided by NutriClean.