Ever wonder what makes Fresno unique?  When someone asks you, “What’s Fresno like?”, are you at a loss for words?  If so, we’ve got the answer for you.  The Fresno Convention & Visitors Bureau has been working with two of Fresno’s marketing/branding experts, Suzanne Bertz-Rosa and Travis Sheridan, to develop a brand describing who and what Fresno is all about.  If you haven’t seen it yet, I’ve included the link below.  It’s a vision of Fresno–who we are and the expectations of our actions–and hopefully you all have the chance to read it and work through some of the exercises towards the end.

Click here to read “Fresno’s Brand Platform”

Now that you know what the brand is, what are you doing to “live the brand”?

Email us at flypresearch@gmail.com.  Please share your stories, thoughts, and comments with us.

Posted by Tim Sudiacal

Have you ever taken a trip to the grocery store, only to find that you have no idea what you’re going to buy when you arrive, much less cook when you get home?

Still confused about what to get? Simplify.

Sure, all the food you might need is right there inside the supermarket.  But choosing what ingredients should be paired together to cook a great tasting evening meal—or buying food for the remainder of the week, for that matter—can be a daunting task.  With so many choices and so many potential dishes for you to make, what should you buy?  And how long do you really want to spend perusing the aisles of the grocery store for what you need?

At times, grocery shopping can be time-consuming and frustrating, to say the least, especially if you do your grocery shopping after work or at a time when your stomach is telling you that you’re hungry.

Now, imagine this…

Willey Farms boxes ready for pickup

What if you could drive to a location nearby to where you live and you could pick up your produce and fruit for the week without the hassle of having to make a grocery list?  What if you didn’t have to spend as much time selecting what fruits and veggies looked freshest at the grocery store?  Instead, you could pick up a box with seasonally ripe, organically grown fruits and veggies harvested that same morning.

For anyone that wants to eat fresh fruit and produce, and wants to simplify the process of buying tasty fruit and vegetables that are organic and fresh, there is a solution–and it’s a solution that is unique to Fresno residents.  It’s called T&D Willey Farms.

T&D Willey Farms has a growing list of 800+ community supporters that commit weekly to ordering and picking up a box of fresh fruits and veggies grown on the Willey’s 75-acre farm.  The food is harvested the morning that you get it, so it’s fresher than anything you could buy at any supermarket.  And, with 8-12 different fruits and vegetables that are chosen by the folks at Willey Farms based on what’s in season, you can have fun cooking with them as well.

What's Growin' On--The Willey Farms Newsletter

So what do you do with the sometimes seemingly random selection of different fruits and vegetables the Willeys put in each box?  Well, they’ve got that covered, too.  In each box, you’ll find a weekly newsletter called What’s Growin’ On that is full of recipes, tells you how to store your vegetables and fruit, and describes what flavors to expect from the different varieties of fruit and vegetables you’re getting.  It’s a really fun way to start thinking about how different varieties of a vegetable or fruit taste. You start to realize and appreciate how you can manipulate the flavors of your meals based on what kind of vegetable or fruit varietal you’re using.  Also, if you want to try some recipes other than those posted on the newsletter, the T&D Willey Farms folks have a special segment of their website dedicated to searching out different recipes you can follow based on the specific vegetable you want to use.

Willey Farms has two different box sizes: the “Seedling Box”, which has enough fruits and veggies for 1-2 people, or the “Family Box”, which will provide enough produce for 3-4 people.  Here’s a quick list of what we received in our box this past week:

A Peak Inside a Willey Farms Box

• Devine’s White Sweet Corn
• Italian Sweet Red Onion
• Red Batavian Lettuce
• Red Leaf Lettuce
• Yukon Gold Potatoes
• Italian Zucchini Squash
• Spring Nantes Carrots
• Sweet 100 Cherry Tomatoes
• Peterson’s Flavor Crest Peaches

Since T&D Willey Farms works with other farms in the Central Valley as a co-operative, they also have a special deal going for the summer where you can order a box every week that has 5 pounds of stone fruit starting in June and ending in September.  And trust me, these are definitely the sweetest and tastiest fruits you will ever eat…EVER!  The stone fruit box has a variety of apricots, apriums, plums, peaches, nectarines, and pluots.

Willey Farms Stone Fruit Box

And the best part of getting the stone fruit is this: if you don’t end up eating all of it, you can freeze it and use it at some point in the future to make jam, smoothies, ice cream, or pies.

Watch this video from KSEE 24 to get a better idea of how T&D Willey Farms works.

If you’re interested or want more info, visit their website at www.tdwilleyfarms.com or call 1-559-ORGANIC.

Post written by Tim Sudiacal.