Farmer gives away 125,000 pounds of nectarines rather than let Big Ag rot them

The nectarines were not allowed to become commerce, so they became community.

A Fresno County farmer says a legal dispute over his nectarines left 125,000 pounds of fruit sitting in the orchard, unsellable and waiting to rot. His solution was beautifully simple: if he can’t sell them, people can eat them.

The farmer grows the fruit. The fruit exists. People want the fruit. But somewhere between the orchard and the table, a legal dispute over fruit as intellectual property turns 125,000 pounds of nectarines into a hostage situation with vitamins. Mora’s workaround was not complicated. He just opened the gate and let the Central Valley solve the problem with free fruit.

The nectarines were not allowed to become commerce, so they became community.