Boxes of impossibly juicy, perfectly sweet peaches will hit the shelves of your favorite grocery store over the next few weeks. Most of them are there because of Lori Anne Carr of Titan Farms. Her family’s farm in Edgefield County, South Carolina — part of the Old 96 District — produces more peaches than the entire state of Georgia.
We caught up with Lori Anne before peach season heats up to hear about this year’s crop, where you’re likely to find her on her days off, and more!
Tell me about your younger years growing up farming
I grew up between Florence and Sumter, South Carolina. We had a dairy farm and row crops like corn, wheat, and soybeans. I worked at my uncle’s feed and seed store and in his cucumber shed over the summers. My husband, Chalmers, and I met at Clemson. We’re a big Clemson family.
Just before we got married in 1992, two uncles helped put Chalmers into the agriculture business in a little place called Madison in North Florida. The farm already had 500 acres of peaches; they just needed us to run the farm. We purchased that farm from his family’s estate, which gave us the seed money to purchase Titan.
Why did you leave Florida to return to South Carolina?
After farming there for four years, we realized the climate was not as appetizing for peaches as it is in South Carolina. So we started looking for opportunities to farm here. We came to work for the original owner (who’s still our next-door neighbor!) for about five years, then leased the farm from him in 1999 and purchased it in 2001. Titan Farms was born, and we’ve been growing ever since. It was 1,500 acres of peaches when we got here, and today, it’s about 7,500 acres.
Tell me about your namesake, Lori Anne Peaches.
This a small program that showcases the best of the best. We sought consumer-centric retailers that execute well for this eight-week because we’re sending them a much riper piece of fuzzy fruit. We pick and pack about eight to 10 of our top varieties in the heart of the peach season. Basically, they are the peaches that we look forward to giving away to friends. It’s a fun program for me.
Our flagship customer is Wegmans in the Northeast because they do a fantastic job training their employees, and their employees know my product as well as I do. You can also find them in Harps, Rouses, and we’re launching in Harris Teeter this year. My momma’s excited because she will be able to get Lori Anne Peaches at her Harris Teeter in Florence.
Is it true you grow more peaches than the whole state of Georgia?
It is. People hear that we grow peaches, and it’s always, “Oh, are you from Georgia?!” Well, no, we’re not! Our competition isn’t the southeast, it’s California. We have the upper hand with volume, and retailers know they can count on us, no matter the order size. And they won’t be disappointed in the quality. We have few rejections; if we do, it’s usually a market issue, not our quality. Our team works hard to ensure every peach in a box is top quality.
What are some common misconceptions about the peach industry?
People expect produce shelves to be full in their favorite store but are unaware of how it get there. Labor is integral to what we do. Every tree is touched by hand three, four, or five times before we pick the first piece of fruit.
Our workers travel here with passports and visas to work at the farm, and we have a 98% return rate. They want to come back, and they trust we’ll treat them fairly and that they’ll make good money.
What does the ‘Product of USA’ label mean to you?
It is important to me to know where our food comes from. Country-of-origin labeling is hugely important to us. We want to make sure we’re keeping farming jobs here in the US, even though we hire workers from other countries. Outside of the US, we have no control over how food is handled, what processes are used, and what happens to the people who might be making $7 a day instead of the federally mandated wage rate we pay, of which they take 100% home.
What’s the best part about running the Titan Farms team?
The best part is my team! We have 63 full-time employees. In the summer, we hire local people for the roadside stands. We have shop mechanics ensuring all 100-plus vehicles, tractors, and trucks are running. Our construction team clears land and builds new labor housing and other facilities like our freezers. We have a peach team, a vegetable team, an irrigation team, a sales team, and the entire processing team. It takes a lot of hands.
How does an ideal peach season like this one progress?
We’ve come through bloom season, and peaches are setting. Hopefully, by mid-May, we’ll start picking and have fruit until mid-September. So it’s about 16 weeks. It’s craziness at first, but then we get into a rhythm where everyone knows what they’re doing, and it all gets done.
We don’t see any cold weather in the future, but that doesn’t mean we couldn’t have a terrible hailstorm. That’d be awful because once the fruit is the size of a quarter or so, hail can damage it irreparably. The processing facility gives us an outlet for that fruit we didn’t have before, but it doesn’t replace a full crop.
What will this season’s volume be?
We should pack about 1.5 to 1.6 million half-bushel boxes (25 pounds). That’s a big year. Farmers are eternal optimists. The next one’s going to be better. We love what we do, and our team wants to be a part of the Titan Farms family — that’s what we call it. It doesn’t matter which arm you work in; you’re all part of my family.
What’s the best advice you’ve ever received, and from whom?
It’s from my momma, who said, “This, too, shall pass.” When you think it’s as bad as it can be, life goes on. Another little motto I like is one I came up with when our 11-year-old son was in a bad ATV accident. Things were serious, and I had to find the good. Good is everywhere. Some days, you might have to look harder than others.
Where can we find you on our days off?
We’re at our lake house on Lake Greenwood, about 35 minutes from here. We love it on the lake.
Name three things you could not live without besides faith, family, and friends.
Peaches, my dog named Peaches, and I can’t think of a third … the first thing I thought about was my husband!
LIGHTNING ROUND!
Last vacation: Cancun
Favorite Southern hidden gem: The people and unexpected little places you find in small towns like ours, Ridge Spring
Favorite peach recipe: My peach cobbler
Last vacation: Cancun
Go-to birthday present to give: A candle, plants, or flowers that will grow (not just cut flowers!)
Thank you, Lori Anne, for such a delightful chat. Check out TitanFarms.com for their brands, stores, recipes, and more.
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