Farmer Gives Away 125,000 Pounds of Nectarines Rather Than Let a Lawsuit Win

Free Fruit, Forced Hand

A California farmer is being sued for trying to sell his nectarines — so instead, he's giving them away for free. Cesar Mora, a third-generation farmer in the agricultural community of Reedley in California's Central Valley, has been fighting a lawsuit filed against him by Giumarra Brothers Fruit Co. since 2023. The suit centers on the company's claims of exclusivity over a variety of white nectarine and accusations that Mora broke their contract by selling the fruit to other packers.

Instead of allowing another season to pass with a wasted harvest, Mora decided this year to give away more than 125,000 pounds of fruit for free. Thousands of visitors flocked to his farm this week to gather free nectarines rather than watch them rot while the legal battle plays out. "It was really just a thought of not wasting a perfectly good product," Mora said.

A Deal That Went Sour

A legal complaint filed by Giumarra's attorneys states Mora was granted rights to grow and sell the Monalise White Nectarine Variety when he signed an agreement with them in 2017. Mora says he followed the process and delivered great fruit, but "was never able to get a return or make any money — farming at a cost, at a loss, at just their benefit." His grievances piled up over the years that followed.

Mora alleges that up to half of the nectarines he provided to Giumarra in 2020 were thrown away, reducing his profits — though the company disputes this, and the judge overseeing the case found that the statute of limitations for those claims had passed. In 2022, Mora alleges the company sold his nectarines to Taiwan in violation of the contract, which states Giumarra will market and sell them only in the U.S. and Canada — a claim Giumarra also disputes. Mora later sought to terminate the relationship and sold his nectarines to another fruit packer in 2023, which is when Giumarra sued him for breach of contract, leading to his inability to sell the fruit at all while the court battle plays out.

Community Rallies Around the Orchard

Thousands of people showed up to Mora's small orchard in Reedley bright and early to collect buckets full of free nectarines. On July 1st, locals wore T-shirts that read "No Nectarines Wasted" as they bagged up the free fruit, with some staying to help Mora serve the large crowds. Mora posted several videos on social media explaining why he was giving away the crop, with one Instagram video on his account '@NoNectarinesWasted' drawing over 866,000 views.

He has raised more than $17,000 through a GoFundMe page. He also grows peaches and plums not subject to agreements with Giumarra, but has lost a quarter of his income by not being able to sell his nectarine crop. "It's been discouraging to even want to go out and farm," he said.

What's at Stake Beyond One Farm

The legal dispute highlights the tension that can emerge between farmers and the plant breeders and large industrial food marketers that create new varieties of plants and obtain exclusive rights to sell them. Giumarra, for its part, has framed the matter as a straightforward contract disagreement. "At its heart, this is a disagreement involving two written agreements, and it is being resolved the right way — in court and on the facts," the company said in a statement.

The legal case is set to go to trial on July 20. Mora says he hopes his case results in more legal protections for growers, while Giumarra says it will let the evidence speak at trial. Whatever the verdict, the story of a farmer handing out fruit by the bucket rather than surrendering to a corporate lawsuit has already struck a nerve — and raised hard questions about who really controls what grows in American fields.