IOC Documentary Airs June 13
As you know, IOC and Riverside County have been making an hour-long documentary on Inland Empire citrus - past, present, & future. This movie, created & directed by award-winning director Peter Coonradt, is now COMPLETED and will be broadcast next week on PBS KVCR - Wednesday, June 13th, at 9pm. "Orange Sunrise" turned out beautifully - you'll see grove, history, soup kitchens, packinghouses, IOC, bulldozers, growers, the guts of a juicing plant, and a hopeful message, all wrapped up in one well-crafted piece of work. Be sure to see it - we've poured a lot of heart into it!
California Gold!!
There's a rumor going round town that IOC is going to be on Huell Howser. It's true. Huell came out this week and spent a day talking to IOC growers, eaters, pickers, packers, Inland Harvest heros, but mostly talking to fans that would come up to the approachable big guy and say something really creative like "Huell, I love your show!" (that includes me). We understand that the show will be out in "a couple of months". You can count on us to keep you posted!
Spring '07 Wrap-Up
With this week does end the IOC Spring 07 season, so be sure to pick up your share (it's avocados this week). Some of the memorable moments:
25 degrees for 12 hours - the famous "freeze of '07" turned our world upside down the first week of the Spring season. Icy oranges, smudging, the sound of wind machines, the thought of a season cancelled from the get-go, three growers with freeze damage but paid anyway because we share the growers' risk....what a memory!
The Berry Orange - OK, we can let the secret out, if you haven't caught on by now. The "berry" orange is really the moro BLOOD orange, but we think our name is much better! Those berries were terrific!
Bottomless Bags - those of you who chased oranges across the parking lots of your favorite pick-up spot know exactly what we're talking about here. Sorry about that!
Sunset Magazine - Hey! The world is watching us! Sunset's February 07 article on the IOC meant we got calls from places like Wyoming & Florida, asking where their pick-up locations were. Seriously, thank you truly, Sunset, for getting the word out to all sorts of orange lovers here in the Southland.
Gold Nugget/Dancy/W. Murcott Afourer - Given our "mandarin meander" this season, we can now all talk knowledgeably in cocktail parties about the finer points of mandarin munching.
Celebrate Citrus '07 - this was the best CC ever! The terrific orange art! The terrific 100-yr-old orange tasting! The gorgeous blossoming grove! The one & a half tons of fruit given away in citrus doggy bags! The grove equipment & citrus history displays! If you didn't come this year, be sure to come next - it's Southern California's only citrus festival that's ALL ORANGE! No cotton candy allowed!
85 tons & 14 groves! - Wow! We've eaten more oranges this spring than any season in the history of IOC! 85 tons! By eating those 85 tons, we helped 14 growers from Montclair to Mentone & Highland to Riverside weather the storm of citrus survival! Well done! Hope you all enjoyed a season well-eaten!
Fall '06 Season Begins September 5
If you haven't signed up yet, join now to keep on receiving Valencias and white and ruby grapefruit through November (with the possibility of early Navels at the very end of the season, too).
Valencia oranges sweeten as they stay on the tree, so late fall oranges are prized by the orange juice companies. You lucky Citrus Supporters can have your own supply for the entire season! Sign up today and don't miss a single week!
Labor Day Weekend Beat-the-Heat Treat
We've included this recipe in our in-bag messages a couple of times, and we thought we'd post it online because Labor Day weekend is shaping up to be a scorcher.
This is is like an adult's lemonade -- what with club soda and grapefruit in it, kids run away screaming. But for the adult palate, it's right on. All ingredients are essential -- no substitutions or it ends up yuck (no pink or blue sweetener packets, please!).
1/2 cup Grapefruit juice
1 to 2 tsp Sugar
1/4 to 1/2 cup Club Soda
And for the kids, try a sweeter, simpler version by mixing
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1/2 cup seltzer water (you can use any bottled sparkling water).
Tastes just like that fancy Orangina stuff that costs two bucks a bottle, doesn't it?
Do YOU have a favorite summer orange or grapefruit recipe? Post a comment and share it!
Summer Season Wrap-Up and Thanks
Whew! IOC's first summer season is over -- and it was a smashing success! You, IOC's Citrus Supporters, accomplished the following feats:
1. You ate 67 tons of citrus.
2. You donated 30 tons of citrus to the needy.
3. You helped 9 growers by paying them more than they would have received to export their oranges.
Picking oranges in 100+ degree heat sure was hard...but the results sure were worth it! We appreciate all of you for becoming Citrus Supporters, volunteering your time, and of course, for eating so well.
Thank you, and stay tuned for the Fall '06 season, beginning September 5!
Summer Season Almost Over—Fall Season Begins September 5
The week of August 20 is the last week of the IOC Summer '06 season. We hope you've enjoyed the juicy Valencias and tart-sweet Oro Blancos as much as we have!
We will take a breather the week of August 27, but our Fall '06 season will start right up the following week (the first deliveries will take place on Tuesday, September 5, because Monday the 4th is Labor Day).
If you haven't joined for the fall season yet, and want to keep eating (and juicing) delicious local citrus, now is the perfect time to sign up! This fall we'll begin to feature Star Ruby grapefruit as they come into season, and at the very end of the season in November we may even have some early Navels.
Don't miss a single week—sign up today. Send your kids back to school with a glass of fresh-squeezed OJ as brain fuel each day. Eating and drinking plenty of vitamin-C-containing foods can help fortify your immune system against winter colds, too.
To paraphrase Homer Simpson: "Oranges. Is there anything they can't do?
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