Leaders, strategists, stewards of the land. Women are playing an increasingly crucial role in California’s avocado industry — women like Rachael Kimball Laenen, a fourth-generation avocado farmer and the first female board chair for the California Avocado Commission, whose family farm has literally risen from the ashes to build a stronger future for the next generation.
“Her role reflects the growing influence and contributions of women across our industry and the many ways women are helping to contribute to the future of California avocado farming,” says Ken Melban, CAC president.
Kimball Ranches-El Hogar planted its first avocado trees in 1920. Nearly 100 years later, it was a victim of the devastating Thomas Fire that damaged some 70% of its orchards. Today, Laenen is focused on continual improvement, embracing change and the hard work that will preserve family farming for the next generation.
To learn more about Laenen’s vision for the future, The Packer recently connected with the industry leader on what it means to be a changemaker in the California avocado industry today.
(Editor’s Note: The following has been edited for length and clarity.)
You are the first woman to hold the position of board chair for the California Avocado Commission. What does that mean to you personally and professionally, and what do you hope to achieve on the board?
Laenen: I was elected chair of the California Avocado Commission in early December 2025. What I value most is the trust that my fellow board members and growers have put in me to lead them. I have been on the board since 2020 and have been deeply involved in a number of committees and task forces during my tenure. I’m grateful my colleagues recognize the organizational understanding, perspective and experience I could bring as chair.
I see my role as chair to ensure the board maintains a strong understanding of grower perspectives while facilitating productive discussions that lead to thoughtful decisions. Ultimately, I hope to help bring growers together with a unified voice because we are stronger when working together.
California avocado growers face many challenges from rising input costs to a tight labor market to water shortages to pests to competition from lower-priced imports and more. How does Kimball Ranches navigate these challenges? Is there a secret to your success?
There really is no secret to our success. It’s rooted in hard work, adaptability and continuously striving to improve. My father and I are committed to constantly learning and trying to do things better and more efficiently every day. While the office work can dominate our time, we try to spend as much time in the orchard as possible.
We talk a lot about our current practices and how we can improve. We attend as many seminars, meetings and opportunities to learn as we can. We’re always evaluating new technologies and if they are right for our operation.
Like most California avocado growers, we’re also paying close attention to broader industry dynamics, such as water costs, labor challenges and market conditions, because all of these factors can influence our ability to operate successfully.
Given these challenges, what are California avocado growers doing to ensure they receive economic relief from a new farm bill/the USDA’s recently announced specialty crop assistance?
The commission is always at the forefront of advocating for California avocado growers. CAC leadership works closely with federal policymakers, USDA officials and members of Congress to ensure California avocado growers are included in federal programs and policy discussions. This includes advocating for specialty crop assistance, disaster relief programs and policies that support grower viability.
Our president, Ken Melban, regularly engages with USDA and other federal agencies to ensure avocados are top of mind in conversations ranging from phytosanitary inspection practices to economic relief programs for growers. Ensuring that avocado producers have access to these resources is a critical part of supporting the long-term sustainability of our industry.
You’re a sixth-generation farmer and the fourth generation in your family to grow avocados. What do you hope your legacy will be to future generations at Kimball Ranches?
We have been farming in Ventura County since the 1860s, so we have seen a lot of change. I believe we are only stewarding the land for future generations, and my goal is to ensure my children are able to farm, if they wish.
The key to remaining a viable family farming operation is being willing to embrace change. We have adapted many times over the generations. We have grown lima beans, sugar beets, walnuts and tomatoes. While avocados are what we are growing now, we are always thinking about the future, the challenges, restrictions, climate change and what that might mean for our operation.
My favorite days at work are when my 3-year-old son comes to the ranch with me and we experience the joys and wonder of being in the orchard together. Moments like that remind me why preserving family farming for the next generation matters so much.
Kimball Ranches experienced a devastating wildfire in 2017. How is replanting progressing and are there plans for expansion?
We did experience devastating damage in the Thomas Fire in 2017. We lost our house, barn, ranch office, all our farming equipment and sustained damage to over 70% of our orchard.
We focused immediately on recovery of the orchard because without trees in the ground, there was no way we would survive financially. The fire gave us an incredible opportunity to evaluate everything in our operation, from planting density to rootstock to what variety of avocado we should be growing.
Eight years later, the recovery effort is ongoing. We have replanted about 115 acres at a higher density with clonal rootstocks. Our earliest replanting blocks are now coming into production, and it’s finally starting to feel like we are fully back in the avocado business again.
We are hoping to rebuild the barn this year and the house in the next three years. We have also been able to expand our operation through the acquisition of two additional ranches, including what was my great-grandfather’s original ranch. If the right opportunity arises, we may add additional acreage, but for the moment we are focused on growing strong and healthy trees that will produce great avocados.
You’ve shared your perspective on smaller avocado farms in California and the increasing need to scale. Is there a sweet spot of acreage that allows you to be most profitable?
With the ever-increasing cost of regulation on farming operations, as well as rising input costs, it is just not possible to support a family on a small farm anymore. In my grandparents’ generation, people were able to support themselves on 40 acres, but looking at our financials, that wouldn’t be possible anymore. We are now farming 190 acres, and having more acreage has definitely helped to spread the overhead costs.
Research has shown just how significant regulatory pressures have become. A recent Cal Poly study found that regulatory compliance costs have risen more than 1,300% over the past 18 years. That includes everything from food safety to water quality monitoring to nitrogen reporting. I spend a lot of time in the office ensuring we maintain compliance with all of those regulations, and that’s time I’m not in the orchard, observing our trees, speaking with our employees — doing actual farming.
Through the Kimball Avocados website, you also sell direct to consumer. What percentage of your business is retail versus DTC? Do you see growth opportunity with DTC?
Our direct-to-consumer business is less than 1% of our overall operations. All the rest of our fruit is packed commercially with a local packer-shipper.
Our DTC business was born out of people saying, “This is the best avocado I have ever had!” after we shared fruit with them. We pick and ship the fruit on the same day, which means the fruit is allowed to ripen naturally, free from the cold storage used by commercial distributors. Such storage, which is necessary for the mass market, interrupts ripening and can mute some of the fruit’s full flavor. However, it does mean our customers have to be patient, because it can take anywhere from a week to 10 days for the fruit to ripen.
Our customers are located all across the U.S., but we do have a surprising number here in California too. We have not expanded internationally — yet. I do think there would be demand there, but I haven’t had the time to fully explore what that would require. We may grow the DTC a little bit, but with everything we have going on at the ranch and in the industry, my focus is better spent elsewhere.
