Our History

In 1913 John Buxman and his son Karl decided to move their families to the New World in search of a better life. The Buxmans moved to California’s fertile San Joaquin Valley where they planted small plots of land and worked as field laborers for more established farmers. In a very short time they earned a reputation as incredibly hard workers who took their jobs very seriously.

In 1938, wanting his family to enjoy greater success, Karl Buxman helped his sons Albert, Sam, Bill, and Fred acquire acreage in what was known as the Golden Triangle (the farmland between Reedley, Kingsburg, and Dinuba). The area was then primarily grapes and row crops and the family was asked by the U.S. governments to produce raisins and potatoes to help in the war effort.

It wasn’t until after the Second World War that the Central Valley became a world renowned stonefruit growing region. Prior to that time the area was mainly planted in grapes and the little stonefruit that was grown here was usually sent no further than Los Angeles or San Francisco. But in the late 1940’s Albert Buxman began growing and packing Fay Elberta Peaches and Santa Rosa plums. It was on these commodities that Albert’s son Carl cut his agricultural teeth. Carl learned the craft from his dad and spent most of his teenage years learning the finer points of growing and packing stonefruit.

In 1971 Carl and his wife Linda followed in the family’s footsteps when they purchased nine acres to the west of Reedley and formed Sunny Cal Farms. From those nine acres, Sunny Cal today has grown to become one of the premier farming companies in the state. With the cooperation of partner growers we now farm over 2000 acres of prime California farmland and we ship nearly two million boxes of fresh fruit each year while embracing the latest advances in the agricultural sciences. But despite our growth, we remain a family owned and oriented business.

You should know that when you’re dealing with Sunny Cal you’re dealing with a group of people whose livelihood is tightly bound to the product that we harvest. We take our jobs seriously because for us, when you buy from Sunny Cal, you’re not dealing with a faceless corporation. You’re dealing with a family. Today a new generation is taking up the mantle of Sunny Cal. Carl continues to oversee the day-to-day operations of the company but his son C.J helps operate the packing plant and his son-in-law Chris Symank is a partner in the sales company.

Together we pledge to continue to work closely with you using the same principles that have guided our family for four generations: to grow the highest quality product, to conduct ourselves with honesty and integrity, and to do what it takes to meet customer demand in a constantly changing marketplace.