CSUN University News Clippings

Deaf studies alum Debi Qualls delivers juicy packages as the ‘fruit fairy’

(July 8, 2009)

BY HILLARY S. MEEKS
hmeeks@visalia.gannett.com

During a hot summer spent working on her grandfather’s farm in Yettem, Debi Qualls grew certain that her future wasn’t in farming.

She has changed her mind. Five years ago, Qualls moved back to the Central Valley and eventually found a new calling: delivering locally grown, organic produce to Valley residents.

“I’ve never been so happy doing this,” Qualls said while packing a box of nectarines. “Even on bad days, you’ll find me out here on the ranch. I love nothing better than being on a tractor.”

Qualls sells the peaches and plums grown on her 15-acre Dinuba farm and the farms of others through her fledgling company, Fruit Fairy Delivers. She’s been operating it for just more than a month, making most of her profit from sales at Los Angeles-area farmers markets.

“She’s got a good concept,” said Mike Naylor, who has been growing certified organic produce for 25 years and sells peaches and nectarines through Fruit Fairy Delivers.

But Qualls’ real desire is to make certified organic produce easily available to those who live in this area. She does so by delivering 25-pound boxes of fruit.

“Some people don’t believe in organic,” Qualls said. “But I believe in it.”

Erica and Rigo Aguirre of Visalia have known Qualls for some time. When she started Fruit Fairy Delivers, they took advantage of the opportunity and signed up.

“Her fruit is delicious. … It’s real sweet, good and it’s grown here locally,” Rigo Aguirre said. “It’s not like everything that’s coming in from Chile and other countries.”

The Aguirres bought boxes of Qualls’ fruit for a Fourth of July party. They hope to interest neighbors in making their gated community a drop-off point for Fruit Fairy Delivers.

Qualls hopes that this word-of-mouth advertising will spread.

Angela Eastham of Clovis is another of Qualls’ customers. Eastham is pregnant and started eating organic produce to improve her and her unborn child’s health.

The boxes of fruit she buys are usually too big for her alone, so she spreads the word among family members, friends and fellow church members.

“I’ll just order a couple boxes of peaches, nectarines or plums, and we get a delivery we just split it,” Eastham said.

Fruit Fairy’s origins

Qualls became interested in organic produce after receiving a diagnosis of ulcerative colitis. What people put in their body makes a difference, she said, especially if they are sick.

Her illness is what brought her back to Tulare County and inspired her to start working farmers markets.

Qualls worked in the produce industry while pursuing a degree in deaf studies at California State University, Northridge. She also was an inspector for the U.S. Department of Agriculture before moving onto produce industry jobs with companies such as Primavera Marketing Inc. and Giumarra Bros. Fruit Co.

“I know a lot about fruit,” she said.

Qualls said she is confident that the demand for quality organic produce will continue to grow.

“Most of our deliveries are local individuals who want to be healthy and have something that wasn’t picked nine days earlier and held in cold storage,” she said.

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Publication: Visalia Times-Delta