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Big Apples, Big Business: How Washington Became the Apple State

  • Mary Olson Farm 28728 Green River Road Kent, WA, 98030 United States (map)

Big Apples, Big BUsiness: How Washington Became the Apple State

Thursday, September 4 | 6-7PM

Free Event courtesy of Humanities Washington

Why do so many apples in the grocery store look the same? And why do so many come from Washington?  

In this talk, explore how Washington became the top apple producing state in the country, and how, in the process, it transformed apples into an industrialized commodity. Many regions in the West attempted to grow apples, but in Washington, big apples became big business thanks to the work of scientists, investors, irrigators, railroad corporations, marketers, and apple growers. How does the history of Washington apples reflect larger changes happening in the American food system—changes that continue to affect our environment and the way we eat today? 

Amanda L. Van Lanen (she/her) is a Professor of History at Lewis-Clark State College and the author of The Washington Apple: Orchards and the Development of Industrial Agriculture. She earned a Ph.D. in history at Washington State University, and blogs about food history at historyreheated.com.

Register Below:

Earlier Event: August 17
Farm Open Day: A Day on the Farm
Later Event: September 21
Farm Open Day: Back to School