>> coming up next on "california country," go behind the scenes of one of the most recognized food companies in cali@ornia. then learn about the important ingredient in this

italian favorite. next, meet the family that is putting the fun back in fungi. and learn a great new recipe you can make today. it's all ahead, and it starts now. [c@ptioning made possible by california farm bureau federation] welcome to the show. i'm your host tracy sellers. so, have you eer wondered, "what does it take to stay fresh in the world of agriculture?" well, one dried fruit company thinks they have found the answer. and they would know. they've been growing strong in the business more than a century now. this time of year, there's only one thing on marysville farmer sam nevis' mind--getting his fruit off the tree.

just like any other farmer, getting his harvest in and on time is crucial, even though you won't be seeing these plums in the produce section of the market. that's because you'll be seeing them as dried plums, otherwise known as prunes. and there's no better place for finding some of thbest dried plums than this area. did you know the state's greatest dried plum production actually happens here in the sacramento and san joaquin valleys? farmers here produce more dried plums than the rest of the world combined. >> right now, we're looking at french prunes about to be harvested. and what i look for to see if they're ripe or not is color. we test for sugar. we look at overall fruit development. and this tree is

ready to be harvested. >> here they are harvesting 96 tons of fruit a day. so, to be efficient, almost all the harvesting is done by machines now. a mechanical shaker grabs a tree's main limb and, in a matter of seconds, shakes the fruit onto a fabric catching frame spread underneath. from there, it's a quick conveyor ride to bins destined for the dehydrator. and just in casd you were wondering, they're prus in the field and dried plums after they've gone to the dehydrator. the next step in the life of a prune soon to become a dried plum happens here at the nearby dehydrator. here, the fruit is thoroughly washed and then placed on large wooden trays. then the fruit is wheeled into these huge ovens where the temperature reaches upwards of 185 degrees. and in a matter of

hours, 18 to be exact, voila! you've @t dried plums. then they're off to the next stop-- to the largest family-owned global producer of dried fruit in the world--the mariani fruit company in vacaville. >> my grandfaher came here when he was only 16 years old and decided that he had an opportunity to have a better living here in california. and he came from yugoslavia and got into the agricultural business. so, that was over 104 years ago. >> and now more than a century later, and it's mark mariani and his children michael, christopher, and natalie, who literally have grown up in the dried fruit business, that are carrying on the family tradition of marketing some of the golden state's best fruit. at their headquarters, trained personnel inspect the fruit, rate it for size, and then package it. and speaking of which, mark's dad was ac