Tifton, GA |
While watermelon tends to steal most of the summer spotlight, it isn’t the only beloved warm-weather fruit coming out of Georgia’s fields. The state ranks third in the country for cantaloupe production — and Lewis Taylor Farms in Tifton is leading the way. But getting those melons from the field to the grocery shelf safely is anything but simple. Cantaloupes are considered a high-risk fruit, their netted rinds capable of trapping both dirt and bacteria, which means food safety has to be built into every step of the process.
At Lewis Taylor Farms, that process starts the moment the melon comes in from the field. Using a hydrocooler, the operation rapidly drops fruit temperature to protect both safety and shelf life.
“It takes that melon from field temperature to around forty-two to forty-four degrees in about thirteen minutes. It goes through what I can best describe as a silver box, being drenched with twelve thousand gallons a minute of freezing water,” said Jessica Kirk, VP of Operations. “The quicker we can bring that temperature down, the safer the product is — it gives it a better shelf life and makes it more food safety ready. Cantaloupes are considered a high-risk fruit, so we treat that water and make sure those cantaloupes are handled accordingly.”
The hydrocooler is far from the only food safety measure in place. Each fruit goes through a rigorous inspection in the field, on the conveyor belts, and again right before packing — a painstaking process designed to ensure quality in every single box that leaves the facility.
“Before they go through the hydrocooler, they go through a quality line where we check to make sure there’s no damage, no blemishes or defects. Those get separated out. The others go on through the hydrocooler and then get inspected again as they’re packed,” Kirk said.
For this family-run business, timing is everything. The fresher the produce, the higher the quality — and that means paying close attention to how long each box sits at the facility before heading out to retail distribution centers.
“Our cooler always runs first in, first out. We want to keep that produce moving,” Kirk said. “When products leave us heading to a Publix or Harris Teeter, they go to a distribution center and then get shipped out. You want to make sure that food is close — you don’t want food that’s been tracked all the way from very far south of us across the entire country.”
For Kirk, buying locally isn’t just a benefit for the consumer — it’s a matter of national importance. With Georgia farmers navigating high input costs and low commodity prices, domestic support has become essential to keeping operations like this one viable.
“If you can’t buy Georgia Grown, buy U.S. grown. Support our American farmers,” Kirk said. “Having a food source that we can supply to our own country — that is in our national interest. If we do not continue to support farmers, we’ve seen the drops in the numbers of farmers. It definitely is an issue.”
At Lewis Taylor Farms, every cantaloupe that leaves the packing shed represents far more than a piece of fruit — it’s the result of a carefully managed system built around safety, freshness, and a deep commitment to keeping Georgia agriculture strong.