The issue of human composting at Sumner Peck Ranch caught the eye of the family whose name adorns the historic San Joaquin River farm. Because of it, attorneys for the family now want the San Joaquin River Parkway and Conservation Trust to stop using Sumner Peck’s name, saying the patriarch’s name never came with the 2020 real estate sale.

A cease-and-desist letter from the family to the trust and Earth Funeral Group says the association of human composting with the Peck name has led some to believe the family endorses the usage of human remains to fertilize the land. The letter also calls on Earth Funeral Group to stop all deliveries of composted human remains.

“The name ‘Sumner Peck Ranch’ has been used repeatedly and prominently, creating a public association between the Peck family name and the disposal of composted human remains — an association the family never authorized, never contemplated, and categorically rejects, the letter states.

“Members of the Peck family have been personally approached by community members who mistakenly believe the family is responsible for or endorses the composting activities. The family wishes to make clear: they have no involvement with, and have never endorsed the Trust’s decision to accept human composting material on the property.”

Attorney Charles Manock represents the family.

Sharon Weaver, executive director of the trust, did not immediately reply to a call and email from GV Wire for comment.

Family Doesn’t Want Name Dragged ‘Through the Mud’

The cease-and-desist letter says that the trust has no connection to the name and must stop using it. It gave the trust and Earth Funeral Group 14 days to remove the name from marketing materials, signage, and social media, and to prove that deliveries of human remains have stopped.

Weaver previously told GV Wire that the trust would no longer use human compost at the property. Garry Bredefeld, member of the San Joaquin River Conservancy, previously told GV Wire that all human compost should be removed.

Bredefeld told GV Wire in a statement that he supported the family’s demands and desire not to be associated with human remains on the land.

He said it was “arrogant” of the trust to use the remains without consulting anyone.

“The damage and hurt caused by Sharon Weaver was completely unnecessary and it’s my expectation that in the future the Trust will work collaboratively with all stakeholders and be more transparent with the public,” Bredefeld said.

Before the sale of the property in 2020, the Peck family operated the farm and winery for nearly 60 years. And while the trust purchased the land, the family said that purchase did not include the name Sumner Peck.

“The Sumner Peck name belongs to this family,” a family spokesperson said in a news release. “It was our father’s name. It was business. Nobody bought it. Nobody paid for it. And nobody asked our permission to drag it through the mud.”

The late Sumner Peck was one of the Valley’s most prominent farmers with 5,000 acres on the westside. However, the federal government’s and Westlands Water District’s failure to build a drain to remove toxin-laden irrigation runoff turned many of those acres into a wasteland.