■Fresno County Supervisors on Tuesday approved a 98-acre pistachio processing facility near Firebaugh.

■Developers say the plant will reduce the amount of necessary truck travel by 272,000 miles annually.

■The Southern California law firm that appealed the project did not show up to present their objections.

Fresno County supervisors sided with the builders of a new pistachio processing plant who say a more centralized facility will drastically reduce pollution and truck traffic near Firebaugh.

Pistachio experts say the new facility comes as the region prepares for a massive influx of the nut.

Currently, trucks have to make a 50-mile round trip to Firebaugh to bring harvested pistachios to a processing facility, said Dirk Poeschel, consultant for the S. Stamoules Inc. Pistachio Processing Facility.

The new 98-acre plant at Newcomb Avenue between North and Annadale avenues would be centralized on the Stefanopoulos family’s 13,000 acres of pistachio orchards, reducing the necessary number of trips by 272,000 miles yearly.

Supervisors unanimously approved the project, shooting down an appeal from an environmentalist group calling on the builders to make it a net-zero energy facility.

“The proposed facility will literally be in the center of the Stefanopoulos family orchard and eliminate about 272,000 truck miles annually, eliminating a 25-mile plus or minus one-way trip to Firebaugh,” Poeschel said. “In other words, about 11 times around the world will be savings.”

Stefanopoulos Family One of the First to Grow Pistachios at Commercial Scale

When the Stefanopoulos family first planted pistachio trees in Fresno County in 1972, they did so as one of the first to do so on a commercial scale, Poeschel said.

The current plant near Firebaugh increases fuel and travel costs. The new facility in the center of the Stefanopoulos property would reduce harvesting costs, Poeschel said.

The plant would be built in four phases. The plant would consist of two hulling buildings, 40 dryers 29 feet tall, and 48 silos 50 feet tall. The processing facility would be 155,169 square feet.

Pistachio Harvest Could Double by 2031

Richard Matoian, former president of the American Pistachio Growers, spoke in favor of the project when it went before the Fresno County Planning Commission. He said the number of pistachios produced in California could double by 2031.

Growers first topped 1 billion pounds in 2020, Matoian said. By 2031, growers could be producing 2 billion pounds. Matoian said California’s Sustainable Groundwater Management Act could affect that forecast, but it’s hard to determine to what degree it would.

A 2022 study from the Pistachio Growers showed 25% of acreage had only a single source of water.

The biggest limiting factor for growers, however, is processing capacity. Seven processors represent 95% of capacity, Matoian said.

Matoian said investors would have to increase processing capabilities to meet the increased demand.

The facility will be highly automated, only needing 14 employees.

“It’s a highly automated facility, very different than the facilities that exist in the Valley now,” Poeschel said.

Environmental Appellant Didn’t Show Up

An appeal from Sunland-based law firm Advocates for the Environment concerning energy usage at the processing facility forced the project to go before planning commissioners and supervisors.

The group called for all greenhouse gas emissions to be mitigated. They also wanted the company to electrify drying units. Poeschel said the technology doesn’t yet exist to electrify pistachio drying.

Representatives from Advocates for the Environment did not show up to either the planning commission meeting or the supervisors meeting.

“This is an unnecessary delay by an outside source that caused this company a 30-day delay and doesn’t have the courtesy to show up after filing the appeal,” said Supervisor Brian Pacheco.