Rediscovering Rancho Gordo Beans During the Pandemic

Before the resounding effects of COVID-19 rippled across the world, Rancho Gordo, an heirloom bean distributor in Napa, Calif., was receiving about 150 orders a day – but at the height of pandemic madness, daily sales soared to 1,500.

"We couldn't keep up with the number of orders," said Steve Sando, owner and founder of Rancho Gordo. "We were not prepared for that. We have run out of certain varieties, but we still have lots of beans. I don't like that people were panic buying, but I do like the idea of people cooking their own beans again."

Rancho Gordo's Roots

The foundations of Rancho Gordo took root when Sando began growing his own produce. What started as a simple harvest of Rio Zape heirloom beans blossomed into farmers market sales. From there, the business expanded to include a warehouse, retail shop, and office, then another store in San Francisco.

As someone who was frustrated by limited ingredient options but still enjoyed cooking, Sando was enamored with beans.

"I love to make a pound on Sunday and eat the beans throughout the week instead of making beans for a particular recipe," Sando said. "When you have beans, you can add them to a salad, a few can go into scrambled eggs, you can make an easy, excellent soup. Just having a cooked pot gives you freedom throughout the week."

As for growing beans at home, Sando's advice was simple: "Don't overthink things. Beans want to grow. Just put them in the ground and add water!"

Sando admires that beans are indigenous to the Americas, and he feels the cultural ties should make beans a staple of American cuisine. Even before the virus hit, Sando noticed that beans were rising in popularity.

"A lot of people got pressure cookers over Christmas," Sando said. "A lot of chefs were posting about heirloom beans. Instagram was full of shots of pots cooking away on the stove. All these things were happening, and then beans seemed like the perfect food for a pantry at a time when finding good food wasn't guaranteed."

Weathering the Pandemic

However, despite the positive demand for beans, Rancho Gordo was still negatively affected by the pandemic when one of its employees tested positive for COVID-19.

"To be safe, we shut down the whole company," Sando said. "We can't risk the employees' health."

Unfortunately, it can take as much as two weeks to get an appointment for COVID testing in Napa, and results can take seven to 10 days.

"It's been a very ugly hit on a stressed-out business," Sando said. "Despite what we're hearing, there aren't enough tests."

The Future of Rancho Gordo Beans

To a degree, the pandemic has also affected the Rancho Gordo-Xoxoc Project, a partnership between the two businesses that enables small farmers in Mexico to grow and pre-sell their indigenous crops to the U.S. without risking local market trips or having to grow bland produce for international markets. Due to COVID-19, Sando was unable to attend their bean harvest in Oaxaca, Mexico.

However, Rancho Gordo has continued its steady growth amid turbulent times, with growers extending beyond Central California to Oregon, Washington, and New Mexico.

Every summer, Sando grows rare legumes and herbs to see if they're suitable for production or seed-saving, and he's developed a substantial seed bank shared through Seed Savers Exchange.

Steve Sando is the author of Supper at Rancho Gordo, The Rancho Gordo Heirloom Bean Grower's Guide, and Heirloom Beans: Great Recipes from Rancho Gordo, along with the Rancho Gordo blog. You can learn more about the company on the Rancho Gordo website.