Fresh Origins Farm produces MicroGreens, PetiteGreens, TenderGreens and Edible Flowers in the North San Diego County town of San Marcos. Our ideal growing climate allows us to produce a micro green that is robust, healthy and highly flavored.
Combining the benefits our great weather with a deep passion for quality and innovation, Fresh Origins has become the largest grower of MicroGreens and Edible Flowers in the country. The farm was founded by David Sasuga, after growing flowering plants for 20 years. David always wanted to grow fresh produce and the opportunity came unexpectedly. Back in 1995, a local chef came to our greenhouse and got excited when he saw some basil seedlings growing there. He explained that he could use them as a garnish and although it did not make a lot of sense at the time, it was then that David began producing these and other varieties of tiny, fresh-cut seedlings destined for restaurants in Orange County California. We were not calling them MicroGreens back then, but that is what they were. Fresh Origins has come a long way since then, and David and his family produce a wide variety of MicroGreens, PetiteGreens, Edible Flowers, and related items for chefs throughout North America.
Fresh Origins’ micro greens have exceptional color, are bursting with flavor and have outstanding keeping quality due to the care and attention we give in our growing and harvesting methods. They are hand harvested daily to order, at the peak of freshness. We are unlike other growers who grow microgreens as a sideline to their main crops. We don’t do outdoor row-crop farming, we don’t grow tomatoes, potatoes, or squash etc. Fresh Origins is first and foremost a grower of MicroGreens.
At Fresh Origins, innovation is a way of life. We are continually working to imagine and develop the latest ideas in microgreens and edible flowers. As a result, we have created several original, unique items such as FireStixTM, MicroFlowersTM, Petite Amaranth Carnival MixTM, Micro Mustard DijonTM, Micro Mirepoix MixTM, Micro Fines Herbes MixTM, Micro Cucumber, Petite Pumpkin Green, Micro Tangerine LaceTM, Gold Haricot ShootsTM, Nature StrawsTM and more. We have several ideas in development and introduce these new ideas regularly. Our product list is extensive and most items are available all year.
Our farm is certified for food safety by Primus Labs and we are a signatory to the California Leafy Green Handler Marketing Agreement. Fresh Origins is a small family farm that is proud to be accountable for food safety. We are puzzled by the many small, local and organic farmers across the country who are fighting against improved food safety regulations. They feel they should continue to be exempt from having to follow food safety guidelines; instead their preference is not to be accountable for the cleanliness, sanitation and safety of what they produce. Our small family farm is audited several times a year by third party USDA trained inspectors. We hope we are an example to others as Fresh Origins is one small family farm that is leading the way in this area.
We also strive to be efficient and continually improve the way we run our farm. Sustainability is a major buzz-word these days, and a lot of people are trying to profit from it. The fact is; farming by nature is a sustainable activity. When farmers do not work hard to conserve natural resources, reduce waste, and maintain the land so that it will continue to be productive, they don’t survive. These days, farmers are pointing out many of the things they have always done, except now it is called sustainable. This makes it suddenly something very special. Fresh Origins can also claim to be sustainable. For insect control, we utilize special screening to exclude pests from our greenhouses. We use sticky tape insect traps to minimize the need for spraying. Whenever spraying is necessary, we choose safer materials such as Garlic, Clove and Rosemary oils. Our growing medium and growing trays are recycled and re-used. We carefully hand water over 300,000 trays of greens every day in order to conserve water. A series of intricate drainage canals, capture any excess water, including rainwater in our reservoir. Many of our varieties are from heirloom seeds. Because of our mild climate, the need for heating and cooling our greenhouses is minimized. Therefore, our energy usage or “carbon footprint” is significantly less than if we were producing in harsher climates such as the mid-western or north-eastern U.S. While it is fashionable these days to claim that we are sustainable, in reality, we do these things out of a common sense need to remain profitable so we can sustain our business now and into the future. It is hard to imagine a farmer who wants to waste expensive fertilizer, insecticides, and water, or who would ruin the very land they depend on for their crops. Since we don’t do these things, it seems we are sustainable! Also, don’t forget, the carbon dioxide that we exhale is used by the plants to keep our planet green and happy.
Part of the new halo of sustainability is to say we take good care of employees. At Fresh Origins, our employees are a top priority. We offer a good wages and benefits including paid health insurance, life insurance, vacation and holidays. We provide steady employment all year, there are no seasonal layoffs. We have an excellent facility with great working conditions. Our outstanding staff takes great pride in the quality of produce we grow. In reality, it is not easy to find good people, so when we do; it makes sense to do everything we can to take care of them. If not abusing our employees makes us sustainable, we are all about it!
The entire team at Fresh Origins is focused on growing and providing the very highest quality and service we can. We appreciate your interest in Fresh Origins Farm. Our products are available to professional chefs from fine foodservice distributors nationwide.
