Erickson Farm Ships Florida-Grown Mangoes Across the Country

For more than 100 years, members of the Erickson family have been growers on land east of Lake Okeechobee at Erickson Farm, which now focuses on Florida-grown mangoes.

This article first appeared in Florida Farm & Family.

Kim Erickson’s great-grandparents, Swedish immigrants Alfred and Elfrida Erickson, settled on their Florida homestead in 1911. Their four children, including their son Floyd, farmed with them. Floyd became intrigued by avocados and mangoes as a University of Florida student and planted both crops after returning to the farm.

“He was looking for a high-value crop, as we had limited acreage and a family to support,” says Kim, Floyd’s granddaughter.

In the 1970s, Floyd’s son, Dale, took over mango production. Today, Dale still runs Erickson Farm along with his daughters, Kim and Krista. Kim manages marketing, IT and research, while Krista handles ordering and shipping. Krista’s son, Brendan, is the fifth generation involved with running the farm, where they grow about 50 different varieties of Florida-grown mangoes on about 40 acres in Canal Point.

“Our niche in the mango market is specialty varieties,” Kim says. “We grow varieties that are smooth in texture, juicy and sweet.”

They ship direct to consumers throughout the United States, except for Arizona, California and Hawaii. They also sell directly from the farm during the ripe mango season, which is typically July and August.

Managing Nature’s Gifts

Kim says their Florida-grown mangoes benefit from the soil, location and cultivation techniques. Much of the area surrounding Erickson Farm was once part of the Everglades. Its remnants resulted in exceptional soil for growing. In addition, the geographic location and proximity to Lake Okeechobee result in consistent warm temperatures and minimal frost damage.

“Our trees tend to grow more in a year than an average tree because of our soil,” Kim says. “We hand trim our trees annually to open them up more. Sunlight and airflow are very important for both setting fruit and in preventing disease.”

To conserve natural resources, the Ericksons maintain their own water reservoir for frost protection.

“We don’t need to irrigate much,” Kim says. “Our system has microjets under the trees, so the water goes exactly where it’s needed.”

Numerous conservation projects include an ongoing effort to grow native flowering plants to encourage pollinators.

Mango Mania

Although the Ericksons grow around 50 varieties of mangoes, about 10 are best sellers.

“We sell a lot of the Kent variety, which is popular everywhere,” Kim says. “We have a variety called Southern Blush that’s good for eating fresh and one of my favorites for cooking because it keeps its shape when you dice it. It’s yellow, but anywhere the sun hits it, it turns red, which is how it got the ‘blush’ name.”

Another popular variety, the Pickering, is a smooth-fleshed, honey-sweet mango.

“Very few people don’t like this one,” Kim says. “A lot of our Indian customers say it reminds them of the flavor of mangoes grown in India.”

See more: Florida Is a Tropical Fruit Paradise

Other best-selling varieties include Glenn and Fruit Punch. The Ericksons also specialize in green mangoes.

“This is a completely different product, and there are two main markets for us,” Kim says. “One is customers of Indian heritage, who use green mangoes to make spicy pickles. The other is Latino customers coming from countries where mangoes are grown. A lot of these countries also have problems with fruit flies, so by the time the mangoes are ripe, there are issues with the fruit flies. So, people learned to eat them green.”

Erickson Farm wholesales green Keitt mangoes in addition to selling them from the farm stand. Every mango on Erickson Farm is handpicked, ensuring the ideal fruit for customers.

“We can do this for direct shipments and our local market because we are not tied to contracts to get things to grocery stores on a set schedule,” Kim says. “Mangoes have a pretty short shelf life, so you have to get them where they are going and to the consumer very quickly.”

The Ericksons grow and sell other exotic fruits, including sapodilla – also known as naseberry or chicoo – lychees, avocados and carambolas, or star fruit.

“We also grow curry leaves, mango leaves and paan leaves,” Kim says. “Mango leaves typically end up in Hindu temples for religious ceremonies and weddings.”

Florida-Grown Mango Memories

It’s the Florida-grown mangoes, however, that give Kim the most joy.

“Some people just absolutely light up when they get a good mango,” she says. “You can’t match the experience of picking the fruit at the perfect time and allowing it to ripen naturally versus having to meet a contract by putting the fruit in a logistical chain to meet that time schedule.”

The Erickson family thrives on people reminiscing about previous mango memories or tasting their first really good mango, an unforgettably sweet memory.

“People tell us, ‘I haven’t had a mango this good since I was a kid growing up in Florida or since I came to the United States,’” Kim says. “And that variation of the childhood memory, no matter where it occurred, is really great.”