Nutty for walnut butter
March/April 2022 California Bountiful magazine
Once tasted, creamy spread is met with surprise, enthusiasm
Story by Linda DuBois
Photos by Fred Greaves
Every single morning, 6-year-old Cade Etchepare wants the same thing for breakfast: a bagel with walnut butter. He changes his routine only by rotating among the butter's three flavor options: original, maple and salted caramel.
His twin sister, Lena, prefers more variety. She likes walnut butter with bagels, too, but also with oatmeal, yogurt, fruit—and just about anything else that's edible.
The kids always have plenty on hand because their dad, Leon, not only sells walnut butter, he makes it and grows the walnuts, too.
Adding value
A fourth-generation farmer in Maxwell who also grows almonds, Leon Etchepare started the Wellnut Farms walnut butter company in 2014 with friend and fellow walnut farmer Kevin Amator, who runs a hulling and shelling operation.
When the pair noticed tree-nut prices were falling, they decided to pursue selling a product made with the nuts to stabilize some income, Etchepare explained.
At first, they considered almond butter, but the California Walnut Board, which had begun to develop walnut butter recipes, changed their minds.
"Kevin and I were like, 'Hey, why not? … There's not really a mainstream walnut butter on the market.'"
They started with the basic Walnut Board recipes, and after a big investment of time and money, the pair came up with the perfect blend of ingredients to make the butters suitable for retail sale.
"It took about a year and a half of formulations and trials and studies to figure out how to get walnuts shelf stable," Etchepare said. And because each nut has unique amounts of oil and moisture, it took another few years to get each batch's texture consistent.
Their resulting formula includes a touch of palm oil to keep the butters smooth, shelf stable and consistent, as well as sea salt, natural flavors and just enough cane sugar (2 to 3 grams per serving) to cut any bitter bite.
Making the butter
Because Etchepare's family farm grows 12 million pounds of walnuts each year, only a fraction of them are made into butters.
After harvest, these nuts are hulled, washed and dried onsite, and then go to an offsite sheller before being returned, where a small staff roasts and grinds them, mixes in the other ingredients and then jars and labels the butters.
Initially an outside company made the butters. But in July of 2019, Etchepare launched his own co-packer, Nutopia Foods, which makes the butters as needed in small batches to ensure freshness.
To warrant the investment, keep his staff busy and help small businesses, Nutopia also makes other companies' nut butters with pistachios, pecans, hazelnuts, almonds and cashews.
"In a utopic world, we all get along and help out each other and treat each other well," Etchepare said, in explaining his business philosophy and the origin of the Nutopia name.
Growing the walnuts
Running Wellnut Farms and Nutopia Foods would keep Etchepare busy enough, but neither is his primary occupation.
Etchepare's great-grandfather, an immigrant from France, was an indentured servant to a sheep rancher and later started his own herd of sheep with his brothers. The ensuing generations continued farming, eventually shifting to rice and row crops. In the mid-1990s, the family started planting walnuts and almonds. Now, the combined orchard is 5,000 acres, with about 60% walnuts.
Called Emerald Farms, the farming operation is now owned by Etchepare, his dad and his aunt. They decided this past fall to stop growing row crops, in part because many employees quit during the pandemic and they needed the remaining workers for the orchard.
"I've gone more away from doing the daily tasks on the farm to more management since I'm now in charge of a large farming operation, a co-packing facility and a retail brand," Etchepare said. "But at least one day a week, if not more, I try to get out and walk the orchards."
Etchepare says taking a sustainable approach to farming helps offset challenges for farmers, who face rising costs, pests, crop diseases, fires, smoke, regulations, drought and water restrictions.
"We really try to concentrate on soil health so that the plant is as healthy as possible to fight off any diseases and pests," Etchepare said.
"We are almost 100% solar for all our electrical usage. We use natural gas or propane, if not electricity, to power most of our irrigation pumps. We use mating disruption to combat insects, helping us reduce our pesticide usage by over half. We ensure we use the right amount of water, through sensors in the ground and micro sprinklers and drip on everything—nothing's flood irrigated. We take tissue samples from the trees every month so we know the right amount of fertilizer."
While farming is hard work and can be stressful, Etchepare says growing food is in his blood—and he loves it.
"Every day's a new challenge. Every year is a different year, which makes it fun and interesting," he said. "You're also creating food and people enjoy food a lot. We obviously need food to live, but food is also something that brings us all together. We can have meals together and we can share recipes and it brings a lot of joy to people."
Great for health nuts
He also knows he's growing a nutritious food.
Walnuts are rich in protein, fiber and magnesium, and studies suggests they may help control appetite and contribute to gut health. But they are especially acclaimed for their healthful fatty acids.
"There are 2.5 grams of alpha linolenic acid, the plant-based omega-3, per handful," said Carol Sloan, a registered dietitian and the health research director for the California Walnut Commission. "Scientific research shows that walnuts are a heart-healthy addition to the diet, with benefits that may reduce risk of cognitive issues, heart disease or certain cancers."
Sloan added that walnut butter is a great way to incorporate walnuts into a daily diet. "My favorite? Walnut butter in celery with dried blueberries and a drizzle of local honey—yum!"
Reactions in a nutshell
Others agree—once they've tasted it, said Joanna Malson, Wellnut Farms' director of sales and marketing.
"We find that most people have never heard of walnut butter and are confused by what it is," Malson said. "They also seem hesitant to try it because they're afraid it might be bitter."
She added that the tannins in the walnut skins can sometimes irritate the mouth, but "this doesn't seem to happen with our walnut butter."
Etchepare said the most popular of the three flavors used to be original, but it's now salted caramel, especially for women. Men lean toward maple. "Then original's kind of all over the board. If you want that quintessential walnut flavor, then that's your go-to."
He says he enjoys reading the customer reviews on Amazon. Among them:
"I was thinking of eating it with other things, but I ended up just eating by spooning into my mouth like ice cream. I only wish that I would have bought more."
"This is only day two since I've opened it and nearly half the jar is gone. … The sweet salty balance is perfection. It's like euphoria in my mouth."
"So good, so so so so good."
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