Grupo La Norteñita facts for kids

Grupo La Norteñita is a big company from Mexico. Its main office is in Ciudad Cuauhtémoc, Chihuahua. This company is famous for growing and selling lots of apples! They also make yummy things like apple juice, jelly, and jam from apples. While they do raise some cattle, they are mostly known for their amazing apple farms. They even pack special apples in plastic trays for stores.

The Story of La Norteñita

How It All Began

The company started way back in the 1950s. A man named Salvador Corral Piñón and his wife, Luz Camila Pérez Domínguez, officially began their business. Over the years, this small business grew into the big company we know today as Grupo La Norteñita.

At first, they traded seeds and animal food. In 1962, they bought a ranch called Rancho Santa Elena. This helped them start farming and raising animals.

Growing Apples and Growing Big

In 1968, something exciting happened! Friends encouraged Mr. Corral to plant apple trees. This was a great idea! Soon, the company had huge orchards with about 2.3 million apple trees. These trees now produce about 60% of all the apples grown in Mexico.

By 1980, the company became officially known as "La Norteñita." Then, in 1983, they opened a special plant. This plant could cool and pack apples. It helped them sell apples to more places and keep them fresh. This cooling plant is one of the biggest in the world!

Apple Farming in Chihuahua

Why Chihuahua is Perfect for Apples

The state of Chihuahua is a very important place for growing apples in Mexico. About 16 million boxes of apples are produced here each year. Sometimes, bad weather like frost or hail can damage the apples. If this happens, about 25-30% of the apples are used to make juice or other products instead of being sold fresh.

Water for the Orchards

Chihuahua is a dry, sandy area. It doesn't get much rain, only about 8 to 15 inches a year. Most of the rain falls in July and August. For 14 years, the region had a very long drought. But deep wells helped save the apple farms! These wells provide water for irrigation.

Frost can be a big problem for apple trees. But farmers use a clever trick. They use warm water from the wells to water the trees from underneath. This helps protect the trees from freezing temperatures.

What La Norteñita Produces Today

Apple Varieties and Harvest

Today, La Norteñita has about 2,000 hectares (that's about 4,942 acres) of apple farms. Every year, they plant new fields with about 250,000 new apple trees.

During the busiest time, like harvest, the company employs about 5,000 people! They pack around 2 million boxes of apples. The farms are very productive, growing about 50 tons of apples per hectare.

The company grows different kinds of apples. About 30% of their apples are Red Delicious. The other 70% are Golden Delicious. They are also planting new types, like the popular Gala apples.

Company Headquarters

The main office of La Norteñita was built in 2006. You can find it on Highway 98.5 between Chihuahua and Cuauhtémoc.