About us
Precision Processing. Proven Quality.
California Grown.
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Quality
Tradition
Integrity
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A single, seamlessly connected footprint that combines temperature-controlled cold storage, high-capacity warehouses, and all seven processing lines under one roof.
Our Escalon site stretches across 12 acres, allowing for efficient process flow, and plenty of room for future growth.
TOMRA, Best Helius, Bühler, Insort, Multi-Scan, and Weco optical systems work in tandem to eject every defect and deliver export-ready walnuts.
Family-owned and operated since 1955, DeRuosi Nut blends generations of California Central Valley know-how with cutting-edge technology and SQF-certified processes—delivering fully traceable California walnuts to buyers around the world.
A 96-rated SQF program couples with three generations of walnut know-how to give you industrial-scale food safety backed by personal accountability.
Lot-coded bins, cloud-stored QC grades and photos, and downloadable COAs let buyers audit every step from harvest truck to export pallet.
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We capture and repurpose every shell, fiber and dust by-product into biomass to meet ESG and carbon-reduction goals.
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Seven processing lines, two packing rooms, and packaging from 10 kg bags to 1,500-lb tri-walls mean we meet specs for snack, bakery, or ingredient channels worldwide.
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A 500,000 sq ft integrated plant processing year-round ensures we fulfill late-season sales and prompt orders to provide fresh quality product.
In the immediate aftermath of World War II, Michael DeRuosi Sr. saw opportunity in California’s Central Valley—land as rich and sun-drenched as the family farms of his Italian heritage. He purchased a modest fruit-dehydrator in Escalon and began drying raisins, apricots, and prunes for regional markets. That single facility—little more than tin walls and wood-fired dryers, became the cornerstone of a multigenerational enterprise. By the late 1950s, the plant’s reputation for careful moisture control and honest weights had already attracted growers from counties away, quietly setting the stage for its future specialty: Premium California Walnuts.
While most twelve-year-olds were tossing baseballs, Michael DeRuosi III spent his weekends stacking fruit trays, sweeping dryer floors, and listening to his grandfather’s stories about grade standards and grower relations. Those formative hours instilled more than a work ethic; they built an intuitive understanding of processing flow—how temperature, airflow, and timing determine product value. By high school, he could calibrate moisture meters and negotiate freight rates, laying the groundwork for the strategic thinking that would one day guide the plant’s expansion into walnuts and global export.
Armed with a business degree and outside experience in real estate and banking, Michael III returned to Escalon in 1994 to partner with his grandfather. Together they christened the venture DeRuosi Nut and made a pivotal shift: dedicating the facility exclusively to California walnut processing. The move positioned the family to surf the rising global demand for high-quality walnuts while keeping decision-making firmly in family hands.
Rejecting rapid, debt-laden expansion, the DeRuosi family chose a conservative path; re-investing earnings into equipment, warehouses, and staff training. Over two decades, the original dehydrator evolved into a 500,000-sq-ft complex with seven processing lines, two dedicated packing rooms, and five fumigation chambers. Today, the plant efficiently handles nearly 50 million pounds of California walnuts each season, moving product from inbound truck to export container with industry leading turnaround times.
From meticulous lot sampling to customer-specific sizing programs, DeRuosi Nut built its name on consistency and quality. International buyers praise the company's lighter kernel color, lower defect counts, and on-time shipments; growers value fair, data-driven payments. Continuous improvement, Quality Control Program, data-analytics, and third-party audits; keeps the plant ahead of evolving food-safety benchmarks. The results is a Premier California Walnut processor trusted on five continents for product that reliably exceeds USDA specifications.
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Led by the fourth generation, DeRuosi Nut is rolling out its boldest modernization yet: five synergistic optical systems—TOMRA 5C BSI, Best Helius 12-beam lasers, Bühler Sortex E BioVision, Insort Hypernova hyperspectral, and Multi-Scan vision—merge into an “optical gauntlet” that elevates precision to new heights. Automation knits these platforms into one continuous flow, while shell-to-biomass recycling and a refreshed DeRuosi brand underscore our push for efficiency, sustainability, and forward-looking family stewardship. Through every upgrade, we carry forward the legacy, quality, and tradition that have defined DeRuosi brand since 1947— proving that the same values that built our past are powering an even stronger future for our growers, our team, and walnut buyers worldwide.
Experience DeRuosi Nut’s family-backed, laser-driven quality—secure fully traceable California walnuts for your next order; connect with our team today.
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