Many veterans of the economic world will warn against mixing business and pleasure, but that is not always the case. For most, the mixture of the two offers negative connotations, but for the owner and founder of Peach Hills Soils, pleasure is found in family and business.

Robert Medrano ran a wholesale nursery in 1983 and spent much of his time growing plant materials. What he quickly realized was that the market was overcrowded and competition was fierce. In addition to this, he also found that the work was very time consuming and labor intensive. Fortunately, for the entrepreneur, the need for a bulk soil product, such as amendments and pot soils peaked his interest and garnered his attention.

He started accepting shavings and different organics in order to blend his own soils and he soon found that it took less work to complete. He studied the possibilities and realized that he had discovered a great concept. In 1990, Medrano began taking shavings, sawdust and organic waste. What followed was a full-time product manufacturing plant operating solely in recycled bulk soil landscape materials.

Classified now as a chip and grind operation, Peach Hills Soils takes in commercial type green waste from gardeners, landscapers and various other sources. Medrano stated that they no longer accept residential waste, because it was simply, "too dirty." Oil cans, bicycle tires and other solid waste products were found in many of the residential waste dump-offs. Medrano’s concern has always been to produce clean products.

All of the grinding processes take place at a 40-acre site, out of 132 total leased acres, just off of Highway 118 and west of the city of Moorpark. The reason for such a large holding of land is, as Medrano puts it, "to provide a buffer between he and the neighbors." Although there have not been any reports of offense, Medrano wants to take no chances.

A second location, known as the outlet yard, is located ten miles away and allows the company to flex their retail muscles as well. After the grinding and recycling operation, a myriad of products, nearly 30 in all, are offered to the public and private consumer. The top three products include a 3-inch minus mulch, compost-soil amendment and fine seed topper. In addition to these products the remaining offerings include rocks, cobblestone, decorative pea gravel, boulders, bark and various other nursery items housed in tidy bins.

According to Medrano, there is much more public involvement than there used to be. Many members of the surrounding communities are interested in what happens to green waste. "Although we don’t take residential curbside recycling, people are still very interested in how compost is made and what is involved with the production process." He has noticed that public awareness and the need to educate is increasing.

(Above) All of the grinding processes take place at a 40-acre site, out of 132 total leased acres, just off of Highway 118 and west of the city of Moorpark. A sccond operation, known as the outlet yard, is located just ten miles away.

Public works and some of the bigger agencies are getting away from chemical fertilizers and using more organic composts, causing their market to increase tremendously over the past ten years. "There seems to be a trend among the larger companies, which involves the use of more organics as opposed to the chemical," said Medrano. "The machinery has also improved greatly, getting bigger, better and more versatile. The Vermeer machine is a one-man operation; there is a birds-eye-view of what is going on and there is not a need for more tractors to be on the jobsite. The equipment is becoming more user friendly."

Three full-time operators control the Royer shredder, Vermeer tub grinder TG400-AL, Shaker Machine-soil screener and various tractors and skip loaders. Melody Higgenbotham, the office manager, Manuel Morales, the operations manager, two full-time drivers and miscellaneous as-needed workers round out the crew. Ernie Medrano, Robert’s father, has been instrumental in furthering the business as well. "It is a fairly small operation, but we run a real tight ship here."

Medrano is the type of owner/founder who is not afraid to get dirty either. He stated that he is a man who wears many hats and his personal philosophy falls right in line with normal parameters. "In order to run a successful business, you have to have a quality end product, to do that you have to have clean incoming organic product. We deliver to very expensive homes, private golf clubs and we have to have a superior product, as well as knowing what they are doing with these organics. My number one priority is to get that quality end product."

The Company’s greatest strengths lie in service to their customers. Pinpointing products is key and they are very knowledgeable about what they are doing, but they also know that without the community’s support they could not function as they do. Medrano also receives a great deal of joy from giving things away. Peach Hills Soils has been involved in several community programs such as, compost giveaways, compost workshops, Christmas tree recycling programs, organic vegetable gardening classes, green waste recycling programs, school education on recycling and they have planted many local gardens in public schools. "I think it is important to get out there and answer some questions, open the facility to the public on certain days to show them what goes on and what is involved and how you can turn green waste into a useful product instead of dumping it in a landfill," stated Medrano.

In addition to charity, Peach Hills Soils has also received recognition on a city, county and state level for the work they are doing. "I have three walls full of awards and distinctions, ranging from the Waste Reduction Awards Program (WRAP), to recognition for donating seed-topper." The first award that he received was in the early 90’s, where the state gave him recognition for recycling 3 -4,000 yards of compost a year. Now they are doing 30,000 a year. Trucks are moving 10 hours a day and the increase in orders and the resulting growth have served to be the greatest milestones to overcome. It seems that the company is always willing to give to the local area. "We end up getting repaid ten times what we give."

Medrano is always looking and thinking about new services that could be offered in coming years. He has started a worm farm and is selling a worm casting compost and bagging operation, but apart from the company, Medrano is an outdoorsman at heart. Accompanied by his wife, Lisa and his two daughters, Rebeka and Olivia, Medrano spends as much time as he can under the stars enjoying family camping activities.

The future of Peach Hills Soils includes a belief that the company will be involved as an organic waste management company for several cities and counties. He is also excited about letting the public utilities use the resources found on his land. "I would like to work with the entire county of Ventura, to raise environmental awareness and help educate the public."

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