Todd Fitchette
From left, Erik, Phil, and Nis Hansen.
The family has sustainably farmed cotton and other crops in the same lake bottom region that patriarch Nis Hansen first tilled in the late 19th Century.
As a sixth generation of Hansens waits in the wings, history suggests that combined, the five generations of family before them created a farming legacy. They did so by successfully and sustainably farming cotton and other crops in the same lake bottom region of the San Joaquin Valley that Hansen Ranches patriarch Nis Hansen first tilled in the late 19th Century.
Brothers Phil and Erik, and their cousin, Nis Hansen, oversee the day-to-day operations of a diverse farming operation that includes upwards of 10,000 acres of high-quality, extra-long-staple Pima cotton known for its strength and ability to mill fine clothing and linens. It is their dedication to sustainable farming practices, a strong business acumen that continues to focus on environmental stewardship and irrigation efficiency practices that makes Hansen Ranches this year’s Farm Press High Cotton winner from the West.