Life Not Peachy in NJ

It has been a bittersweet celebration for peach growers in New Jersey this year.

The state's growers have had a banner crop of peaches this year. But farmers are not exactly dancing with joy -- in fact they are throwing out most of their take.

"Here we are, dumping fruit. It's ridiculous," said John Rigolizzo Jr., a farmer.

For the first time in the history of the Rigolizzo Farm in Berlin, N.J., they are throwing out perfectly good fruit -- $50,000 worth. The storage locker at the farm houses up to 200,000 peaches. All of them were picked a month ago and all of them will go bad.

The heavy rains this summer meant peaches came late and they came in high numbers.

Rigolizzo said they are having a hard time selling them because competition with California peaches is fierce and supermarkets won't take their local peaches.

"This is the worst peach season I've ever seen," Rigolizzo said.

In fact, it has been so bad that Rigolizzo said he is being forced to dump most of the peaches on the ground because it's too expensive to pack them.

"They're offering me $4 and it costs me $3 to put them in the box. I lose less money by not packing them," Rigolizzo explained.

"I'm sitting here, staying up at night, wondering what kind of work I can find this winter to have health insurance for my family," Rigolizzo said.

Next year, Rigolizzo said he will not grow peaches. It will be the first time in its 120-year history this farm won't have peaches for sale.

Rigolizzo said it comes down to a choice between saving the peaches or saving his family's farm.

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