Western Railroad Discussion > Farmer Brothers Coffee in Torrance Gone.

Over the passed several weeks I have been passing by the Torrance Branch, in Torrance Ca and have been observing the demolition of the Farmer Brothers old home office which in the past had shipped out box cars of spice's and coffee.
​It was a year or two ago they had announced they were leaving the not so golden state any more for Texas. Well they are gone and the buildings are going fast.
​The rail spur is still in place as of Saturday.

Toyota Motor Sales is next.

czuleget Wrote:
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> Over the passed several weeks I have been passing
> by the Torrance Branch, in Torrance Ca and have
> been observing the demolition of the Farmer
> Brothers old home office which in the past had
> shipped out box cars of spice's and coffee.
> ​It was a year or two ago they had announced
> they were leaving the not so golden state any more
> for Texas. Well they are gone and the buildings
> are going fast.
> ​The rail spur is still in place as of Saturday.

That was our favorite place to switch back in he 60s and 70s. The aroma was fantastic and I still prefer Farmers Brothers coffee even today.


V

SLOCONDR

Sad



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/20/17 11:08 by CPRR.

SLOCONDR Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> czuleget Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Over the passed several weeks I have been
> passing
> > by the Torrance Branch, in Torrance Ca and
> have
> > been observing the demolition of the Farmer
> > Brothers old home office which in the past had
> > shipped out box cars of spice's and coffee.
> > ​It was a year or two ago they had announced
> > they were leaving the not so golden state any
> more
> > for Texas. Well they are gone and the buildings
> > are going fast.
> > ​The rail spur is still in place as of
> Saturday.
>
> That was our favorite place to switch back in he
> 60s and 70s. The aroma was fantastic and I still
> prefer Farmers Brothers coffee even today.
>
>
> V
>
> SLOCONDR

You should try SLO Roasted coffee.
 

Trainjunkie and I remeber the "Comercial Grade", AKA "Sticks and stems of the coffee world" Farmers Brothers Coffee proudly served at The Yermo Railroad Inn, Also known as the Beanery. YUCK !

CPRR Wrote:
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> I predict more losses like this. The gov and the
> Ca reps just do not get the fact that when a
> company leaves, there is a ripple effect to other
> industries that loose. But do not worry, a low
> profit, low employee company will replace them.
> More $10.00 per hour jobs for un-educated people.
> Yep the economy of CA is going strong....
>
> Posted from iPhone

Coffee was already a low profit, low employee company with $10 jobs.  The Texas economy is structured on jobs like that.

Did the coffee roasting business have a few run ins with the Air Quality Board?

There was a spice importer roaster in Harrison NJ, right between DOCK tower and the PATH wb platform. Glorious fragrances.

They're gone, too.

Posted from Android

CPRR Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I predict more losses like this. The gov and the
> Ca reps just do not get the fact that when a
> company leaves, there is a ripple effect to other
> industries that loose. But do not worry, a low
> profit, low employee company will replace them.
> More $10.00 per hour jobs for un-educated people.
> Yep the economy of CA is going strong....
>
> Posted from iPhone

​Just couldn't help youself, could you?    
Give it a rest guy. We know you don't like California's elected government.
​Mostly because you've said it many, many times...

Fredo Wrote:
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> Trainjunkie and I remeber the "Comercial Grade",
> AKA "Sticks and stems of the coffee world" Farmers
> Brothers Coffee proudly served at The Yermo
> Railroad Inn, Also known as the Beanery. YUCK !

Prisoner approved! It was no coincidence that the bunk house in Yermo looked like a cell block and had coffee to match. :D

PHall Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> CPRR Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > I predict more losses like this. The gov and
> the

>
> ​Just couldn't help youself, could you?    
> Give it a rest guy. We know you don't like
> California's elected government.
> ​Mostly because you've said it many, many
> times...

I am sorry. I guess you don't live in CA. But being that my comments are not appreciated, I deleted my comment above for you



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/20/17 11:09 by CPRR.

People who believe that Texas is based on $10 jobs haven't spent time there. My son during his
tenure at Dr. Pepper as a maintenance supervisor was up against a glass ceiling at $100K. The guys
sweeping the floor were making $16/hr. Back to Torrance, we put in the hydraulics on the wheel
mold line at American Racing. That was the U S Steel fab plant building? Anyway, that with the
big eucalyptus trees (and the rail sidings) was pretty neat.

Out

Objectionable oders from food processors do get into the news:

http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/environment-and-nature/20140409/sriracha-hot-sauce-factory-smell-deemed-a-public-nuisance-by-irwindale

Not sure if bad coffee and radical hot sauce can be put into the same catagory though.

I love coffee and the smell of it, whether it's roasting or brewing. But back in the early 80s I actually worked just around the corner from the FB coffee plant in Torrance and I couldn't stand the smell from that place when it wafted in our direction. I always wondered why it smelled so bad then, as Fredo mentioned above, when I finally got to enjoy some of FB's "prison grade" coffee at the Yermo beanary a few years later, I understood. Smells and tastes are certainly subjective, and I suppose FB makes some great coffees, but also some awful ones. I must have been smelling the "sticks and stems" batches.

Texas is hardly the land of $10 jobs.  The difference between CA and TX is taxes, tax rates, and where the money goes, pure and simple.  Things simply cost less in TX.  

CPRR Wrote:
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> Sad

Are you sad because Farmer Bros moved to Texas or because SLOCONDR actually liked the taste of their coffee?

Tom Y

 

Worked at Douglas Torrance 1965-72, enjoyed the coffee aroma. Much better than the Montrose DDT fumes or being downwind from Mobil on certain days.
A lot of coffee shops used Farmer Bros. back then. 

Ha! Been in Texas 2 1/2 years, doing better than 50 years born and bred in California. Sorry, but you guys are having the very life choked out of you. OK, back to being nice :-)

CPRR Wrote:
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> I am sorry. I guess you don't live in CA. But
> being that my comments are not appreciated, I
> deleted my comment above for you

PHall seems to know CA very well, so I wouldn't make that assumption.

Had the coffee beans been grown and harvested in California, it would have been a big deal. "We're going to use Texas's beans instead of California's." Don't think that's what happened here.

Drifiting off topic a bit, but there are folks here on TO who hate California's agricultural industry, and that's bad for our economy because those haters are not allowing state's renewable natural resources for interstate or international commerce.

I suspect the beans are imported (Central America?), and Texas is closer geographically, so there might be advantages there. Still, we are giving up manufacturing of coffee, so I second your "Sad." FYI, ya gotta use your brains BEFORE you rant. :-)

wpdude Wrote:
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> Ha! Been in Texas 2 1/2 years, doing better than
> 50 years born and bred in California. Sorry, but
> you guys are having the very life choked out of
> you. OK, back to being nice :-)

Out of the Sun and into the Frying Pan State--enjoy!