Pistol Pete's Pecans: NMSU announces first food product
Miranda Cyr
LAS CRUCES – After spending the past year working on various licensed consumables, New Mexico State University announced on Friday the release of its first university-branded food product: Pistol Pete's Pecans.
The salted pecans will be offered in NMSU-branded packaging starting Nov. 4 at Legacy Pecans in Mesilla and online at legacypecans.com. Pistol Pete’s Pecans will also be sold at concession stands for all NM State home athletic events starting Nov. 9 and will also be at the NMSU Golf Course.
Aggie Athletics Director Mario Moccia said that they will likely be available at local gas stations and stores in coming months.
The pecans are the university's next foray into the consumables market. Aggie Athletics already has its own beer, wine, liquor and coffee, making $36,000 dollars from selling the products in the past fiscal year.
Moccia said he became more serious about NMSU-licensed food products when the New Mexico Department of Agriculture Secretary Jeff Witte reached out to him.
"I don't know if it's partnership is the right word, but (we're) working together with New Mexico Department of Agriculture and athletics, to find products that we could brand and collaborate with," Moccia said. "It's like a win-win-win. The state is promoting its agriculture, a local agricultural business is going to sell their product and we've got a great branding opportunity."
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Witte had suggested to Moccia that food products were a great way to produce revenue for Aggie Athletics and showcase some agricultural products that New Mexico is already known for.
Working with Legacy Pecans
For Pistol Pete's Pecans, NMSU collaborated with local growers Legacy Pecans. Moccia said the Salopek family has been heavily involved with NMSU, especially the College of Agricultural, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences, for many years.
Doña Ana County is the largest pecan-producing county nationwide and home to the Salopek family who have been farming the fertile Rio Grande soil for generations. Today, collectively, the Salopek family owns one of the largest family-owned and operated farms in the world.
“As a former NMSU student, farmer's daughter and native New Mexican, it is an honor and privilege to launch Pistol Pete's Pecans,” stated Legacy Pecans CEO Heather Salopek in a news release. “This was a special project for me as it embodies my passions; showcasing our deeply rooted pecan industry, spreading NM State pride and bringing awareness to our state's agriculture community as a whole. It's exciting to know this product will bring a taste of New Mexico to Aggie alumni and others across the nation."
The pecan has deep ties to NMSU and the Mesilla Valley.
Pioneering horticulturist Fabián Garcia, the first director of the New Mexico Agricultural Experiment Station at what was then New Mexico College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts, planted some of New Mexico's first pecan trees in the Mesilla Valley in 1931. Many of those original trees are still standing at the university's Fabián Garcia Horticultural Science Center.
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"It only makes sense to have pecans as an NM State-branded product, with New Mexico being No. 2 in the nation in pecan production and Doña Ana County being the No. 1 county in the nation in pecan production," Witte said in the news release.
Next up for NMSU-branded products
In June, NMSU held a tasting to determine what type of salsa the university would partner with to produce its own. Moccia said they have chosen a salsa that fits the school's vision, and it will be the next product for Aggie fans.
Aside from pecans and salsa, NMSU is still working to pursue other consumable products — New Mexico staples such as dairy products, jerky, peanuts and pistachios.
Moccia still believes these licensing endeavors could result in a six-figure source of revenue for Aggie Athletics, but the process has begun to slow slightly.
"This was one of the only good things that came out of a pandemic," Moccia said. "We didn't have sports, so we didn't have the day-to-day preparations. You could spend time on this. But you know, these things do take time to create a new product. … Right now we're focused on our athletics and student athletes."
Miranda Cyr, a Report for America corps member, can be reached at mcyr@lcsun-news.com or @mirandabcyr on Twitter. Show your support for the Report for America program at https://bit.ly/LCSNRFA.