As a fifth-generation farmer in California’s Imperial Valley, Kate Elmore McCutcheon has never been far from agriculture. But her journey into the family business wasn’t immediate. What began as a more distant relationship with farming has since evolved into a central role within her family’s company, Vail Ranches, where she serves as Chief Financial Officer, working alongside her father Howard Elmore, her uncle Richard Elmore, her cousins and her husband Caleb McCutcheon.

Their work carries forward a legacy that began more than a century ago, when Elmore McCutcheon’s great-great-grandfather settled in the region in the early 1900s. He arrived in 1908 with his family, traveling from Missouri by boxcar with only a few belongings: a wagon, seed, building materials and a mule.

The journey west was grueling, driven by the promise of opportunity in the Imperial Valley. Federal reclamation projects were bringing irrigation water to the desert for the first time, while policies such as the Desert Land Act and Homestead Act encouraged families to settle. Canals and infrastructure tied to the Colorado River began transforming arid land into productive farmland, opening the door for farming families like the Elmores.

As the family settled down and established itself, the years following World War I marked a turning point, as the next generation looked beyond survival and toward innovation and growth. In 1920, Elmore McCutcheon’s great-grandfather, John Junior Elmore, married his sweetheart, Hetty Joy Jameson, who also came from a farming family that owned citrus orchards and property in Corona, Calif.

The couple went on to purchase what would become the family’s first large farming operation, the Elmore Desert Ranch. “It’s a very productive ranch that we still farm a portion of today,” Elmore McCutcheon said.

The early efforts of a family farm continued throughout the generations, with her grandfather, John Jameson Elmore, branching out to form his own farming operation. This included turning raw desert into farming land along the Colorado River and Mexicali Valley.

“It was during that time we started Sahara Packing Company, which was our produce label for a long time. We sold and shipped produce all over the world.”

This passion for agriculture would go on to be inherited by the next generation, with her dad and uncle establishing Vail Ranches in 1997. Today, they’re a diversified farming operation in Brawley, Calif., growing lettuce, carrots, celery, corn, alfalfa, Sudan and Bermuda grass. They also have a more vertically integrated operation in Ensenada, Mexico, where they’ve been growing for over 30 years.

While Elmore McCutcheon was quite familiar with her family’s farming operation growing up, it wasn’t part of her everyday life. “I remember going out to the field to pick some lettuce or dig potatoes. Mostly just goofing off on the weekends,” she said.

When it was finally time to go off to college, Elmore McCutcheon found herself drawn to business rather than farming. Early on while attending the University of Southern California to pursue this passion, she realized she had a particular affinity for numbers.

“At the same time, both of my grandpas, who were very big parts of my life, were encouraging me to go into accounting. It just seemed like a good fit.”

Once she received her undergrad, she went on to get a master’s degree in accounting, eventually moving to San Francisco and becoming a licensed CPA. In an alternate reality, if she didn’t have the family farm to return to, she said she could’ve continued happily down this path.

“I really liked working in public accounting. It was challenging at times, but it was fun; I got to work at a large firm with high-profile clients. But ultimately, I knew my goal was to work for the family business.”

It was also important to her to be able to work alongside her grandpa John, who was 89 years old at the time.

“He was already retired, but still very much engaged in the business,” said Elmore McCutcheon. “He was so thrilled to see me come back home and start working. He would often come into the office to have his coffee and chat with me.”

While she cherished the valuable time spent with her grandpa before he passed, the transition also brought with it the reality of the complexities and stresses of running a multi-generational business.

Like many farming operations, Vail Ranches has been forced to adapt over time. Rising input costs, labor challenges and shifting markets have narrowed the range of crops that can be grown profitably in the Imperial Valley.

“This has forced us to pivot over the years, and even though we may not look the same as we did 40 years ago, what I’m most proud of is that even with those pivots, we’ve found a way to balance the business within our family and keep moving forward.”

For Elmore McCutcheon, it’s about far more than just earning a paycheck—it’s about a commitment to preserving and growing her family’s legacy. Because of this, her leadership extends well beyond Vail Ranches. Following in the footsteps of her father and grandfather, she has become an active advocate for agriculture at both the local and state levels.

“I remember as a little girl, they were both very involved in advocacy groups. My dad was on the Western Growers Board, and I grew up watching them not only participate, but be very active in these organizations.”

On top of maintaining status as a Western Growers member, she’s also a graduate of the California Ag Leadership Program
as well as a board member and treasurer of the Imperial County Farm Bureau. Elmore McCutcheon also serves on the Western Growers Retirement Security Plan (RSP) Investment Advisory Committee.

“As I’ve become more involved, I’ve gained a deeper understanding of the complex challenges facing our industry, many of which aren’t fully felt until legislation is passed and its impacts take hold. That’s why I’m passionate about being on the front end of these issues, to help reduce obstacles and ensure our operation continues into the sixth generation.”

In this day and age, it’s more important than ever to have leaders like Elmore McCutcheon advocating for a viable future for family farms. By combining hands-on management with proactive engagement in industry and government, she works to ensure the challenges facing agriculture today are met with practical, workable solutions.

Looking ahead, her focus remains firmly on longevity. Every decision is made with future success in mind, balancing financial responsibility with thoughtful stewardship of the land and resources that sustain the operation. In honoring the past while planning for what comes next, Elmore McCutcheon demonstrates that legacy is not simply inherited, it is actively built through intention and action. Through leadership, advocacy and adaptability, she is helping ensure Vail Ranches remains a thriving family operation, prepared to carry its work into a sixth generation and beyond.