Founded by Rodney and Virginia Beard in 1967, Beard’s Quality Nut Company is a three-generation California family business that grows, handles, packs, and processes walnuts and almonds. From its original single plant in Empire, the company has expanded to multiple Central Valley facilities while keeping long-standing relationships with many of its growers. Its California nuts reach customers around the world, with nearly half of walnut production and roughly three-quarters of almond production shipped overseas.