Business

Pistachio ranching: A family tradition

A retired Minnesota urologist leverages a long family history of pistachio farming into his own venture.

By Tyler Chin — Posted July 17, 2006

Print  |   Email  |   Respond  |   Reprints  |   Like Facebook  |   Share Twitter  |   Tweet Linkedin

Making sidelines pay

Business Pitch

Doctors who branched out beyond running their practice tell why they did it, how they did it, and what you should know before you do it.
» Other installments

Name: Ahmad Orandi, MD

Specialty: Urology

Location: Hopkins, Minn.

Business: A & R Pistachios of California (link)

The company sells premium pistachios grown on a farm in Terra Bella, Calif., about 50 miles south of Fresno. The company operates a shop in Hopkins, Minn., run by Dr. Orandi's daughter.

Annual revenue: Annual profits fluctuate from $125,000 to $250,000.

Why he started the business: While living and practicing in Fergus Falls, Minn., Dr. Orandi and his wife went to California in 1969 to look at buying land, which led his wife to ask why he wanted to buy property so far away.

"I didn't know what to say," said Dr. Orandi, who came from a family that has grown pistachios in Iran for generations. "I said, 'Well, maybe someday we can grow pistachios,' and then Fortune magazine published an article right around that time where the lead article or feature article was about gold growing on trees. And it was a pistachio tree on the cover."

At that time there wasn't much pistachio farming in the United States, but Dr. Orandi thought that the market here had potential. "It was going to explode, and naturally we had background, knowledge, experience and [pistachio] connections, of course back, [in Iran]," he said. "So, that's the way it started."

He bought his first parcel of land in 1971, naming the business after his and his wife's Ruth's first initials.

Why he stopped practicing: Dr. Orandi retired at the age of 59 in 1991. "Physicians who kept practicing like me at that age ... didn't make it to age 65," he said. "It was obvious that the red light on the dashboard had gone on, and I didn't want to ignore it."

Words of wisdom: "I've been in the stock market, I've been in real estate, and I've been in pistachio farming," he said. "So, if I were to give advice to a young physician who can save [money] and put it into an investment, I'd say go into residential real estate ... But my wife's and my motto is we're in pistachio farming because we have fun, not because we're making money."

Back to top


ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISE HERE


Featured
Read story

Confronting bias against obese patients

Medical educators are starting to raise awareness about how weight-related stigma can impair patient-physician communication and the treatment of obesity. Read story


Read story

Goodbye

American Medical News is ceasing publication after 55 years of serving physicians by keeping them informed of their rapidly changing profession. Read story


Read story

Policing medical practice employees after work

Doctors can try to regulate staff actions outside the office, but they must watch what they try to stamp out and how they do it. Read story


Read story

Diabetes prevention: Set on a course for lifestyle change

The YMCA's evidence-based program is helping prediabetic patients eat right, get active and lose weight. Read story


Read story

Medicaid's muddled preventive care picture

The health system reform law promises no-cost coverage of a lengthy list of screenings and other prevention services, but some beneficiaries still might miss out. Read story


Read story

How to get tax breaks for your medical practice

Federal, state and local governments offer doctors incentives because practices are recognized as economic engines. But physicians must know how and where to find them. Read story


Read story

Advance pay ACOs: A down payment on Medicare's future

Accountable care organizations that pay doctors up-front bring practice improvements, but it's unclear yet if program actuaries will see a return on investment. Read story


Read story

Physician liability: Your team, your legal risk

When health care team members drop the ball, it's often doctors who end up in court. How can physicians improve such care and avoid risks? Read story

  • Stay informed
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • LinkedIn