Cheri Romanoski, native Tucsonan and a former elementary teacher, earned a degree in education at the University of Arizona. Starting a family prompted a new career direction. Producing fresh fruit preserves for her family and sharing the garden bounty with friends and neighbors eventually translated to the creation of Cheri’s Desert Harvest in 1985.
Teaching students about the natural resources of the Sonoran Desert inspired her to preserve indigenous produce with its rich agricultural and culinary history. For over 30 years, Cheri’s company has become the premier producer of food products made from prickly pear cactus fruit, chile peppers, citrus and local honey. The business evolved from a hobby to a national and international venture.
Harvesting and processing the prickly pear cactus fruit created multiple food products for Cheri’s Desert Harvest as well as spawning the creation of two new businesses. The “waste not, want not” childhood lesson, inspired Cheri to take the cactus seeds and express the valuable, anti-aging and healing oil from them for the cosmetic industry. Cheri’s Botanics, formed in 2011, is the only company in the western hemisphere to accomplish this. Waste generated from this process is donated as compost to profit two non-profit organizations and the local zoo.
Concurrently, Cheri took the excess cactus fruit to use as a natural dye for apparel, starting a third business, Cheri’s Botanic Wear. By using all parts of the fruit not only fulfilled Cheri’s “Waste to Profit” philosophy but also pays homage to Mother nature’s perfect natural resource.
