In the 1870s and 1880s, California became a major producer of fruits and vegetables. The Hotel Del Monte was a famous resort hotel on the Monterey Peninsula which first built the now Pebble Beach Golf Links. In the 1880s an Oakland, California foods distributor used the Del Monte name to market a premium blend of coffee that had been prepared for the hotel. By 1892, the firm expanded its business and selected Del Monte as the brand name for its new line of canned peaches. In 1898, the California Fruit Canners Association (CFCA) formed when 18 West Coast canning companies merged. The Del Monte brand was one of several brands marketed by the new company. It introduced the Del Monte Shield in 1909.