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investments in jojoba. He attended an all-day seminar on jojoba
given by Yermanos at the University of California at Riverside.
Sometime during late 1980, Berberich met Whittaker in Los
Angeles, California. He was impressed with her scientific
background and with the fact that her father was William
Whittaker, founder of the Whittaker Corp., which was a publicly
traded company. Berberich traveled with his friends to Hyder,
Arizona, and examined the jojoba plantation planted by HJI there.
To invest in Whittaker's jojoba farming, Berberich and his
associates became the first limited partners in HJP. At that
time, Berberich had no prior experience in agriculture or
agricultural investments.
Whittaker, Berberich, and others believed that the
successful commercialization of jojoba depended on the industry's
developing a significant and stable supply of jojoba seed.
Following discussions with Berberich, during late summer or early
fall of 1981, Whittaker developed a preliminary proposal relating
to research regarding plant selection and propagation, nutrient
applications, water requirements, and pollination requirements
that might be conducted in connection with a jojoba limited
partnership investment. During 1981, Whittaker and Berberich
agreed that Berberich would form, and serve as the general
partner of, a new limited partnership named Jojoba Development
Partners, Ltd. (JDP). The decision to form this partnership had
been made, at least in principle, by the time Whittaker prepared
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