California Fruit and Vegetable

Category: Economics

  • Novel Strawberry IPM Tool Included in CA DPR Grant Funding

    The California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) announced $1.78 million in Alliance Grants for five projects that aim to increase the speed and the scale at which safer, more sustainable pest management practices are adopted across the state. Each project will promote innovative Integrated Pest Management (IPM) systems and practices in agricultural, urban or wildland settings.

    “Alliance Grants directly support the department’s mission to foster methods and tools to reduce reliance on pesticides and their impact on human health and the environment,” said DPR Director Julie Henderson. “We are excited by the potential of these five projects and will continue to invest in projects that promote the development and use of safer, more sustainable pest management.”

    DPR’s Alliance Grants Program funds projects that promote IPM, an approach that uses the least-toxic, effective method to solve pest problems. Since 2007, DPR has awarded more than $7.8 million in Alliance Grants. The enhanced funds for the 2022 DPR Grants Programs cycle were allocated by the 2021-22 state budget and represent a more than five-fold increase in available funding opportunities compared to historical funding levels.

    Alliance Grants are awarded to groups of experts and partners, also referred to as Alliance Teams, who work collaboratively to accomplish the goals of a given project.

    Alliance projects funded for agricultural pest management:

    • Promoting IPM practices that incorporate natural-enemy habitat to control pest insects. This project’s Alliance Team will engage in outreach with producers and agricultural professionals through videos that feature producers and researchers, field days and webinars, which will include an online continuing education course for pesticide applicators. This project will be led by Jo Ann Baumgartner at Wild Farm Alliance, a local non-profit conservation group in Watsonville.
    • Promoting the adoption of UV-C light, a non-chemical control, by strawberry growers on California strawberry farms. This project’s Alliance Team will showcase UV-C light as an effective, non-chemical alternative to chemical pesticides for controlling mites, mildew and mold. This project will be led by Dr. John Lin at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo.

    Alliance projects funded for urban pest management:

    • Addressing management of Argentine ants, the most common nuisance ant for which pesticide treatments are applied in urban environments. The Alliance Team for this project is focused on the implementation and promotion of a low-impact IPM approach for pest management professionals that uses pheromone attractants during initial treatment visits and targeted chemical baiting for maintenance visits, to reduce reliance on repeated use of insecticide sprays. This project will be led by Dr. Dong-Hwan Choe at University of California, Riverside.
    • Home visits to provide IPM education and intervention to disadvantaged communities in South Los Angeles. To improve the health and well-being of South Los Angeles residents, this project’s Alliance Team will make home visits to each family that enrolls in the program. The team will assess housing conditions; provide IPM interventions, including caulking cracks and sealing large holes; and offer other IPM education on reducing pest infestations. This project will be led by Nancy Ibrahim at Esperanza Community Housing.

    Alliance projects funded for wildlands pest management:

    • Combining manual removal of invasive primrose with native plant restoration through a private property owner incentive program, and an AmeriCorps partnership that will provide education and outreach to the community. The Alliance Team for this project is focused on management of creeping water primrose, an invasive aquatic plant, that is usually controlled with chemical pesticides. This project’s combination of IPM methods will improve water quality, protect fish habitat and enhance flood protection and prevention, as well as create strong and sustainable natural vegetative wetland communities around the shores of Clear Lake, California. This project will be led by Angela De Palma-Dow at the Lake County Watershed Protection District.For details about past recipients of DPR’s Grants Programs, please visit our department’s Pest Management Grants webpage.ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT OF PESTICIDE REGULATION

      The California Department of Pesticide Regulation protects human health and the environment by fostering safer and sustainable pest management practices and operating a robust regulatory system to evaluate and register pesticides and monitor and regulate their sale and use across the state.

      DPR’s work includes conducting scientific evaluations of pesticides to assess and mitigate potential harm to human health and the environment prior to and following registration registering all pesticides prior to sale or use in California, monitoring for pesticides in the air and water, and enforcing pesticide laws and regulations in coordination with 55 County Agricultural Commissioners and their combined 400 field inspectors across the state’s 58 counties. DPR invests in innovative research, outreach, and education to encourage the development and adoption of integrated pest management tools and practices and conducts outreach to ensure pesticide workers, farmworkers and local communities have access to pesticide safety information.

  • NRCS Incentive Funding for On-farm Groundwater Recharge Projects

    NRCS Incentive Funding for On-farm Groundwater Recharge Projects

    As drought conditions persist in California, farmers are making the most of every drop of water they use. However, there may be more they can do during the rainy season to put water back into the ground with assistance of the USDA-NRCS.  Watch this brief interview with California Water Quality Specialist Wendy Rash to find out.

    Please thank this video’s sponsor Suterra for their industry support.

  • The Facts on San Joaquin Valley Water Use & Realigning Priorities Amidst Drought

    The Facts on San Joaquin Valley Water Use & Realigning Priorities Amidst Drought

    In a panel discussion titled, “Water: What Real, What’s Not, What’s Next” at the Annual Convention of the Almond Alliance of California, Friant Water Authority CEO Jason Phillips shares his views on solutions to California’s water crisis based on the reality of the San Joaquin Valley’s water supply and use.

    Please thank this video’s sponsor Suterra for their industry support.

  • What Ag Employers Should Know about Firing Employees

    What Ag Employers Should Know about Firing Employees

    When is it appropriate to fire an employee and how should you go about doing it properly to prevent negative repercussions? At the Annual Convention of the Almond Alliance of California, Stacy Henderson, Almond Alliance’s go-to attorney for ag labor law, shared some key insights every ag employer should know. Watch this brief video with Stacy as she explains.

    Please thank this video’s sponsor Suterra for their industry support.

  • New Board Representatives at the Olive Oil Commission of California

    New Board Representatives at the Olive Oil Commission of California

    The Olive Oil Commission of California (OOCC) recently held an election to allow California olive oil producers to select representatives to its Board of Directors. Election results were announced at the June 6 Board meeting with Larry Maben, Maben Family LLC, voted in to represent olive oil growers from District 1. Jim Lipman, California Olive Ranch, was selected as the alternate Board member from this same district, which encompasses the counties of Butte, Del Norte, Glenn, Humboldt, Lassen, Modoc, Plumas, Shasta, Siskiyou, Tehama, and Trinity.

    Samantha Dorsey, McEvoy of Marin, was re-elected to serve as the Board member representing growers in District 2, while Matt Lohse, Big W Ranch, was elected to serve as the alternate Board member from this District which includes the counties of Amador, Colusa, El Dorado, Lake, Marin, Mendocino, Napa, Nevada, Placer, Sacramento, Sierra, Solano, Sonoma, Sutter, Yolo, and Yuba.

    In District 3, Jeff Colombini, Lodi Farming, was elected to represent growers on the OOCC Board with Richard Marchini serving as the alternate. The Board also voted to appoint Dan Devico, Pomeian, to fill a vacant position as the alternate to Frank Olagaray, Blossom Farms, who is also a Board member representing growers in District 3. District 3 encompasses the remaining olive oil producing counties of Alameda, Calaveras, Contra Costa, Fresno, Imperial, Inyo, Kern, Kings, Los Angeles, Madera, Mariposa, Merced, Mono, Monterey, Orange, Riverside,

    San Benito, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Francisco, San Joaquin, San Luis Obispo, San Mateo, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Stanislaus, Tulare, Tuolumne, and Ventura.

    With respect to members of the Board representing olive oil handlers, Ciriaco Chavez of Boundary Bend Olives was re-elected to serve as the Handler Member for District 2. The alternate positions for handlers in both District 1 and District 2 are currently vacant. Any handler interested in serving in these positions should contact the OOCC.

    A complete list of OOCC Board members and alternates can be found on the OOCC website here.

  • North Coast Olive Oil Field Day, Aug. 16

    North Coast Olive Oil Field Day, Aug. 16

    The Olive Oil Commission of California would like to invite olive oil growers to a special day at McEvoy Ranch with presentations on olive production issues and olive oil tasting. This North Coast Olive Field Day will take place on August 16, with registration at 8:00 a.m. and the gathering ending after lunch at 1:00 p.m.

    The day’s agenda includes presentations on canopy management and nutrition; olive fruit fly; alternate bearing; olive diseases and irrigation. The course has been approved for 1 hour of Department of Pesticide Regulation Continuing Education Units and 2.5 hours of Certified Crop Advisor units.

    The event is sponsored by the University of California Ag and Natural Resources, the UC Davis Olive Center and McEvoy Ranch.

    Registration is required and space is limited. Please reserve your spot no later than August 8, 2022. Learn more and register here.

  • Citrus Research Board Secures Immense Support from Citrus Growers

    Citrus Research Board Secures Immense Support from Citrus Growers

    California citrus growers voted to continue their support of the Citrus Research Board (CRB) by a broad margin in a state-mandated referendum.

    The just-concluded referendum, which must be held every five years, was conducted by the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA). A majority of eligible citrus producers cast their vote and their support was nearly unanimous – 97.80 percent, representing 99.51 percent of the state’s citrus volume, voted in favor of continuing the CRB.

    CDFA Marketing Branch Chief Joe Monson said, “Since the referendum results exceed the criteria required for continuation stated above, the Department has authorized the Program to continue operating for another five-year period, through September 30, 2027.”

    Over the past five years, the CRB has worked continuously to advance findings within our four research priorities: vectored diseases, pest management, production and post-harvest technology, and new varieties. Much of the research has focused on the deadly disease huanglongbing (HLB) and advancements have been made to keep the infections from spreading in California. The disease has devastated other citrus growing regions, including Florida, but the diligence of California’s growers has kept HLB from entering any of the state’s commercial groves.

    “We are pleased to once again receive the support of the industry,” said CRB President Marcy L. Martin, “and we look forward to continually improving upon the scientific pillars that allow the California citrus industry to thrive.”

    The CRB administers the California Citrus Research Program, the grower-funded and grower-directed program established in 1968 under the California Marketing Act as the mechanism enabling the State’s citrus producers to sponsor and support needed research. More information about the Citrus Research Board may be found at www.citrusresearch.org.

  • Impacts of Water Restrictions on Agriculture Production Cannot Be Understated

    Impacts of Water Restrictions on Agriculture Production Cannot Be Understated

    United Vegetable Growers Cooperative — Our most precious resource is in critical condition. Chances are if you have driven through the Central San Joaquin Valley over the past 20 years you have seen prominent signs and billboards scattered along the interstate highways as well as the backroads.

    Many can attest to driving by one of these signs countless times while checking their fall lettuce in Huron. The simple five-word message has been crystal clear and prophetic for many years: “Food Grows Where Water Flows.” The message seems so basic and elementary that the critical message became tone deaf.

    West Coast farmers for generations have navigated multi-year cyclical drought conditions and have always managed to survive these conditions. Several seasons of heavy Sierra Nevada and Colorado Rockies snowpacks, along with above-average rainfall, and a short-term emergency was averted.

    The current West Coast water conditions are not an overnight development, it has been gradually building for years. As a result of the ongoing drought, the western region of the country’s most strategic water storage reservoirs have been reduced to historic levels.

    To provide context, the following are current levels of a few of California’s critical reservoir as of June 26: Lake Shasta is currently at 39% of its capacity and 50% of its historical average. Trinity is currently at 29% of its capacity and 38% of its historical average. Oroville is currently at 50% capacity and 65% of historical average. San Luis is currently at 40% capacity and 71% of its historical average.

    As a result, multiple CSJ irrigation districts have been subject to extensive water allocations, which have gotten more severe over the past two years. These allocations cover all agriculture farming, be it row crops or orchards. And as the season moves toward its midway point, unless there is record precipitation along with snowpack, conditions will remain dire. Water allocations will only be deeper next season and farm acres will continue to be furrowed.

    The challenge of this drought is not exclusive to California farmers. The Colorado River Basin is at its lowest levels ever recorded. With Lake Powell currently at 27% of capacity and Lake Mead at 29% of capacity. Now in an effort to preserve the water levels of these two critical reservoirs, drastic conservation measures are now being implemented. Targeted conservation levels of between two- and four-million-acre-feet of water (one acre-foot of water = 325,000 gallons) have been implemented to protect Lake Mead and Lake Powell reservoirs for the next four years.

    The primary effects of this conservation will be on the backs of the desert southwest agriculture, which ranges from the greater Yuma growing district to the Imperial Valley. The current outline of agriculture water conservation comes via usage restrictions, such as forcing farmers to determine which crops will be the most financially viable to farm. This is in addition to impacting the volume of crops that can be farmed, all while limiting the use of irrigation water. Keep in mind that during the winter months of November through March, over 85% of all leafy greens and vegetables consumed in North America is grown in the Greater Yuma and Imperial Valley growing districts.

    This is more than just a growing concern. The impact of agriculture production limitations based upon water restrictions cannot be understated. And long-term water storage solutions can no longer be ignored.

    Because, as the signs proclaim, only “Food Grows Where Water Flows.”

  • Progress on Prop 1 Funded California Water Projects

    Progress on Prop 1 Funded California Water Projects

    California is in the midst of a serious drought, which is taking a major toll on our local agricultural industries. The Water Quality, Supply & Infrastructure Improvement Act (Prop 1) passed back in 2014, yet no construction of any of the funded projects has commenced.  Watch this brief interview with Emily Rooney from the Ag Council of California as she shares a progress report on these projects and how they will help address California’s water crisis.
    Please thank this video’s sponsor Suterra for their industry support.

  • California Ag Coalition Requests Immediate State Action on Water Needs

    Due to an economically crippling drought and the overwhelming regulatory demands of California, several agricultural groups formed a coalition and recently sent a letter to the governor and state legislature, both informing them of the challenges impacting farming families and requesting immediate action and funding to boost water storage and supplies. Watch this brief interview with Emily Rooney from the Ag Council of California as she explains.
    Please thank this video’s sponsor Suterra for their industry support.