CDC 2013 Data Show Limited Progress in Reducing Foodborne Infections

The nation’s food safety grades are out and the results are mixed. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Disease Control’s (CDC) annual report card shows that foodborne infections continue to be an important public health problem in the United States.

The rate of salmonella infections decreased by about nine percent in 2013 compared with the previous three years, bringing it to the rate last observed in the 2006-2008 baseline period. But campylobacter infections, often linked to dairy products and chicken, have risen 13 percent since 2006-2008. Vibrio infections, often linked to eating raw shellfish, were at the highest level observed since active tracking began in 1996; however, rates of infections caused by Vibrio vulnificus, the most severe species, have remained steady.

Rates of the other foodborne infections tracked have not changed since the period between 2006 and2008.

“CDC data are essential to gauge how we’re doing in our fight against foodborne illness,” said Robert Tauxe, M.D., M.P.H, deputy director of CDC’s Division of Foodborne, Waterborne and Environmental Diseases. “This year’s data show some recent progress in reducing salmonella rates, and also highlight that our work to reduce the burden of foodborne illness is far from over. To keep salmonella on the decline, we need to work with the food industry and our federal, state and local partners to implement strong actions to control known risks and to detect foodborne germs lurking in unsuspected foods.”

The data for the report card come from the Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network (FoodNet), a group experts, from CDC, ten state health departments, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

FoodNet surveillance covers 48 million people, encompassing about 15 percent of the American population. FoodNet sites are located in Connecticut, Georgia, Maryland, Minnesota, New Mexico, Oregon, and Tennessee, and selected counties in California, Colorado, and New York.

In 2013, FoodNet logged just over 19,000 infections, 4,200 hospitalizations, and 80 deaths from the nine germs it tracks. Young children were the most affected group for seven of the nine germs that FoodNet tracks.

New standards for cut-up poultry parts and plans to modernize poultry inspection are already in the works to increase the safety of chicken.

Regulations designed to help prevent food safety problems have been proposed for many sectors of the food industry, including produce farms, food facilities, food importers, food transporters, and third-party auditors/certification bodies.

“Steps are underway to address many of the concerns raised in this report, such as our Salmonella Action Plan and other plans to modernize food inspection,” said Assistant Administrator for FSIS’ Office of Public Health Science David Goldman, M.D., M.P.H. “As these actions are being implemented, we are beginning to see progress, and I am confident we will see further improvement over time.”

“The latest information from FoodNet highlights the importance of continuing preventive measures from the farm to the consumer,” said Stephen Ostroff, M.D., the FDA’s acting chief scientist. “We are making significant progress in implementing the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, having issued seven proposed rules addressing the safety of produce, imported foods, and human and animal food production and transportation. Full implementation of these rules will help prevent these types of infections.”

In addition to new regulations, everyone can help prevent food poisoning. The food industry can require safer ingredients and can implement preventative controls while restaurants and consumers should follow safe practices in the kitchen. These include cooking meat to proper temperatures, washing produce, preparing meat and fresh produce on different surfaces.

Consumers should know there are risks to consuming unpasteurized milk, soft cheeses made with unpasteurized milk, and raw oysters, especially for certain populations at risk for foodborne illness. For more information on avoiding illnesses from food, and knowing who is at greatest risk, please visit www.foodsafety.gov.

About FoodNet

FoodNet collects information to track rates and determine trends in laboratory-confirmed illnesses caused by nine pathogens transmitted commonly by food: campylobacter, cryptosporidium, cyclospora, listeria, salmonella, Shiga toxin-producing O157 and non-O157 E. coli, shigella, vibrio, and yersinia. Annual data are compared with data from the previous three years (2010-2012) and with data from 2006-2008 to measure progress.

Since 2010, FoodNet has been tracking the increasing use of culture‐independent diagnostic tests instead of culture by clinical laboratories for diagnosis of some bacterial enteric infection. Replacement of culture challenges the ability to identify cases, monitor trends, detect outbreaks, and characterize pathogens.

CDC works 24/7 saving lives and protecting people from health threats to have a more secure nation whether these threats are chronic or acute, manmade or natural, human error or deliberate attack, global or domestic.

Patrick Cavanaugh2016-05-31T19:38:02-07:00April 17th, 2014|

Friant Farmers Insist Lawmakers Hammer Out Water Solution

The passage and letter below from the Lower Tule and Pixley Irrigation Districts was released yesterday by Families Protecting the Valley. These districts are Friant contractors and key members of the Friant Water Authority. They are recommending a revision of the San Joaquin River Restoration program to accomplish a ‘live river’ but not decimate the farms and communities of the East Side that have relied on this surface water for decades.

This is a well written and courageous letter, and the directors listed on the correspondence and General Manager, Mr. Dan Vink, deserve praise. We implore the other Friant Water Authority contractors to quickly send a similar letter reflecting the same views, and vote to have the Friant Water Authority to do the same. This issue will be decided in two weeks after the federal legislators return from their recess.

It is rare when we in the Central Valley have an opportunity to be a part of the discussion especially when something positive is being discussed concerning our water use.

In addition to Friant contactors, other organizations (e.g., farm bureaus) that are involved in agriculture or are dependent on this water (e.g., cities, counties, chamber of commerce, etc.) need to also send in letters of support.

Several of our directors have been involved in this effort, and it is a long standing recommendation of FPV to do exactly what is recommended.

The Honorable Senator Dianne Feinstein

United States Senate

331 Hart Senate Office Building

Washington, D.C. 20515

The Honorable Congressman David Valadao

Washington, D.C. Office

1004 Longworth House Office Building

Washington, D.C. 20515

Re: Support for S. 2198 and HR 3964

Dear Senator Feinstein and Congressman Valadao,

The Boards of Directors of the Lower Tule River and Pixley Irrigation District wholeheardedly support S.2198(California Emergency Drought Relief Act of 2014) and HR3964(Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley Emergency Water Delivery Act). Specific to S.2198, we urge passage by the Senate immediately so these bills can be discussed in a joint process with Senate and House representatives.

More important than any of the words in these bills, we support, and insist you and your colleagues begin the process of rolling up your sleeves and working together to hammer out a balanced solution on California water issues. We are in a serious crisis and the partisan bickering, finger pointing blame game back home is doing nothing to solve the problems. It is nonsense and serves no purpose other than to divide the good people of the Valley. We urge you to rise above the petty noise and hammer out a solution. The water supply reductions we are facing this year are having devastating consequences made worse daily by the inaction of the agencies and Congress to find a balanced approach to distributing water throughout California.

We must have a reasonable set of export rules for the Delta. Our districts know the importance of this now more than ever. It is the failure to capture flows in the Delta that is directly causing a zero projected allocation for the Friant Division, on which we rely. The fish agencies and the courts have not been able to establish viable rules in the Delta, and the result is unmitigated disaster for agriculture in California. We expect the eventual drought bill to address this crucial issue in a real way in order to get water to California farms and stop the damage caused by wasteful use of water on fish programs that do not actually serve fish.

HR 2964 calls for a repeal of the San Joaquin River Settlement Act. We cannot unwind the clock and “do away with the Settlement” and anyone who advocates that position never completely understood the settlement issues in the first place. We agree with both of you when you have publicly said that Restoration has been difficult and expensive to implement and that it is time to reassess the plan(See, for example,Fresno Bee, March 8, 2014). The idea of restoring salmon to the San Joaquin in the timeline envisioned at the outset, and with the money it was projected to cost, was always a long shot. We all knew that Restoration was going to be an evolving plan – it is time for it to evolve.

We want to see a viable San Joaquin River for fish, farming and families. If we are going to get there, it is going to take all the parties coming to the table and dealing rationally with the facts on the ground. We welcome that opportunity and insist it is needed to protect the investment in time and money we have all made to date. Repeal is not an option, but reassessment is a requirement. If we are going to have a sustainable fishery program on the San Joaquin River and a vibrant farming economy in the Valley, we must begin the process.

Both of you have shown a willingness in the past to lead on this issue, and that is why we want to support both of your bills, despite having differences with some of their individual terms. We are confident the two of you working together will become a dynamic combination for us to follow once again. The pending release of Reclamation’s revised implementation plan for San Joaquin River Restoration should provide the framework for the discussion.

The impacts facing our collective constituents require we all work together to get legislation passed and changes made. Failure is not an option. Our Districts look forward to working with you and your colleagues to find common sense solutions to serve the interests of all Californians.

Thank You,

Gary Fernandes,  President, Lower Tule River Irrigation District

Frank Junio,  President,  Pixley Irrigation District

cc: Senator Barbara Boxer,  Congressman Devin Nunes , Congressman Jim Costa,  Congressman Tom McClintock,  Congressman Doug LaMalfa , Congressman Jared Huffman,  Friant Water Authority,  Westlands Water District , San Luis and Delta Mendota Water Users Authority , Exchange Contractors

Lower Tule Board : Gary Fernandes, President;  John Roeloffs, Vice President ; Jim Costa, Director ; Tom Barcellos, Director ; Alex Garcia, Director

Pixley Board : Frank Junio, President;  Russell Schott, Vice President;  Bill DeGroot, Director ; Randall Parreira, Director; Neal Westbrook, Director; Daniel G. Vink, General Manager;  Eric Limas, Business Manager ; Beth Grote-Lewis, Assessor;  Alex Peltzer, Legal Counsel

Patrick Cavanaugh2016-05-31T19:38:02-07:00April 15th, 2014|

Beet Curly Top Virus ALERT

A small population of Beet Leafhoppers (BLH) was found in the Tumey Hills area. Counts were on average, 7-9 2^nd and 3^rd instar nymphs and 1-3 adult BLH, per 10 sweeps.

Another small population of BLH was found in the Coalinga “Big C” area last week. Counts were on average, 2-3 adult BLH and 5-10 2nd and 3rd instar nymphs, per 10 sweeps.

The Beet Curly Top Virus Control Program is currently planning treatment in the Tumey Hills area for this week. Treatment plans and waivers are being prepared for the Coalinga area.

Email jennifer.willems@cdfa.ca.gov if you suspect curly top virus in your fields, so that the BCTV program can monitor and collect samples for testing. Thank you!

Patrick Cavanaugh2016-05-31T19:38:02-07:00April 14th, 2014|

EPA Scientist Receives Award for Pesticide Risk Model

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) TODAY honored Dr. Steven Thomas Purucker as a recipient of the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE), the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government to science and engineering professionals in the early stages of their independent research careers.

“Congratulations to Dr. Purucker for receiving this prestigious award,” said Lek Kadeli, Acting Assistant Administrator for EPA’s Office of Research and Development. “EPA is honored to have dedicated scientists, like Dr. Purucker, who devote their careers to protecting human health and the environment. Dr. Purucker is not only conducting innovative research, but he is also providing the tools and information we need to turn the vision of a healthy environment into a reality for all Americans.”

Dr. Purucker is a research ecologist in EPA’s National Exposure Research Laboratory in Athens, Georgia. He received the PECASE award for his exceptional innovation and initiative in creating modeling applications that help decision-makers and scientists conduct chemical risk assessments that are important for protecting human health and the environment. His research involves updating mathematical models that are used to predict environmental exposures and effects.

These models are relied on as part of EPA’s pesticide registration process, which must be completed before a pesticide can be sold or distributed in the U.S. Dr. Purucker and his colleagues have been modernizing these models, including some that were initially developed in the 1980s. Dr. Purucker’s lab has updated many of these models, which are stored in the “cloud” and can be easily accessed and executed from a web browser.

This decision support “dashboard” accepts chemical properties, pesticide use information, ecosystem exposure data, relevant geographic information, and effects levels as input to estimate risks to water and land environments.

Dr. Purucker is also collaborating with other scientists at EPA’s lab in Athens to conduct applied research on amphibian exposures, working in the lab and field to characterize pesticide transfer rates across the dermis layer of skin and the subsequent impacts on amphibian metabolism.

Dr. Purucker has a Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, and a B.A. in Zoology from the University of Tennessee. He joins 101 researchers across the federal government who are also receiving PECASE awards this year. The awards, established by President Clinton in 1996, are coordinated by the Office of Science and Technology Policy within the Executive Office of the President.

Awardees are selected for their pursuit of innovative research at the frontiers of science and technology and their commitment to community service as demonstrated through scientific leadership, public education, or community outreach.

More information can be found at EPA’s Office of Research and Development and White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy.

Patrick Cavanaugh2016-05-31T19:38:02-07:00April 14th, 2014|

Pistachio Growers: Beware of Gill’s Mealybug

David Haviland says pistachio growers should be aware of the damage caused by Gill’s Mealybug.

Gill’s Mealybug May Appear in Orchards Over the Next Few Weeks

By Patrick Cavanaugh, Editor

As Gill’s Mealybug overwinters, a new generation will appear in May, and growers should treat the first generation around June 1.

Gill’s mealybug is a relatively new pest of pistachios in California. “It was first recognized in the late 1990s in a an orchard near Tulare. It has now spread up to Colusa County and has move down to Kern County,” said David Haviland, UC Cooperative Extension Kern County, who organized the field day with Elizabeth Fichtner, UC Cooperative Extension Tulare County.

Tulare County is a hot spot with most pistachio orchards having the bug, which has three generations per year. “Right about harvest time there are a whole bunch of mealybug crawlers hatching, and then they overwinter and become adults in May. These adults will produce an enormous amount of new crawlers the first week of June, which is an important treatment time, right when those crawlers come out,” said Haviland. “The ones that are born the first week of June will become adults in about mid-to-late July, which is the second generation. The mealybugs that are in the tree now are the start of the third generation when they become adults then hatch more young bugs at harvest.”

“Population-wise, growers will get millions of crawlers at harvest, but if you come back to the tree in the spring, you will see maybe one or two per pistachio cluster, so there is a huge winter mortality,” said Haviland.

Haviland stood by a tree that had only about one mealybug per 10 clusters in the May, but now the untreated trees in the trial have clusters that are covered with honeydew, and now blackened with sooty mold, with 30 or 40 adults on the clusters. The lower leaves on the trees were turning black from the sooty mold.

“Typically growers go out in their orchards April and May and see about one mealybug for every 10 clusters. In fact they might not even notice it. But that mealy bug produces about 20 live young, which increases the count to about one per cluster, but now those adults give rise to 15 or 20 crawlers per cluster which causes clusters to be moist and black,” said Haviland. “So the point is that one or two per cluster can cause many more per cluster near harvest time, so May is the time to be thinking about spraying the first of June.”

Haviland looked back at the tree he was standing next to, and said: “If you have tree that looks like this, with a lot of mealybugs and sooty mold, let it go; you can’t do anything about it. Come back the first week of June 2014 and treat it with an insecticide and you should be clean at harvest next year. It’s really that simple.

Insecticide timing is important, but there is a widow. Of all the products registered, they are most effective on crawlers. “So you really want to get them the first week of June when the crawlers are out regardless of which product your using,” Haviland said.

During the upcoming harvest season, Haviland warn growers to ask the harvest crew to wash down the harvesting equipment and make sure no tree debris from another orchard is on the equipment. “And if growers have an orchard with mealybug, please inform the harvest crews so that they clean the equipment before moving to another site, which may not have mealybug.

“The harvest crew should blow off all leaf trash and hose the equipment down before it goes from property to property. Growers should insist upon this,” Haviland said.

Patrick Cavanaugh2016-05-31T19:38:02-07:00April 13th, 2014|

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE: Williamson Act, Solar, Undocumented Workers and More…

AB 1905 (Luis Alejo, D-Watsonville) would allow farmers and ranchers who have registered their small livestock stockponds to also register them for small irrigation use. It will improve water users’ opportunities to develop economically viable and ecologically sustainable water supplies by allowing small livestock stockponds to also be registered for small irrigation use.

Current law allows water users to utilize a single facility (pond) for both small irrigation use and small domestic use, but does not allow utilization of a single facility for small irrigation use and a small livestock stockpond. This measure will be heard next week in the Assembly Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee and is sponsored by Farm Bureau.

AB 2071 (Marc Levine, D-San Rafael) that would allow highly treated recycled water to be used to water livestock will be heard next week in the Assembly Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee. It would require the Department of Public Health to approve the use of tertiary treated recycled water for pasture animals unless the department determines that it would harm public health.

Farm Bureau has been discussing the measure with the author’s office. Two measures that would repeal provisions of the $11.14 billion Safe, Clean, and Reliable Drinking Water Supply Act currently scheduled to go before California voters November 4th this year was heard in the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee this week.

SB 927 (Anthony Cannella, R-Ceres and Andy Vidak, R-Hanford) would authorize the issuance of $9.217 billion in general obligation bonds; $327 million for drought relief, $1 billion for groundwater protection, $2.64 billion for regional water projects and recycling, $2.25 billion for Delta sustainability and $3 billion continuously appropriated for water storage projects.

SB 1370 (Cathleen Galgiani, D-Stockton) would authorize the issuance of $6.26 billion in general obligation bonds to be continuously appropriated for water projects.

Farm Bureau is supportive of the water storage elements of both measures, but has not yet taken a formal position on either bill while working with the authors on anticipated amendments to address additional key elements necessary to move these bills forward in the legislative process and be successful with the voters in the General Election in November.

SB 1353 (Jim Nielsen, R-Gerber), which would repeal the January 1, 2016 sunset date on the 9 and 18-year Williamson Act contracts, was unanimously approved by the Senate Governance and Finance Committee. This law requires participating landowners to forego ten percent of their property tax relief in a direct payment back to the counties to help finance the program when the state reduces or eliminates its subvention payments.

The original measure, AB 1265, was a Farm Bureau-sponsored measure to provide counties with an alternative to exiting the land conservation program through mass nonrenewals of their contracts. The bill was approved on the committee’s consent calendar which bodes well for its ultimate passage. It should be noted that the shorter term contracts and the subsequent ten percent reduction in property tax relief are dependent on an annual finding by the county that it did not receive at least 50 percent of its foregone property tax revenue in the previous fiscal year from the state.

Thus, restoration of all or significant portion of the state’s Williamson Act subventions will automatically restore the full benefits of the program and the full term of the contracts.

AB 2241 (Susan Eggman, D-Stockton) that would provide a financial incentive for counties to implement the solar-use easement provisions of the Williamson Act was approved by the Assembly Local Government Committee 9 to 0.When rescinding a Williamson Act (WA) or Farmland Security Zone (FSZ) contract to replace it with a solar-use easement, a rescission fee is required equal to 6.25 percent of the fair market value of the property or a standard WA contract and 12.5 percent for the 20-year FSZ contract.

This Farm Bureau-sponsored measure set the fee at 10 percent for the standard and FSZ contracts and allows the counties to keep five percent. This law only applies to marginally productive or physically impaired land, restricted by a Williamson Act contract, when it is to be converted to a solar-use easement agreement for the sole purpose of siting large-scale solar facility. The intent of solar use easements was to provide an alternative mechanism for counties to exit a contract marginal land as well as provide statewide uniformity with respect to financial assurances for subsequent reclamation of the site. Farm Bureau believes that this measure would further encourage the use of solar-use easements on marginally productive or physically impaired land.

AB 1961 (Susan Eggman, D-Stockton) that intended to encourage counties to adopt Sustainable Farmland Strategies for their agriculturally zoned land ran into some rough sledding in the Assembly Local Government Committee but was eventually approved on vote of 5 to 2 with 2 abstentions. This Farm Bureau supported bill would require counties, by January 1, 2018, to map and inventory their agriculturally zoned land, describe the goals, strategies and related policies in their General Plans and ordinances intended to retain its agricultural zoned land and, where practical, mitigate for the loss of their agricultural land.

The California Building Industry Association (CBIA) and the California Association of Realtors vigorously opposed the measure and accused the bill of doing a number of things that it just does not do. For example, the CBIA said the bill was top down planning from the state when, in fact, the bill strongly maintains local control of all land use planning. The CBIA also alleged that proposed Sustainable Farmland Strategies constituted a zoning overlay which is patently untrue. The roll call on AB 1961 was as follows: Ayes: Bradford, Gordon, Levine, Mullin, and Rendon; Noes: Melendez, and Waldron; and Abstentions: Achadjian, and Alejo.

Assembly Member Eggman vowed to continue to work with the development community to address their concerns. The bill will next be heard in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

AB 1897 by Assembly Labor & Employment Committee Chairman Roger Hernandez (D -West Covina) is a California Labor Federation-sponsored bill that will impose joint liability on a “client employer” for the Labor Code violations of any “labor contractor”. Hernandez’ bill would impose joint liability for any situation where a host employer receives the labor or services of any contractor in the course of normal business.

AB 1897 is not specific to any particular industry and is very broad in scope. The bill is scheduled for hearing in Assembly Labor & Employment on April 23. Farm Bureau and a broad coalition of employer groups expect to oppose the bill.

AB 2104 (Luis Alejo, D-Salinas) directs the Employment Development Department and the Department of Food and Agriculture to convene a working group to consult with the U.S. government on the creation of a program to legalize undocumented workers permitting them to live and work in California.

Similar to legislation offered by Assembly Member V. Manual Perez in the 2011-2012 legislative session, Alejo’s bill would require the working group to issue a report to the Legislature and the Governor describing such a program, and directs the Governor to either request the federal government to create such a program or explain to the Legislature why he did not do so and make recommendations to the Legislature to create such a program for California. The bill has been referred to the Assembly Committee on Labor & Employment; no hearing has been scheduled.

AB 2416 (Mark Stone, D-Monterey Bay) revives wage lien legislation (AB 1164, Lowenthal, D-Long Beach) that failed in the last legislative session in the face of strong opposition by employer groups including Farm Bureau. The Stone bill would allow employees to record a wage lien on an employer’s real and personal property for wages, other compensation and penalties for wages an employee claims were unpaid. AB 2416 has been referred to the Assembly Labor & Employment Committee but no hearing has been scheduled. It is expected to draw strong opposition from employer groups, including Farm Bureau.

The Senate Agriculture Committee heard SB 835 (Jerry Hill, D-San Mateo) this week, which would prohibit CDFA from allowing medically important antibiotics to be used in California if they are out of compliance with recently adopted federal requirements. Late last year the Food and Drug Administration issued Guidance #213, which asks all pharmaceutical companies to re-label antibiotics that are medically important in human medicine to remove growth promotion from the label. Once the label changes are made it would be illegal for anyone to administer these antibiotics for growth promotion purposes.

The FDA gave the pharmaceutical companies until March to notify them of their compliance and all but one of the companies has stated their plans to comply. As part of this new system, FDA released a proposed rule creating a new Veterinary Feed Directive that would require veterinary oversight for all medically important antibiotics administered to animals through feed or water.

FDA has given a three year period for implementation of these new requirements. Farm Bureau has worked with Senator Hill’s office to ensure that all that his bill does is implement the federal guidance document and veterinary feed directive. Senator Hill took amendments at Farm Bureau and other livestock organizations’ request to prevent any unintended consequences on California’s livestock producers. With the amendments, Farm Bureau was able to remove its opposition and the bill passed out of the Committee with a vote of 5-0.

Patrick Cavanaugh2016-05-31T19:38:02-07:00April 11th, 2014|

NOTICE TO ALL GROWERS IN THE SALINAS VALLEY

The Monterey County Farm Bureau office has learned that Department of Labor is currently conducting inspections and audits in the Salinas Valley on a random basis.

The focus appears to be on the following:

child labor law violations
transportation of field workers
van inspections
payroll record keeping.

Please make your field supervisors aware of possible inspection visits. Indications are that they will be in Monterey County for two weeks or more conducting these inspections.

Patrick Cavanaugh2016-05-31T19:38:03-07:00April 11th, 2014|

Tips for the 12th International Conference on Precision Agriculture

The 12^th International Conference on Precision Agriculture will take place on July 20 – 23, at the Hyatt Regency in Sacramento. Here are a few details to help you get you prepared for the conference.

12th ICPA Awards Nomination Deadline April 18th

Nominations for several awards in different categories are now open. Deadline Friday, April 18^th, 2014 for awards nomination applications. Brief descriptions of the awards in different categories are listed below. If you have questions, please email awards@ispag.org.

Papers due April 30, 2014

All abstracts have been reviewed and acceptance and rejection emails have been sent to the corresponding authors. If you have a question about the status of your abstract please login to check your abstract status.

The tentative conference program is online. Please review the program and confirm the date of your presentation. If you have conflicts or need to change the date, we will try to accommodate these requests. If you have any questions, please email info@ispag.org.

Below are links to the author instructions for full papers and summary papers for the proceedings. These papers are due April 30, 2014.

Author Instructions

Oral Presentations – Full Paper

Poster Presentations – 2-Page Summary

Registration Online

Please register for the conference. Online registration is available. A pdf registration form is availabe if you need to pay by check or wire transfer. If you need any help with registration please contact registration@ispag.org.

Patrick Cavanaugh2016-05-31T19:38:03-07:00April 11th, 2014|

AG CRIME ALERT

AG CRIME ALERT:

A 2005 Ford F150 was stolen in the South Sutter Basin near Ensley Road, sometime between Friday evening, April 4 and Saturday morning, April 5.

The truck is charcoal in color, with license plate number 8A25808.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Sutter County Sheriff’s Department at (530) 822-7307, or the California Highway Patrol at 1-800-TELL-CHP (1-800-835-5247).

Patrick Cavanaugh2016-05-31T19:38:03-07:00April 10th, 2014|

AG CRIME ALERT

AG CRIME ALERT!Tisdale Irrigation has been hit by copper thieves twice in the last 30 days at two pumps along the Sacramento River south of Meridian.

Damage was also caused to the pump motors and it is believed the same party is responsible for both instances.

Growers in the area should check their pumps, be on the lookout for suspicious activity and report any information to the Sutter County Sheriff’s Department at (530) 822-7307.

Patrick Cavanaugh2016-05-31T19:38:03-07:00April 10th, 2014|