California Ag Today, Author at California Agriculture News Today

EPA ESA Herbicide Strategy: Call for Action

Courtesy of Western Agricultural Processors Association

As many of you know, EPA currently has out for public comment a proposal (the herbicide strategy) to require agricultural herbicide users to adopt greater use restrictions aimed at reducing runoff/erosion and spray drift risks to endangered species. While this proposal would impact most agricultural herbicide users across the lower 48 states, producers in four pesticide use limitation areas (PULA) established by the proposal (see PULA map here) could be subject to greater restrictions.

EPA needs to hear from growers, so we need every grower possible to sign on. To help our members with this, our agricultural coalition working on this issue has drafted a letter for individual growers to sign on to. It is a petition style letter, so you do not have to cut and paste. Simply click on this link: the sign-on link and answer the four questions and your name will be attached to the letter. This needs to be done by October 20^th. If you are a gin, huller or processor, please forward to all your growers and urge them to sign on too! If you have any questions, please let us know.

California Ag Today2023-10-05T08:11:00-07:00October 5th, 2023|

USDA awards $2 million to study livestock grazing in organic orchards

Courtesy of UC ANR News

UC, The Organic Center, University of Rhode Island partner on $3.5m food safety study for organic produce growers

Grazing sheep and other livestock can help convert cover crops to fertilizer for orchard crops. To develop best management practices, the University of California and The Organic Center are collaborating on research to help organic orchard growers safely incorporate livestock grazing into their farming practices. The project is funded by a $2 million grant recently awarded through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Organic Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative research program.

Interest in grazing livestock on cover crops in nut orchards has increased in recent years. However, research is needed to determine the best way to improve soil health and pest suppression, and to address concerns about food-borne pathogens and food safety.

“Organic farmers typically follow the USDA National Organic Program standards for raw animal manure, waiting 90 to 120 days between incorporating raw manure into the soil and harvesting the crop,” said Alda Pires, UC Cooperative Extension urban agriculture and food safety specialist in the School of Veterinary Medicine at UC Davis.

“Little research has been conducted to verify adequate waiting periods to reduce contamination risks in integrated crop-livestock production systems,” she said. “This research will fill the knowledge gap and facilitate the development of science-based food safety guidelines for grazing small ruminants in orchards.”

For this four-year project, “Influence of Orchard Grazing on Soil Health and Pest Control While Mitigating Food Safety Risk,” the scientists will study organic almond, walnut and pistachio orchards in two distinct nut-growing regions in California – the Sacramento Valley and San Joaquin Valley. The scientists will assess the effects of livestock grazing of cover crops on bacteria populations, soil health, pest control and economics.

Building soil health

“Growers have consistently raised the need for more information on grazing impacts on nutrient availability during tree growth, as well as potential to build up the biological, physical and chemical pillars of soil health,” said Amelie Gaudin, associate professor and endowed chair of agroecology in the UC Davis Department of Plant Sciences.

Livestock grazing may provide an opportunity to quickly enhance the amount of nitrogen that can be used by plants and microbes when the cover crop is terminated. “This project will help growers develop nitrogen budgets for these more diversified systems and quantify additional benefits and potential tradeoffs for soil health – such as compaction and salinity – to guide the development of place-based best management practices,” Gaudin said

Pest management

Houston Wilson, UC Cooperative Extension specialist in the Department of Entomology at UC Riverside, will be studying the effects of livestock grazing on orchard pests.

“Navel orangeworm, or NOW, is by far the most destructive pest of almonds and pistachios,” Wilson said. “These moths overwinter in unharvested nuts in the orchard, and so removal and destruction of remnant nuts over the winter is the foundation of NOW control. While farmers typically use machinery to do this, grazing with animals may present a unique alternative that is more cost-effective and provides additional ecosystem benefits, such as soil health and weed control.”

Outreach to farmers

As part of the project, The Organic Center was awarded $75,000 to work with UC Agriculture and Natural Resources to direct national extension and education outreach activities. These will include a social media campaign, webinars and educational sessions and a technical report for growers.

“There is an increasing interest from organic farmers to learn how to incorporate livestock into their operations to gain better soil health and fertility,” said Amber Sciligo, director of science programs at The Organic Center.

“This research is very exciting because it will holistically explore the potential risks and benefits of livestock not just to soil health, but also pest control – a truly interdisciplinary project that matches the whole system of the organic farm.”

Produce food-safety management tools

For another organic food-safety project, Pires and Sciligo will be working with Patrick Baur, professor of Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems at the University of Rhode Island.

The University of Rhode Island and The Organic Center received $3.5 million from USDA’s Organic Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative research program for the new organic food-safety education project.

“We’re going to develop a new food safety management tool designed specifically for organic soil amendments,” said Baur, who is leading the project. “We’re also going to develop a suite of new communication and training tools aimed at the entire fruit and vegetable sector to build a shared language between organic agriculture and the food safety community and help them work better together.”

As part of the produce project, Pires of UC Davis was awarded $1.16 million to conduct a risk assessment and create a publicly accessible dashboard to meet the specific needs of organic growers, from small-scale to larger farms, under different cropping systems, in different regions.

Also participating in this project will be Beatriz Martinez Lopez, professor in the School of Veterinary Medicine at UC Davis, and Abhinav Mishra and Govindaraj Dev Kumar of the University of Georgia.

California Ag Today2023-10-05T08:08:18-07:00October 5th, 2023|

Detection of Huanglongbing Triggers Quarantine in Ventura County; First HLB Detection in County

Courtesy of Citrus Insider

The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) has declared a quarantine in Ventura County following the detection of the citrus disease Huanglongbing (HLB), or citrus greening, in two citrus trees on one residential property in the city of Santa Paula. These detections are the first HLB-positive trees in Ventura County. CDFA is working with the United States Department of Agriculture and the Ventura County Agricultural Commissioner on this cooperative project.

The disease was detected in plant material taken from one orange and one lime tree in a residential neighborhood in the Santa Paula area of Ventura County. These detections follow the confirmation of a Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (CLas)-positive Asian citrus psyllid (ACP) sample taken from the find site.

CDFA crews will be working to remove and dispose of the infected trees and are conducting a mandatory survey of every property within 250 meters of the detection site. After the survey is complete, all host plants in the 250-meter area around the detection site will be treated to suppress the disease vector, the ACP. By taking these steps, a critical reservoir of the disease and its vectors will be removed, which is essential to protect the surrounding citrus from this deadly disease.

These detections establish a mandatory five-mile citrus HLB quarantine area around the find site. The quarantine area is bordered on the north by Ojai Road; on the south by E Los Angeles Avenue; on the west by Wells Road; and on the east by Balcom Canyon Road. The quarantine prohibits the sale of all host nursery stock and the movement of all host plants or plant parts within a five-mile radius of the finds. The quarantine applies to residents and commercial operations alike. These detections will also place parts of Ventura County into Bulk Citrus Regional Quarantine Zone 6, which will require any commercial citrus growers to apply an additional mitigation step(s) to move fruit within or from this zone. Production and retail nurseries within the five-mile quarantine are being contacted by CDFA and will be issued a hold notice preventing the sale of nursery stock host plants. Visit CDFA’s Map and Quarantines page for more details.

Growers in Ventura County should contact Grower Liaisons Sandra Zwaal at szwaal2@gmail.com or Cressida Silvers at cressidasb@gmail.com for additional information about these detections. In response to the HLB detections in Santa Paula, a grower meeting is being held on Wednesday, Oct. 4. Stay tuned to Citrus Insider for details or reach out to the Grower Liaisons for more information.

An HLB quarantine area currently exists in parts of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and San Diego counties, where more than 6,300 residential trees have tested positive for the disease and have been removed.

To read the full press release, please visit the CDFA website.

California Ag Today2023-10-04T08:09:53-07:00October 4th, 2023|

California Farm Bureau Responds to Bay Delta Plan Report

California Farm Bureau President Jamie Johansson today commented on the California State Water Resources Control Board’s release of its Bay-Delta water quality control plan update staff report. The document, in the works since 2018, analyzes alternatives to maintain healthy ecosystems for fish.

‘“We want to thank Gov. Newsom for his continued leadership and commitment to using collaborative voluntary agreements between water users and public agencies to support water quality and fish populations throughout the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta,” Johansson said. “Maintaining the health of the delta and protecting the viability of farming in that region are top priorities for Farm Bureau and are part of the state water board’s charge to balance and protect all beneficial uses of water.”

In 2016, the state water board proposed updating the Bay-Delta Plan to require increased flows in delta tributaries to protect fish populations. California Farm Bureau has contended that such an action would provide limited benefits at best for fish while negatively impacting communities, water supplies, farms and the economy.

A state water board staff report analyzed both that proposal and the voluntary agreements plan, known as the “healthy rivers” proposal. This alternative is supported by water agencies, cities, Farm Bureau and other agricultural groups. It includes targeted flow increases paired with habitat restoration, scientific monitoring and hundreds of millions of dollars in funding for implementation.

“It’s long been clear that flow increases without other supportive actions won’t bring back fish. Utilizing voluntary agreements under the ‘healthy rivers’ alternative is California’s best opportunity to protect the future of the Delta watershed and those who depend on it,” Johansson said. “This plan would usher in a new era of collaboration, providing healthy ecosystems and water- supply reliability for millions of Californians.”

Johansson added, “This document is the culmination of countless hours spent by farmers, ranchers, water board staff and other stakeholders. We are grateful to all of them for their work.”

The California Farm Bureau works to protect family farms and ranches on behalf of nearly 29,000 members statewide and as part of a nationwide network of 5.3 million Farm Bureau members.

California Ag Today2023-09-29T14:27:42-07:00September 29th, 2023|

California Farm Bureau statement on passing of Sen. Dianne Feinstein

From California Farm Bureau President Jamie Johansson:

“Our hearts are heavy at the California Farm Bureau over the passing of Sen. Dianne Feinstein. Sen. Feinstein was a fearless champion for California. Her willingness to be a bipartisan, rational voice in seeking real solutions knew no bounds, as she tackled issues from forest stewardship in the Sierra Nevada to helping farm communities in the Central Valley. Sen. Feinstein was a steadfast supporter of the Golden State’s critical agricultural sector and her unwavering faith in the people of California was her greatest quality. Those of us in California agriculture will miss her leadership and friendship. We offer our deepest condolences to her family.”

The California Farm Bureau works to protect family farms and ranches on behalf of nearly 29,000 members statewide and as part of a nationwide network of 5.3 million Farm Bureau members.

California Ag Today2023-09-29T14:25:34-07:00September 29th, 2023|

Kings River’s 2022-23 Runoff Sets a Record

Courtesy of Kings River Water Association

The 2023-24 WATER YEAR still has a week to go but Kings River runoff has already established an all-time record as a result of the past winter’s massive Sierra Nevada snowstorms and significant summer rainfall. The Kings River Water Association now expects that when the current water year concludes Saturday, September 30, the river’s annual runoff will total approximately 4.5 million acre-feet.

Kings River Watermaster Steve Haugen said this year’s total runoff eclipsed the river’s 40-yearold water supply record on Sunday, September 17. That’s when the 2022-23 total passed 4.4763 million acre-feet, the amount of unimpeded full calculated natural flow that occurred in another big central Sierra water year, 1982-83. Dropping to the Kings River’s third place position was Water Year 1968-69. In that heavy snow-producing year, Kings River runoff reached 4.3862 million acre-feet. Now fourth on the list is Water Year 2016-17 at 4.0961 million acre-feet. Fifth is 1905-06, 3.8996 million acre-feet.

“What makes this record all the more remarkable is that a quarter of the way through Water Year 2022-23, Central California appeared certain to be headed for a fourth consecutive drought year,” said Haugen, the Kings River Water Association manager. “Then, after the many atmospheric river storm events in January, February and March dumped snow by the hundreds of inches above the 5,000-foot elevation, April and May provided surprisingly little precipitation.”

April 1, 2023, Kings River watershed snow surveys — taken at the time when snow conditions in a normal year are generally assumed to have peaked — found snowpack water content averaging 261% of average with the most snow at any watershed course measured at 233 inches. Significant accumulations occurred at lower elevations. A year earlier, same-site surveys found water contents averaging only 41% with the greatest course accumulation at 57 inches.

Fairly dry later spring conditions proved to be a blessing. A flood release imposed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to manage high water conditions coupled with above-normal off-season irrigation demands resulted in Pine Flat Dam’s water year releases of more than 3.8 million acrefeet. High flows downstream from Pine Flat did result in some localized flooding and erosion. Haugen said that had April and May produced normal or greater foothill and mountain precipitation, high lower-river water levels would likely have been much more severe.

“There is no question that Pine Flat Reservoir did its flood control job,” Haugen said. “Corps of Engineers flood management, with assistance locally by KRWA’s staff, resulted in the reservoir not quite filling, despite the big inflows experienced at Pine Flat.” The peak release from Pine Flat this year was 13,371 cubic feet per second. The highest natural flow above Pine Flat was 42,371 c.f.s. during a March 10 storm. Unregulated flows entering the river from foothill creeks added to lower river concerns.

Reservoir storage peaked July 25 at 982,634 acre-feet, 98% of the lake’s capacity of one million acre-feet. Pine Flat began the water year October 1, 2022, at just over 150,000 acre-feet, 15% of capacity.

Kings River water districts and canal companies maximized diversions for months to recharge groundwater and provide much-needed surface irrigation.

Still, significant amounts of flood release water had to be directed downstream to the San Joaquin River and the Tulare Lake bed. High flows into the valley from rivers and streams to the south, along with Kings River flood releases, led to the re-emergence of Tulare Lake in Kings County for the first time in many years. Lake water is being beneficially used on surrounding lands.

California Ag Today2023-09-28T14:41:37-07:00September 28th, 2023|

Citrus Thrips Decreasing California Citrus Estimates

Courtesy of California Citrus Mutual

California citrus growers faced significant pest challenges this season due to the unprecedented rainfall from atmospheric rivers. The unusual weather pattern disrupted typical citrus thrips timing in orchards and led to uncontrollable conditions in the field.

Reports from the California Citrus Mutual (CCM) Pest and Disease Task Force indicate that some growers have experienced exterior fruit scarring on as much as 80% of the fruit on individual blocks, primarily affecting navels but with varying impacts to mandarins, lemons, and other citrus varieties.

“It’s been an extremely challenging pest season for citrus growers,” says CCM President Casey Creamer. “The industry did its absolute best in trying to control this unprecedented thrips season. Growers bear that cost while also facing the reality that the pest pressure will result in decreased returns in the marketplace.”

The CCM Marketing Committee estimates that 30% of the navel crop has thrips scarring and the utilized volume will be 8% to 15% under the previous season’s production due to thrips. The Committee also estimates that the mandarin and lemon crops will also be down 5% compared to the previous season’s utilized production.

Visual effects from thrips have no effect on the interior fruit quality, taste or texture. Consumers can still expect the same exceptional eating experience they are used to with California citrus with higher volumes of choice fruit. Fancy fruit, with minimal external scarring or damage, will be a premium commodity this season.

“Despite these challenges, our growers remain optimistic about the fruit quality on the tree this season. The overabundance of water has reservoirs full and has reinvigorated the groves after three years of extreme drought conditions,” says Creamer.

California Ag Today2023-09-28T14:27:58-07:00September 28th, 2023|

CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ACCEPTING PROPOSALS FOR 2023 SPECIALTY CROP MULTI-STATE PROGRAM

Courtesy of the CDFA

2023 SPECIALTY CROP MULTI-STATE PROGRAM
This is a federal grant program offered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Marketing Service. The purpose of the program is to competitively award funds to projects that enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops by funding collaborative, multi-state projects that address regional or national level specialty crop issues, including food safety, plant pests and disease, research, crop-specific projects addressing common issues, and marketing and promotion.

Specialty crops include fruits and vegetables, tree nuts, dried fruits, horticulture, and nursery crops (including floriculture). All prospective applicants are encouraged to review the 2023 Request for Applications: https://www.ams.usda.gov/sites/default/files/media/2023_SCMP_RFA.pdf

Additional information about the grant program , including application instructions and templates are available on the CDFA website: http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/Specialty_Crop_Competitiveness_Grants/SCMP.html

Grant awards will range from $250,000 to $1 million per project and projects may last for up to three years. Specialty crop producer associations and groups, other state agencies, Tribal government entities, universities, non-profits, and other stakeholder groups and organizations are eligible to apply.

All proposals must include at least two partners (referred to as “multi-state partners”) with substantive involvement in the project, and the multi-state partners must be located in two different states to qualify for the program.

The deadline to submit proposals is 1:59 p.m. PT on December 22, 2023. Proposals must be submitted electronically to grants@cdfa.ca.gov.

CDFA will conduct a webinar on Wednesday, October 25, 2023, at 10:00 am PDT featuring an overview of the proposal application. There is no cost to attend; however, space is limited and CDFA requests that attendees register in advance.

Webinar registration link: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/3443709335194813016

All questions regarding the Specialty Crop Multi-State Program should be emailed to grants@cdfa.ca.gov. Please include “SCMP” in the subject line.

California Ag Today2023-09-28T13:23:00-07:00September 28th, 2023|

Walnuts Carry a Great Health Punch

By Patrick Cavanaugh, with the Ag Information Network

Eating a hand of walnuts a day, well, it’s easy, helps your heart and vascular system stay in great shape. Pam Graviet is a Senior Marketing Director International for the California Walnut Commission. She talks about that Power of 3.

Absolutely, I actually had walnuts with breakfast this morning. It’s one of those things that’s my go-to when I want that special crunch in the Omega-3s,” said Graviet. “And for the fourth year in a row, we’re doing our Power of 3 global marketing campaign. It’s getting consumers to understand the value of omega-3 and that walnuts are the only tree nut that contain a significant amount of Omega-3 that their bodies need, but they can’t produce.”

And many people think you have to eat seafood for omega-3. But walnuts are plant-based.

“Absolutely, they’re plant-based. And there’s not a lot of plant-based sources. And with other plant-based sources, you’d have to eat a whole lot, but with walnuts you only have to eat a handful a day, so it’s a really easy way to get that in your daily diet. Omega-3 alpha-linolenic acid is the correct form for your body

Patrick Cavanaugh

520-395-0327

California Ag Today2023-09-27T16:32:55-07:00September 27th, 2023|

Congressman Valadao Introduces Bill to Expand Access to Fresh Produce for Those in Need

Today, Congressman David G. Valadao (CA-22) joined Representative Rosa DeLauro (CT-03) and Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) to introduce H.R. 5589, the Fresh Produce Procurement Reform Act. This bipartisan, bicameral bill establishes a new mechanism for the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to purchase a wide variety of U.S.-grown fresh fruits and vegetables for distribution to those in need.

“We need to ensure our food insecure residents in the Central Valley have access to the fresh, nutritious fruits and vegetables we grow right in our own backyard,” said Congressman Valadao. “This bill not only helps our neighbors in need, but it also helps our domestic agriculture sector by ensuring the produce they grow is being put to good use. I’m proud to join my colleagues to introduce this bipartisan bill that will strengthen our agriculture economy and make fresh produce more widely available to those in need.”

“Far too many families across the United States do not have readily available access to high-quality fresh fruits and vegetables,” said Congresswoman DeLauro. “The USDA’s Commodity Procurement program buys more than $3 billion in domestically produced foods annually and helps drive important reforms across our food system. That is why I am introducing the Fresh Produce Procurement Reform Act with Senator Sherrod Brown and Congressman David Valadao. This will allow our diverse local and regional supply chains the opportunity to distribute U.S.-grown fresh produce to those in need.”

“Improving access to local fruits and vegetables is a win-win for Ohio farmers and residents,” said Senator Brown. “Not only does this bill make it easier for Ohio residents to access local produce, but it will also help create shorter American supply chains, ensuring Ohio small family farmers and businesses keep more of their money in their community.”

Background:

On average, USDA directly purchases more than $2 billion annually of domestic commodities to redistribute to feeding sites around the country. Today, only five fresh produce commodities are available within the Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) catalog, accounting for just under $6.5 million of purchases. While USDA added a fresh produce box in 2021, it has had limited uptake due to constraints to the current program that limit the variety of fresh produce that can be included. The Fresh Produce Procurement Reform Act seeks to address the shortcomings of the current program to make a wider variety of produce available to organizations serving food insecure populations.

The Fresh Produce Procurement Reform Act would:

Provide USDA with an additional tool to partner with existing growers and fresh produce distributors to procure a greater amount of fresh fruits and vegetables
Distribute U.S.-grown fresh fruits and vegetables to local food banks, schools, youth-serving organizations, tribal governments, and other nonprofit community members serving nutrition insecure populations.
Strengthen access to a wide variety of U.S.-grown fresh fruits and vegetables to recipients in need by including at least seven types of U.S.-grown fresh fruits in vegetables to vulnerable communities living in poverty.

Provide opportunities for a wider variety of high-quality produce sourced, packed, and distributed from growers and distributors of all sizes, including veteran, women-owned, and socially disadvantaged members of the agriculture community.

California Ag Today2023-09-21T09:47:14-07:00September 21st, 2023|