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By Valley Ag Voice Staff
We made it! September is here and with it comes the Kern County Fair! There’s always added excitement in the air with the anticipation of the fair, and perhaps this year more than others, for reasons we all know. This fair gives us the chance to get together and celebrate the community and the achievements...
By Scott Hamilton, President, Hamilton Resource Economics
The Sustainable Groundwater Act (SGMA) has had some unfortunate side effects. It has pitted neighbor against neighbor and water district against water district to fight for the last uncaptured remnants of water in the Valley. These fights are frequently contentious and emotional. And nothing less than the future of some farms is at...
By John C. Moore, III, President, Kern County Farm Bureau
Well, I guess what they say is true… time flies when you’re having fun. The third Thursday of this month, September, marks the end of my tenure as President of the Kern County Farm Bureau. The past two years serving the membership with your Officer Team, Board of Directors, and...
By Romeo Agbalog, Executive Director, Kern County Farm Bureau
September marks the beginning of autumn in the northern hemisphere and the start of spring in the southern. September is traditionally considered the month that marks transitions between seasons, and for the Kern County Farm Bureau (KCFB), it marks more than just a change in the weather but transition and change...
By Allie Cushnyr, Chair, Kern County Young Farmers & Ranchers
Summer is unfortunately coming to an end, but many of us are looking forward to cooler fall weather, some post-harvest relaxation, and our local county fair. As I look back on last summer, we did a lot! Being a part of this group means that you get behind the scenes...
By LeAnn Riley, Professor of Food Science & Technology, Bakersfield College
Bakersfield College is excited to offer a new Food Science and Technology Program available to students this fall. Students will complete a rigorous scientific, hands-on curriculum that will prepare them for numerous career opportunities in the food production industry. Courses in the program will provide students the foundational knowledge...
By Jenifer VanAlstein, Feature Contributor, Valley Ag Voice
Johnston Farms is a unique farming company in that they grow both row crops as well as permanent crops. In their operations, they have approximately 1,700 acres of citrus (oranges, mandarins, grapefruit), 900 acres of potatoes, 1,600 acres of bell peppers, and 150 acres of carrots (not including acreage with outside growers)...
By Geoffrey Taylor, MA, Hemp Contributor, Valley Ag Voice
Research is reinvigorated in United States academic institutions as a series of studies released recently examining the hemp marketplace provide mixed analyses of the marketplace and a major Congressional action opens up greater opportunities for research on consumer-grade cannabis. As these Universities embark on studies to evaluate these unique marketplaces, the...
By Austin Snedden, Ranching Contributor, Valley Ag Voice
We have all been in that uncomfortable situation when you go to a fast food restaurant with someone who is extremely particular about their order. You know immediately after the complicated order that something will no doubt be wrong.
“Are you kidding me? I said no lettuce and only half ketchup! This burger...
Press Release Provided by R-CALF USA
In a white paper distributed in August to the U.S. Senate agriculture committee and other Senate offices, R-CALF USA provides real-time evidence that varying minimum cash cattle purchase requirements region-to-region will allow major beef packers to continue denying timely market access to independent cattle feeders.
Titled Why a 50% National Negotiated Cash Volume Is Needed...
By Kevin Hecteman, Assistant Editor, Ag Alert
Reprinted with Permission from California Farm Bureau Federation
The Dixie Fire, now the second-largest wildfire in California’s recorded history, has led to evacuations of livestock and an urgent need to care for those animals left behind.
“There’s about 5,000 head of cattle in Indian Valley that are landlocked behind mandatory evacuation and road closures,” said...
By Christine Souza, Assistant Editor, Ag Alert
Christine Souza
Assistant Editor, Ag Alert
Reprinted with Permission from California Farm Bureau Federation
The California State Water Resources Control Board on Tuesday unanimously adopted emergency curtailments and reporting regulations for the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta watershed due to severe drought conditions.
The board’s adoption on the actions affect almost all appropriative and riparian water rights holders in...
By Christine Souza, Assistant Editor, Ag Alert
Reprinted with Permission from California Farm Bureau Federation
Christine Souza
Assistant Editor, Ag Alert
Organic farmer Al Courchesne of Frog Hollow Farm in Brentwood walks through rows of his aromatic stone fruit orchard, showing off sweet nectarines that thrive in the microclimate and rich soils in his corner of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.
Weighing on his...
Press Release Provided by California Farm Bureau Federation
With nearly two-thirds of the West experiencing extreme or exceptional drought conditions, and more than 90 active wildfires burning across the U.S., a national coalition representing thousands of Western farmers, ranchers, water providers, businesses and communities underscored the significance of Senate passage of the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act today and...
Press Release Provided by National Grain and Feed Association
The National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA) commended the Senate Commerce Committee for favorably reporting the nomination of Karen Hedlund to serve on the Surface Transportation Board to the full Senate for consideration.
During the past few years, the Board has developed momentum in attempting to create more rail-on-rail competition and a...
By Ching Lee, Assistant Editor, Ag Alert
Reprinted with Permission from California Farm Bureau Federation
Pandemic cabin fever continues to drive people out to the country, and farmers who welcome agritourism activities say they expect the trend will hold, with farms becoming a go-to destination.
Last year saw the cancellation of many farm festivals, tours and workshops, some of which went virtual...
Press Release Provided by the US Cattlemen’s Association
On Thursday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that beginning Monday, August 9, 2021, it will issue two new Market News reports based on Livestock Mandatory Reporting (LMR) data. The news follows a letter the United States Cattlemen’s Association (USCA) sent to USDA on July 13, 2021 requesting the publication of...
Detection Marks First Time Plant Disease Has Been Found in San Diego County
Press Release Provided by the California Department of Food and Agriculture
The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) has declared a quarantine in north San Diego County following the detection of the citrus disease Huanglongbing (HLB), or citrus greening, in two citrus trees on one residential property...
Press Release Provided by California Department of Industrial Relations
Cal/OSHA is reminding employers that California’s protection from wildfire smoke standard requires them to take steps to protect their workers from unhealthy air due to wildfire smoke. Harmful air quality from wildfire smoke can occur anywhere in the state on short notice, so employers must be prepared before a wildfire event...
Press Release Provided by the California Department of Water Resources
Moving to provide immediate support to communities facing water supply challenges, the Department of Water Resources (DWR) on August 11th announced the first round of funding commitments for $200 million available through the Small Community Drought Relief Program.
DWR, in coordination with the State Water Resources Control Board, is directing $25...
Press Release Provided by the California Farm Water Coalition
In two years, California’s State reservoirs have gone from beginning water 2020 “robustly” full, with historic releases of surplus potential supply and the memory of dangerous risks of flooding associated with the same storms that damaged Oroville Dam not far behind us, to devastating curtailments in August of 2021.
On August 3,...
Press Release Provided by the California Department of Water Resources
The Bureau of Reclamation and the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) today released the next versions of two computer models that simulate operations of the State Water Project (SWP) and the Central Valley Project (CVP). Water managers use the models – CalSim II and CalSim 3 – to examine...
Press Release Provided by the California Department of Food and Agriculture
The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) today announced it has selected thirty-six organizations for Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA) Technical Assistance (TA) awards, totaling $2.7 million. With these funds, thirty-one organizations will provide technical assistance to the applicants and awardees of CDFA’s Healthy Soils Program (HSP) and twenty-one...
Grants Build on Company’s Commitment to the Health and Well-Being of Central Valley Communities, Supports Innovative Work at Schools and Non-Profit Organizations
Press Release Provided by The Wonderful Company
The Wonderful Company announced that its 2021 $1 million Wonderful Community Grant applications process is now live, continuing the company’s commitment to investing in and collaborating with the communities where its employees...
Press Release Provided by California Department of Food and Agriculture and California Department of Pesticide Regulation
The state is warning organic farmers against the use of pesticides labeled as W.O.W Whack Out Weeds! and EcoMight-Pro distributed by EcoMIGHT, as lab tests show that these products labeled as organic, natural and glyphosate-free do in fact contain potentially hazardous chemicals.
Today, the California...
By Andrea Compagnoni Wright, Faith Contributor, Valley Ag Voice
Faith is the foundation of how you live. It is a personal matter. My faith’s journey is a journey of blessings of faith-filled moments. It is the human element of life. The basis of the belief that we have a Creator (God).
Faith is a noun, but in reality, it is a...
By Scott Hamilton, President, Hamilton Resource Economics
Delta smelt have been protected under both the federal and state Endeared Species Acts since 1993. How have they fared with 28 years of protection? Their numbers are now less than one percent of the number at the time of listing. In order to assess status and trends, the fish are sampled in...
By Jenifer VanAlstein, Feature Contributor, Valley Ag Voice
California has been a state for nearly 200 years. One might think by now we would have our water system figured out. But, instead, we are plagued with navigating the most complicated water infrastructure system in the world–made only more complicated by the geopolitics of our state. The conditions in the Delta...
A Re-cap on CCA’s Wildfire Safety & Livestock Evacuation Workshop
By Audrey Hill, Feature Contributor, Valley Ag Voice
On June 23, 2021, The California Cattleman’s Association hosted a virtual workshop entitled “Emergency Response, Livestock Access & Evacuation + Safety Considerations for Wildfires.” The meeting was directed to mainly northern California counties where wildfires and wildfire season continue to hit harder and...
President’s & Executive Director’s Shared Message
This past July millions of Americans joined friends, families, and neighbors to celebrate our nation’s Independence Day. This year’s Independence Day took on additional meaning, marking the first time in over a year and a half that we could gather free of restrictions, social distancing, and the looming specter of quarantine and lockdowns.
As much...
