By Jenny Holtermann, President, Kern County Farm Bureau
By the time you are reading this, I hope you have all heard the good news. Kern County agriculture has again regained its title as the top agriculture-producing county in the state and nation.
The 2023 Crop Report was released in early October by the Agriculture Commissioner, and Kern County’s gross value of agriculture commodities increased 12% over last year. Compared to other counties across California, that makes us the highest.
It is important to remember that this report represents acreage, yield, and gross values, NOT net income. The farmer’s costs of production, marketing, transportation, labor, and water have all increased as well. One thing this report does not look at is crop return to the grower. Most growers will tell you that our crop payments have been less than desired for years. Almonds have been averaging less than breakeven for a couple years now, but are trending upward as of late.
Together, we tackle the rising costs of inputs on our farms—everything from fertilizer, plant protection, chemicals, and, of course, water. But farmers are resilient and the hardest working group of professionals I know. When life gets tough, it is important to remember to focus on the good things. Being named the #1 agriculture county in the nation is something worth celebrating.
On October 5th, Kern County Farm Bureau members, sponsors, and support businesses convened for our annual Bounty of Kern County, and it was time to celebrate. I hope you all had the opportunity to join us as we hosted a sold-out event of 450 guests. It truly is the agriculture event of the year to come together and celebrate the bountiful agriculture community in which we live and farm.
It comes with challenges, but we were all able to come together for the evening and celebrate. Our cocktail hour, sponsored by Jim Burke Ford, was filled with a silent auction, wine & whiskey pull, YF&R gun raffle, our first Golf Cart Raffle, and specialty cocktails. Elaine Rusk of KGET was our MC for the evening as AGWest Farm Credit joined us in Presenting our program. We enjoyed a beautiful meal from Willow Ranch featuring local produce from Grimmway Farms, Bolthouse Fresh, Driscoll’s, Fachin Bees Honey, Grapevine Vineyards, Tasteful Selections, Treehouse Farms, and Wonderful Orchards. Dan Durheim, the new COO of California Farm Bureau, joined us as the speaker for the evening to offer his remarks as he takes the helm of the Farm Bureau. Our After Party, sponsored by Paragon Personnel and Sonsray, kept the energy going with a Chik-fil-a truck, LaRosa Bars, live music, and a Cigar Lounge by Klein DeNatale Goldner. It was a fun evening filled with friends, laughter, memories, and great drinks.
I know we have a lot of challenges to face in agriculture and especially water in the coming years. Farm Bureau is committed to standing with our fellow farmers and finding solutions to keep us farming.
