California Ag Network

Category: Ag Legislation

  • CA Ag Leadership Foundation Announces Brand Refresh

    The California Agricultural Leadership Foundation (CALF), a nonprofit that operates the 52-year-old California Agricultural Leadership Program, today announced a comprehensive brand refresh and new logo.

    “Ag Leadership prepares, inspires, serves and connects effective leaders with a committed passion for California agriculture,” CALF President and CEO Dwight Ferguson said. “We believe our brand refresh strongly reflects our mission of ‘Growing leaders who make a difference,’ along with our values of integrity, excellence and respect.”

    The new logo preserves some key elements of the foundation’s two previous logos, such as the diamond shape and agricultural imagery. It also features new elements – color palette, typography, outlined diamond, extended row, and nickname and formal name – that give it a fresh, bold and modern look.

    With the brand refresh, the foundation aims to raise the profile of its distinguished Ag Leadership Program, enhance alumni pride and engagement, inspire potential candidates to apply, engage and inspire sponsors and donors to invest, and increase media coverage.

    “We are proud to have a new brand identity that underscores the long-standing reputation of Ag Leadership – dignified, enduring, respected, scholarly, exceptional, leading edge and trustworthy,” CALF Marketing and Communications Coordinator Meredith Rehrman Ritchie said. “Same powerful program and alumni network with a powerful refreshed brand.”

    Foundation materials and digital platforms, including a redesigned website, will be updated in the coming weeks and months.

    About California Agricultural Leadership Foundation

    CALF operates the California Agricultural Leadership Program, an advanced leadership development experience for mid-career growers, farmers, ranchers or individuals working in other areas of California’s diverse agriculture industry. Ag Leadership is considered to be one of the premier leadership development programs in the United States. Since the program was first delivered in 1970, more than 1,300 men and women have participated in Ag Leadership. They have gone on to become influential leaders and active volunteers in agriculture, government, communities, business and education. The powerful connections and relationships forged among alumni serve to keep agriculture a viable and important part of our state’s economy.

  • American Farmland Trust and Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education Publish Guide on Virtual Engagement for Women

    American Farmland Trust (AFT) and Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education (SARE)  published information, tips and tools for effective engagement for online education, including hybrid settings for farm and ranch women on topics related to farm viability, resilience and conservation in “Reaching Women in Agriculture: A Guide to Virtual Engagement”. The guide was originally developed through a partnership with AFT and the University of Vermont extension and has recently been updated, enhanced and published by SARE earlier in 2022.

    The guide shares that one of the reasons to create women-focused and women-only events, virtual or otherwise, is to establish a comfortable space for women-identifying individuals to find and access resources, information and networking they typically do not have easy access to in the agricultural services world. The goal is to create a safe space for women to learn from each other and gain confidence, rather than excluding men.

    “The guidance in Reaching Women is born out of AFT’s Women for the Land initiative and the Learning Circle model which arose out of early partnerships with the Women Food and Agriculture Network,” said Gabrielle Roesch-McNally, PhD, guide author and AFT Women for the Land Director. “Learning Circles, where women learn from other women in a setting with no visible hierarchy, have proven effective in engaging women landowners and producers in conversations about land management, particularly regarding agricultural best practices for soil health and water quality. The guide provides best practices for conducting this work in a virtual setting.”

    Reaching Women incorporates both the characteristics of high-quality programs for women in agriculture and the emerging best practices for adapting farmer education and networking events to virtual platforms. It shares innovative approaches and lessons learned from AFT efforts and the efforts of our partners to engage women in agriculture under the social distancing requirements associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.  This work will continues be critically important for outreach as we continue to integrate virtual engagement in the work we do even as we move beyond acute impacts associated with the pandemic. Rurality, large geographic expanses, expenses associated with childcare and transportation make virtual options for gathering an ongoing need for engaging women in agriculture.

    The guide brings everything together in profiles of work done by partner organizations in the agricultural and natural resources field including Elizabeth Lillard, Women in Conservation Leadership, National Wildlife Federation • Maggie Norton, Practical Farmers of Iowa • Caitlin Joseph and Ashley Brucker (also authors of this guide), Women for the Land Initiative at American Farmland Trust • Cayla Bendel and Kim Cole, Pheasants Forever • Jean Eells, E Resources Group, LLC • Lisa Kivirist, formerly with In Her Boots, a program of the Midwest Organic Sustainable Education Service • Wren Almitra, Women Food and Agriculture Network and Women, Land and Legacy

    To order: Download or order your free print copy of Reaching Women in Agriculture at https://sare.org/reaching-women or by calling (301) 779-1007.  Reaching Women in Agriculture is available in quantity for free to educators for use in educational workshops, classes or tours.

    For information on AFT’s Women for the Land initiative and the Learning Circle model, click on included links.

    American Farmland Trust is the only national organization that takes a holistic approach to agriculture, focusing on the land itself, the agricultural practices used on that land, and the farmers and ranchers who do the work. AFT launched the conservation agriculture movement and continues to raise public awareness through our No Farms, No Food message. Since our founding in 1980, AFT has helped permanently protect over 6.8 million acres of agricultural lands, advanced environmentally-sound farming practices on millions of additional acres and supported thousands of farm families.

    About SARE: The Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program is a producer-driven, decentralized competitive grants and education program operating in every state and island protectorate. Funded by the United States Department of Agriculture’s National Institute for Food and Agriculture, the program is run by four regions hosted by land grant institutions. Since 1988, SARE has funded over 8,000 competitively funded projects to advance agricultural innovation that promotes profitability, stewardship of the land, air and water, and quality of life for farmers, ranchers and their communities. For more information, visit www.sare.org.

  • Regen Ag 101’s’ Virtual Learning Course Now Free to FFA Advisors, Vo-Ag Instructors

    Vocational agriculture instructors and FFA advisors for grades 7-12 will be provided free access to the regenerative agriculture online course, Regen Ag 101, the non-profit Soil Health Academy (SHA).

    Thanks to a grant from global food company General Mills, SHA is providing the course on a first-come, first-serve basis.

    “Most of SHA’s educational efforts in the past have been focused on helping farmers transition from conventional to soil health-improving regenerative practices,” SHA President Dawn Breitkreutz said. “By providing vo-ag instructors and FFA advisors with Regen Ag 101’s soil health educational resources, we hope to have an early and positive regenerative influence on the next generation of farmers.”

    An online, self-paced, interactive media experience, Regen Ag 101 contains video lectures, case studies and supporting research gleaned from the best of Soil Health Academy live workshops across the U.S.

    “The online course provides a comprehensive look at how regenerative agricultural principles and practices affect ecosystem function, the nutrient density of food and other wide-ranging benefits,” said Shane New, a managing partner with the Soil Health Academy’s education partner Understanding Ag, LLC. New is also a co-creator of the Regen Ag 101 course.

    “As a former FFA member, I appreciate the role FFA advisors and vo-ag instructors play in establishing an educational foundation for our future farmers,” New said. “This grant provides a tremendous opportunity for these middle school and high school ag educators to gain deeper insights into soil health-focused regenerative principles and practices.”

    In addition, General Mills is providing scholarship funding for middle and high school ag educators to attend, tuition free, one of SHA’s three-day, on-farm schools in 2022—also offered on a first-come, first-serve basis.

    “The Soil Health Academy and Understanding Ag remain key partners in our efforts to educate and support farmers as they adopt regenerative agricultural principles,” said Mary Jane Melendez, chief sustainability and global impact officer, General Mills. “In addition to our ongoing, on-farm regenerative ag work with the Soil Health Academy and Understanding Ag, these education grants represent an opportunity to inform and inspire ag educators and students about the hope in healthy soil—and to establish an educational foundation to grow the next generation of successful regenerative farmers and ranchers.”

    Ag educators and advisors interested in registering for the free on-line course or in attending a three-day SHA school tuition free, can visit SoilHealthAcademy.org.

  • APHIS Celebrates 50 Years of Protecting American Agriculture

    The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is celebrating a major milestone – 50 years of serving the public as a Federal agency. USDA created APHIS on April 2, 1972 to consolidate animal health, plant health, and inspection duties under one roof. The new agency focused on protecting American agriculture and natural resources, along with ensuring the humane care of certain animals. While both APHIS and the world have changed a lot over the past 50 years, the agency’s key mission remains the same today.

    “The keys to APHIS’ long-term success are our dedicated, skilled employees and the strong partnerships we develop with our many stakeholders,” said APHIS Administrator Kevin Shea. “It takes many hands working together to protect the health of our nation’s animals, plants and natural resources.”

    Some of APHIS’ key accomplishments over the past 50 years include:

    • Eradicating plant pests like European grapevine moth and plum pox from the country, while reducing the impact of others plant diseases, including boll weevil and Mediterranean and Mexican fruit flies;
    • Eradicating serious animal diseases, including highly pathogenic avian influenza, virulent Newcastle disease, and pseudorabies, from the country’s herds and flocks, while reducing the prevalence of other animal diseases like bovine tuberculosis and brucellosis;
    • Improving care for laboratory animals, exhibited animals and other animals covered by the Animal Welfare Act and the Horse Protection Act;
    • Ensuring genetically engineered plants do not pose a risk to plant health, while keeping up with the ever-changing technology in this field;
    • Reducing the impact of wildlife damage on agriculture and natural resources, and developing new tools and techniques for non-lethal wildlife management; and
    • Ensuring safe trade of agriculture commodities across the globe

    APHIS recently launched a new page on its website to share a series of visual timelines walking through the agency’s history and important milestones. There’s also a video from Administrator Shea. In the coming weeks, APHIS will share history highlights on its social media accounts.

    “It’s exciting to be celebrating 50 years as an agency. And I’m even more excited to look to our future,” said Administrator Shea. “APHIS’ core work will remain, but we know we will continue to face new and different challenges—from the impacts of climate change to new horizons in One Health. Our role will evolve as science and agriculture evolve. And I know that whatever the next 50 years brings for APHIS, our employees will remain committed to protecting the health and vitality of American agriculture.”

  • Avian Flu Puts Easter Egg Supplies at Risk

    Recent outbreaks of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) within the U.S. layer flock are adding strain to beleaguered egg supply chains, which have not fully recovered from disruptions brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. While egg production has stabilized in recent months, it is still well below pre-pandemic levels and egg availability could be limited leading into Easter, according to a new research brief from CoBank’s Knowledge Exchange.

    “U.S. egg producers have been hard-pressed to align supplies with market demand over the last two years,” said Brian Earnest, lead animal protein economist with CoBank. “The U.S. layer flock typically expands ahead of the surge in demand for Easter and contracts during the summer months. But recent losses due to HPAI have combined with high feed costs and other challenges that are severely limiting flock size management.”

    The U.S. table egg layer flock trended ahead of target growth in 2019, however, the annual supply has declined by more than 5% since then. The decline in supply stems from extreme shifts in consumer behavior during 2020. Although grocery demand skyrocketed during the onset of the pandemic, egg producers were not initially set up to shift lost food service volumes into retail channels.

    The lack of packaging equipment and supplies needed for grocery sales led to empty store shelves, sky-high retail prices, and ultimately, lower egg consumption. Compounding the pandemic challenges, producers also faced increased input costs of grain, energy and transportation.

    The latest blow to U.S. egg supplies is the worst outbreak of HPAI in years. At least 11 million layers have been lost in recent weeks. With USDA reporting new cases almost daily and depopulation of operations ranging from in the tens of thousands to more than 5.3 million birds,1 estimating the total expected losses is challenging.

    The most recent USDA weekly shell egg demand indicator2 shows about five days of inventory are currently on hand, which normally suggests a tight, but not alarmingly tight supply. However, it does not appear that supplies will be able to accommodate the reduction in layers as a result of HPAI outbreaks, especially at a regional level.

    Current supply pressures coincide with typical in-store grocery features ahead of Easter celebrations. With eggs serving a dual purpose of both decoration and cooking supply, retailers typically rely on eggs as a loss-leader. Market forces result in seasonally higher wholesale values for shell eggs ahead of Easter, but with the tight supply situation now exacerbated by flock reductions, prices are above fundamental ceilings. Consumers are likely to absorb some of the cost increases as they seek to fill their baskets with eggs prior to Easter.

    Read the research brief, Pandemic, Higher Costs and Avian Flu Put Easter Egg Supplies at Risk.

    About CoBank

    CoBank is a $170 billion cooperative bank serving vital industries across rural America. The bank provides loans, leases, export financing and other financial services to agribusinesses and rural power, water and communications providers in all 50 states. The bank also provides wholesale loans and other financial services to affiliated Farm Credit associations serving more than 76,000 farmers, ranchers and other rural borrowers in 23 states around the country.

    CoBank is a member of the Farm Credit System, a nationwide network of banks and retail lending associations chartered to support the borrowing needs of U.S. agriculture, rural infrastructure and rural communities. Headquartered outside Denver, Colorado, CoBank serves customers from regional banking centers across the U.S. and maintains an international representative office in Singapore.

  • $1.8 Million in CALFED Water Use Efficiency Grants Announced

    The Bureau of Reclamation announces selection of four California projects to receive $1.8 million total for fiscal year 2022 under the Bay-Delta Restoration Program, CALFED Water Use Efficiency grants. Combined with local cost-share contributions, these projects are expected to implement about $16.1 million in water management improvements during the next two years.

    The projects will conserve an estimated 3,859 acre-feet of water per year and better manage 18,000 acre-feet, contributing to the CALFED Bay-Delta Program objectives of improving ecosystem health, water supply reliability and water quality. California and federal agencies are partners in the 30-year program (2000-2030).

    This investment in water use efficiency is part of Reclamation’s continuing strategy to respond to drought. Reclamation is working with states, tribes, agriculture, power customers, municipalities, conservation organizations, and other stakeholder communities on projects and activities across the West to address drought conditions and impacts.

    Reclamation made the selection of the following four projects through a competitive process, prioritizing projects addressing CALFED goals on a statewide basis.

    Cawelo Water District, $500,000

    The Friant-Kern Canal Pump Station, Turnout/In and Appurtenances Project will increase water conveyance capacity by constructing a pump station and a 1.8-mile, 48-inch pipeline intertie. The intertie will convey wet-period water, when available in the Friant-Kern Canal, to groundwater recharge basins or for irrigation purposes in-lieu of pumping groundwater. The Kern County project will save 2,160 acre-feet of water per year over the 50-year life of the project, of which 657 acre-feet a year is attributed to the Bay Delta. The total project cost is $6,230,000 and the federal cost share is $500,000.

    Contra Costa Water District, $300,000

    The Lawn to Garden Rebate Program will incentivize the conversion of 660,000 square feet of turf to water friendly landscape among residential and commercial properties within the Contra Costa Water District. The project will save 60 acre-feet of water per year over the 15-year life of the project, all of which is attributed to the Bay Delta. The total project cost is $602,000 and the federal cost share is $300,000.

    Meridian Farms Water Company, $499,700

    The Main Canal Automation Project will better manage water elevation within the canal and eliminate operational water spills at the canal bottom by replacing six existing manual check structures with efficient long-crested weirs with automated dual-leaf vein gates. This project in Sutter County will better manage 18,000 acre-feet of water per year over the 40-year life of the project, all of which is attributed to the Bay Delta. The total project cost is $5,901,100 and the federal cost share is $499,700.

    Semitropic Water Storage District, $500,000

    The Pipeline Conveyance Improvements for Recharge Enhancements project will consist of installing a 1.8-mile pipeline to increase conveyance of State Water Project wet-period water where bottlenecks in supply exist. The new pipe is 30% larger than existing and will result in increased conveyance to support recharge activities and meet on-farm irrigation demand. The project in Kern County will save 1,639 acre-feet of water per year over the 50-year life of the project, of which 375 acre-feet of water per year is attributed to the Bay Delta. The total project cost is $3,400,153 and the federal cost share is $500,000.

    The fiscal year 2023 and 2024 CALFED funding notice is expected to be posted on www.grants.gov in July 2022. For more information on the Water Use Efficiency Program, contact Anna Sutton at asutton@usbr.gov or 916-978-5214 (TTY 800-877-8339).

  • Free Training Tools Available to Address Sexual Harassment of Farmworkers

    Equitable Food Initiative, the workforce development and certification organization that partners with growers, farmworkers, retailers and consumer advocacy groups, has collaborated with Pacific Northwest Agricultural Safety and Health Center (PNASH), a part of the University of Washington Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, to support the development of a worksite training and toolkit, ¡Basta! Preventing Sexual Harassment in Agriculture.

    Several studies have found that 75%-80% of female farmworkers have experienced sexual harassment at work, compared to 50% in non-agricultural office settings as reported by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

    The EFI website offers statistics, facts and study citations on harassment at work, links to access the ¡Basta! Preventing Sexual Harassment toolkit, which features videos in both English and Spanish, and educational materials that can be used in workplaces (posters, shareable graphics and a detailed fact sheet). The information and resources can be found at equitablefood.org/harassment, and all are provided free of charge.

    “Development of the ¡Basta! toolkit was catalyzed by female farmworkers in Eastern Washington who brought the issue of sexual harassment to PNASH,” explained Dr. Jody Early, a professor at University of Washington who worked on the project. “This is the first program created by and for agricultural stakeholders to address the prevention of sexual harassment, and we tailored it to the needs of Latino/a/x farmworkers, growers and supervisors.”

    The PNASH team worked for six years and engaged more than 48 different stakeholders in the development – including farmworkers, grower associations, health care advocates, human rights organizations, state and federal agencies, farmworker rights groups, private businesses and nonprofits like Equitable Food Initiative.

    “This can be a difficult topic, but it’s essential that we address it industrywide,” said LeAnne Ruzzamenti, director of marketing communications for EFI. “We know that harassment happens more frequently among farmworkers, we know that it goes unreported, and we know that agriculture workplaces include characteristics that make women more vulnerable to it.”

    EFI’s certification program goes beyond a simple audit and introduces workforce development solutions along with training in communication, conflict resolution, problem-solving and collaboration. Third-party evaluation studies have found that the program fosters culture shifts on farms that result in respectful and trusting workplaces where women and indigenous workers report reduced harassment and discrimination.

    “EFI’s mission is to improve the lives of farmworkers by bringing everyone in the system together to address the fresh produce industry’s most pressing problems,” Ruzzamenti continued. “I can’t think of a more important goal than creating safer and healthier workplaces through a zero-tolerance approach to harassment.”

    About EFI
    Equitable Food Initiative is a nonprofit certification and skill-building organization that seeks to increase transparency in the food supply chain and improve the lives of farmworkers through a team-based approach to training and continuous improvement practices. EFI brings together growers, farmworkers, retailers and consumers to solve the most pressing issues facing the fresh produce industry. Its unparalleled approach sets standards for labor practices, food safety and pest management while engaging workers at all levels on the farm to produce Responsibly Grown, Farmworker Assured® fruits and vegetables. For more information about Equitable Food Initiative, visit equitablefood.org.

  • Underwater farming: A New Frontier

    Out of prime farming real estate on land? With 71 percent of the earth’s surface covered by water, Siemens Digital Industries Software is giving underwater farming a try with Nemo’s Garden.

    Nemo’s Garden has deployed Siemens Xcelerator portfolio of software and services to shorten its innovation cycles and move more rapidly towards industrialization and scale for the sustainable underwater cultivation of crops.

    Nemo’s Garden was founded in 2021 by Sergio Gamberini, President of Italian scuba diving equipment manufacturer, Ocean Reef Group, and his son, Luca Gamberini. Their team of engineers, divers and scientists have been working to prove the viability of cultivating herbs, fruit and vegetables underwater. Nemo’s Garden’s key innovation, a sub-aqua biosphere, is a unique type of underwater greenhouse, able to harness the positive environmental factors of the ocean – temperature stability, evaporative water generation, CO2 absorption, the abundance of oxygen and inherent protection from pests – to create an environment ideal for crop cultivation.

    The team has not only successfully harvested a variety of crops from its prototype biospheres, but also discovered that plants grown in this environment are nutritionally richer than those grown traditionally. The next big hurdle in achieving their goal was to turn this prototype into a solution that could be deployed globally; however, they didn’t want to wait another 10 years to make that happen.

    Harsh winters, short summers and initial seafloor-use permit limitations capped Nemo’s Garden to one growth cycle a year, which has meant only one innovation cycle per annum. Design changes, lengthy physical testing and heavy manual monitoring processes during the growth cycle led the Nemo’s Garden team to seek out ways to speed up their innovation and scale the operation. The team reached out to TekSea’s Matteo Cavalleroni for insight on how to leverage cutting edge technologies to achieve their goals. After the initial consultation, Siemens was invited to join the project, leveraging the Xcelerator portfolio of software and its services to help Nemo’s Garden get to the next stage of development and get ready for industrialization/commoditization.

    “When I first saw Siemens’ digital twin technology, I was mesmerized. Nemo’s Garden is a one-of-a-kind system and we need to adapt to each environment where it is to be installed. If you can model that environment virtually before you start, you can foresee the challenges and address them in the best way,” said Luca Gamberini, Co-Founder, Nemo’s Garden. “We have seen benefits in understanding the flow of water around the shapes of our biospheres. We have a greater understanding of the points of stress on the structure around the biospheres. We also understand how the different interactions of the solar radiation, the temperature and all the physical factors, act on the plants. All thanks to the ability of the digital twin to replicate our system.”

    A comprehensive digital twin of the Nemo’s Garden biosphere has been built that encompasses not only its design evolution using Siemens’ NX™ software, but also enables simulation of the growing conditions within it, the impact of the equipment on the body of water, as well as the full environment in which they are installed – all accomplished using Siemens’ Simcenter™ STAR-CCM+™ software. The Nemo’s Garden team are no longer limited by weather conditions, seasonality and short growing seasons or limitations on diving and monitoring. Adaptations to the biospheres can be tested in the virtual world, enabling the team to refine the design at a massively accelerated rate.

    Monitoring at the edge

    In addition to engineering the physical biosphere, Nemo’s Garden also needed to optimize and scale the processes for growing, tracking, and harvesting the plants. To create a sustainable business that did not rely on sending trained divers to collect data, a fully digital, automated approach was created that drew on Siemens’ extensive experience in leveraging software to automate traditional farming practices.

    Existing video of the growing cycles along with reference data from traditional farming operations of the same target crops, at various growth stages and health conditions was analyzed using Siemens’ MindSphere® service. From this, Siemens was able to train a machine learning algorithm to monitor plant growth as well as the environmental conditions within the domes.

    When this algorithm is deployed onto Siemens’ Industrial Edge computing devices in each biosphere, the plants can be monitored via a cloud-based dashboard throughout the season, from anywhere, in real time. Next season, these Industrial Edge devices will be connected to actuators – to automatically adjust air circulation, humidity, irrigation and nutritional dosing throughout the whole season. This will be the foundation of a global agricultural service, optimized for subsea operations and tuned for each of the world’s oceans.

    Through true adoption of digital transformation, Nemo’s Garden has taken something that began as a light-hearted challenge over dinner with friends and are turning this unique concept into a commercially viable subsea farming platform that can sustainably be deployed globally. While the newly designed biospheres will not be deployed until the next growing season, thanks to the comprehensive digital twin of the growing environment the team continues to push forward with plans to further optimize their designs and automate their processes for global deployment.

    “Digitalization isn’t only for big companies, it is for all companies. In fact, great gains can often be realized in smaller or start-up companies. The work we do with startups can amplify the impact they have on the world, aiding in and speeding up innovation,” said Eryn Devola, Vice President of Sustainability, Siemens Digital Industries Software. “It is easy to get excited when you we find a passionate team with human-centered technology that is working to feed people while having a positive impact on the environment.”

    To learn more about Nemo’s Garden visit the following links

    Siemens Digital Industries Software is driving transformation to enable a digital enterprise where engineering, manufacturing and electronics design meet tomorrow. The  Xcelerator portfolio helps companies of all sizes create and leverage digital twins that provide organizations with new insights, opportunities and levels of automation to drive innovation. For more information on Siemens Digital Industries Software products and services, visit siemens.com/software or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Siemens Digital Industries Software – Where today meets tomorrow.

    Siemens Digital Industries (DI) is an innovation leader in automation and digitalization. Closely collaborating with partners and customers, DI drives the digital transformation in the process and discrete industries. With its Digital Enterprise portfolio, DI provides companies of all sizes with an end-to-end set of products, solutions and services to integrate and digitalize the entire value chain. Optimized for the specific needs of each industry, DI’s unique portfolio supports customers to achieve greater productivity and flexibility. DI is constantly adding innovations to its portfolio to integrate cutting-edge future technologies. Siemens Digital Industries has its global headquarters in Nuremberg, Germany, and has around 76,000 employees internationally.

    Siemens AG (Berlin and Munich) is a technology company focused on industry, infrastructure, transport, and healthcare. From more resource-efficient factories, resilient supply chains, and smarter buildings and grids, to cleaner and more comfortable transportation as well as advanced healthcare, the company creates technology with purpose adding real value for customers. By combining the real and the digital worlds, Siemens empowers its customers to transform their industries and markets, helping them to transform the everyday for billions of people. Siemens also owns a majority stake in the publicly listed company Siemens Healthineers, a globally leading medical technology provider shaping the future of healthcare. In addition, Siemens holds a minority stake in Siemens Energy, a global leader in the transmission and generation of electrical power.

    In fiscal 2021, which ended on September 30, 2021, the Siemens Group generated revenue of €62.3 billion and net income of €6.7 billion. As of September 30, 2021, the company had around 303,000 employees worldwide. Further information is available on the Internet at www.siemens.com.

  • $19 Million Available To Support Beginning Farmers And Ranchers In 2022

    Being new to farming can come with challenges and many beginning farmers find themselves having higher debt-to-asset ratios and having to rely on off-farm income than more established farmers. They also have trouble gaining access to land, capital, and markets and are less likely to receive government support. This has been exacerbated by the recent COVID-19 pandemic. Fortunately, the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (BFRDP), created over a decade ago, supports training the next generation of farmers. BFRDP is a federal grant program administered by the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA). The program provides grants to organizations working with beginning farmers and ranchers to help improve success in their farming operations. BFRDP is pivotal to reducing traditional barriers to entry by funding new farmer training programs and projects across the country.

    Last week, USDA announced the availability of $19 million for the BFRDP in the fiscal year (FY) 2022 Request for Application (RFA). Applicants have until May 19, 2022, to apply for this year’s round of grants.

    Program Details

    Priority funding is given to nonprofit organizations, community-based organizations (CBOs), and school-based agricultural educational organizations that have experience educating and training beginning farmers. Supported programs include workshops, educational teams, training, educational outreach curricula, and technical assistance programs to assist beginning farmers and ranchers with entering, establishing, building, and managing successful farm and ranch enterprises.

    BFRDP grants may support projects that address a variety of topics including livestock and crop farming practices; land transfer strategies; business, financial, and risk management training; curriculum development; mentoring and apprenticeships; agricultural rehabilitation and vocational training for veterans; and farm safety. A portion of BFRDP funding is set aside to specifically support projects serving historically underserved and veteran farmers.

    BFRDP grants are structured into three types:

    • Standard Grants,
    • Educational Team Grants, and
    • Curriculum and Training Clearinghouse Grants

    Standard BFRDP projects support new and established local and regional training, education, outreach, and technical assistance initiatives for beginning farmers and ranchers, and the maximum award is limited to $250,000 per year, for up to three years.

    Educational Enhancement Team grants are expected to assemble a team of experts to support the development of curricula and conduct educational programs and workshops, provide training and technical assistance initiatives, or support trainers and service providers that work with beginning farmers or ranchers. These grants are limited to $250,000 per year, for up to three years.

    The Curriculum and Training Clearinghouse grants make available educational curricula and training materials and programs, which may include online courses, through collaboration and coordination with other BFRDP programs. These grants are aimed at maintaining and enhancing an online library for education, training, mentoring, and outreach materials produced from projects funded through the BFRDP program and through other sources. It will also maintain a national “one-stop” source of beginning farmer and rancher education that includes training materials and information that can be accessed online, as well as enhancing outcome-based reporting. These grants are also limited to $250,000 per year, for up to three years.

    Program Funding

    In the 2018 Farm Bill, Congress created an umbrella program – the Farming Opportunities Training and Outreach (FOTO) program – to streamline and coordinate USDA resources for beginning and other underserved farmers. In creating FOTO, Congress provided permanent funding for BFRDP, but in doing so, cut annual program funding over a couple of years post the Farm Bill. However, for FY 2022 the program has $20 million in mandated funding which will increase to $25 million in FY 2023.

    BFRDP has a match requirement and awardees must provide a 25 percent match from non-federal sources to the funds provided by the grant. However, NIFA may waive the matching funds requirement if it determines the project will effectively reach an underserved area or population.

    How to Apply

    To apply, organizations must submit an electronic application through Grants.gov after carefully reviewing the FY 2022 Request for Application (RFA). The deadline to complete and submit applications is May 19, 2022.

    For more on BFRDP, visit NSAC’s Grassroots Guide. — By the National Sustainable Agricultural Coalition

  • Effort to Alert Consumers to Looming Food Shortages Goes National

    With water in short supply for western farms, a coalition of farmers and farm organizations throughout the west have come together to alert U.S. consumers that without prioritizing a safe, affordable, domestic food supply; higher prices and food shortages could be coming soon.

    The first step was a national ad which ran in the Wall Street Journal Saturday, April 2. The ad, which can be seen here, reminds consumers that in world of global uncertainties, we can’t afford to take the farms that produce our food for granted.

    Over 80% of our country’s fruits, nuts and vegetables are grown west of the Rockies but current government policies are putting that food supply, and the farms that produce it, at risk. In addition to produce, beef, poultry and dairy are also at risk.

    Farms are always the first to have their water supply cut. For most western farmers, this is the second year of very little or no stored water. In addition, the water bureaucracy continues to allocate water for purposes that decades of data show simply do nothing to help fish or the environment. Our government must also move much more quickly to build the infrastructure necessary for us to store water in wet years for use in dry ones like 2022.

    Without balance among water uses, none of these farms can continue to operate. Consumers will see shortages at the store, even higher prices, be forced to rely more heavily on increasingly unstable foreign sources, or all of these at the same time. And once the grocery shelves are bare, it will be too late. Unfortunately, most American consumers are simply unaware that our food supply is at risk.

    Consumers have experienced supply chain disruptions over the past two years and now see the tension around the world as a potential threat to global food supplies. We thought it was important to remind them that California remains our best, most reliable source for food if farmers have the water they need to grow it,” said Mike Wade, executive director of the California Farm Water Coalition.

    Western irrigated agriculture supports the national economy and is the foundation for U.S. consumers to pay less of their disposable income on food than anywhere else in the world,” said Dan Keppen, executive director of the Family Farm Alliance, one of the partners in producing the ad.

    The Journal ad, which was a first step, contained a QR code, taking consumers to a website with more information. Social media outreach is also planned in order to amplify the message in the ad and continue to raise awareness. U.S. consumers must insist on a domestically grown food supply before it is too late.

    We encourage all farmers and farm organizations to share the ad as widely as possible. If you’d like to participate in this program moving forward, contact Mike Wade, Executive Director of the California Farm Water Coalition at MWade@faramwater.org.