California Ag Network

Category: Non-Video

  • Top PPP Considerations for Farmers/Producers & Others in Ag

    Just over nine months after the CARES Act passed, President Trump last month signed the first subsequent major pandemic relief bill, Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, into law. Included among the $900 billion in pandemic relief spending is $280 billion for a new round of Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans already being dubbed “PPP2,” which will give hard-hit PPP recipients a chance to access additional funding via “second draw” loans as well as reopen first draw loans for businesses that did not take advantage of the initial round of funds. But even those who do not qualify for the new round of funding will want to be sure to understand the changes to the program, which could affect their tax planning, loan forgiveness amount, and more. Here are some of the top PPP considerations for businesses in the ag and food sectors.

    Farmer Loan Amounts

    During the first round of PPP, loan amounts for Schedule F farmers were determined by their 2019 net income. Farmers could borrow amounts equivalent to 2.5 months of their 2019 net income up to $100,000, for a maximum loan amount of $20,833. This scheme limited the amounts that farmers with smaller incomes could borrow and meant that farmers with net losses in 2019 were ineligible altogether for PPP loans.

    The new relief bill changes all that. Now, farmers may use their gross income, which can often be many multiples of their net income, to calculate their loan amounts. The bill also allows businesses who received a PPP loan during the first round to receive supplemental funds if using 2019 gross income to recalculate their loan amount would result in a larger amount. Additionally, farmers that were ineligible for the first round of loans because they had net losses in 2019 are now eligible for a PPP loan if they had any gross income that year.

    Loan Eligibility

    The first round of PPP was open to all businesses with fewer than 500 employees as well as sole proprietors, self-employed individuals and independent contractors who could certify that the economic uncertainty brought on by the pandemic necessitated the loan in order to support ongoing operations. The eligibility requirements for second draw loans have been tightened and is only available to businesses with both fewer than 300 employees (down from 500 in the first round) and that also experienced a reduction in gross receipts of at least 25% for at least one quarter in 2020 compared with the same quarter in 2019. Maximum loan amounts have also decreased from $10 million in the first round to $2 million for PPP2. The precise loan amount continues to be based on 2.5 months of payroll costs, as with the first round, meaning that for many borrowers, the amount received in round two will likely be the same as round one.

    Eligible Expenses

    When the original PPP was passed as part of the CARES Act, 75% of the borrowed amount had to be spent on payroll in order to be forgiven. The other 25% percent could be spent on costs such as rent, utilities and payment of interest on mortgages. Since then, the percentage that must be spent on payroll has been reduced to 60%. And with the passage of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, the eligible non-payroll expenses now include new categories such operations expenditures (mainly business software and cloud computing), property damage costs, supplier costs and worker protection expenditures.

    “Supplier costs” are seemingly the broadest category and are defined as amounts spent on procurement pursuant to contracted purchase orders. For, say, an almond processor, supplier costs might include the purchase of almonds. For an almond grower, fertilizer and water supply could potentially be considered supplier costs.

    The inclusion of worker protection expenditures as a category of covered expenses will be a particularly valuable addition for food manufacturers and processors, who have had to spend not insignificant amounts on personal protection equipment and other health and safety equipment to protect their products and employees from COVID-19 exposure.

    As has been the case since the beginning of the program, we expect additional guidance from the SBA to clarify the precise definitions for all of these new categories.

    Time Considerations

    The SBA opened the PPP loan portal for applications from community financial institutions on Monday, January 11 and will open the portal to all participating lenders on Tuesday, January 19.  The window for PPP2 applications will close on March 31 or when funding for the program runs out. With both first round PPP loans and PPP2 loans, borrowers have up to 24 weeks to spend the funds in order for the amounts to be forgiven. This timeframe within which the borrower may spend the PPP funds to be eligible for forgiveness is referred to as the “covered period.” Borrowers will want to apply for forgiveness within 10 months of the expiration of their covered period to avoid triggering repayment on the loan.

    Applying for Forgiveness

    The PPP forgiveness process, which initially appeared might be quite onerous and burdensome,  turning many off from participating in the program, has been progressively streamlined and the criteria loosened over the past few months. The Consolidated Appropriations Act further eases the forgiveness process, with a provision that forgiveness of loans up to $150,000 will only require a one-page form with borrower certifications. Loans of between $150,000 and $2 million may also see simplified requirements, as the Small Business Administration sees fit. The upshot is that if the specter of a drawn-out and arduous forgiveness process dissuaded you from participating in round one of PPP, it may be worth revisiting the new and considerably more favorable obligations.

    Tax Considerations

    After the passage of the CARES Act, the IRS took a position that expenses used to qualify for PPP loan forgiveness would not be deductible for federal tax purposes, a decision that was confirmed with additional rulings in November 2020. Thankfully, last month’s Consolidated Appropriations Act makes expenses attributable to PPP loan forgiveness fully tax deductible. This means that not only is the forgiven amount of the loan not considered taxable income, but also the business expenses funded by the PPP loan are tax deductible, thus meeting the original intent of Congress when they passed the CARES Act. Businesses should, however, note that state tax law may not conform to federal law, meaning they may experience differences in taxable income due to the PPP loan. — By Brett Hazlett, Director, BPM

    Brett Hazlett is a director in the advisory practice at BPM, a West Coast-based accounting and consulting firm that ranks among the 50 largest firms of its kind in the country, where he provides results-driven accounting and finance services to companies at all stages in the business lifecycle. He co-leads the firm’s Economic Recovery and Emergency Task Force, an agile, cross-unit group of senior BPM professionals dedicated to assisting clients with business problems arising from the COVID-19 pandemic and the associated economic fallout.

  • Raisin Bargaining Association Makes New Raisin Price Offer

    As raisin growers begin to prepare for a new season, most are still uncertain as to what their returns will be for their labors in bringing in the 2020 raisin crop.  There is a lot of uncertainty during these unprecedented times, and with their livelihoods in limbo from year to year due to delayed price agreements between the the Raisin Bargaining Association RBA) and its signatory packers, raisin growers have been have been going through some tough times.

    The RBA continues to work on their growers’ behalf in negotiating a fixed price with the processors.  Over the summer their Board of Directors met and unanimously agreed to a sliding scale fixed price offer of $1,500-$1,900/ton (depending on crop size) for the 2020 raisin crop.  As the packers have still not come to agreement, on January 15th, the RBA Board of Directors wrote a letter to the packers withdrawing their sliding scale MOU offer, replacing it with a new MOU offer for consideration at a field price of $1,500/ton. Packers will need to respond by 5 PM on January 29, 2021, or the offer will become void.

    In this agreement, packers would make an “initial payment” of 60% of the said announced RBA field price for all deliveries within fifteen days of grower’s final delivery of meeting raisins; and a “second payment” of 20% of the field price for all deliveries would be paid by April 30, 2021. The “final payment” would need to be made by July 31, 2021.

    In the RBA letter to the packers, it also reads, “In the event you do not agree to the fixed price and payment terms of this offer, then RBA recommends that we meet and confer to discuss the logistics of moving the RBA 2020-2021 crop raisins now held in memorandum storage at your location to the RBA’s receiving and storage location.”

    As growers go about their trellising/irrigation repairs and winter pruning in the vineyard, they anxiously await news of a unified price agreement that has yet to be seen.

  • USDA and Dairy Farmers Work Together to Mitigate Risk for 2021

    In an unprecedented year, USDA staff and dairy producers across the country worked together to protect dairy operations for the 2021 production year under USDA’s risk management program options – the Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC), Dairy Revenue Protection (DRP), and Livestock Gross Margin for Dairy Cattle (LGM) programs. Recent enrollment data for these programs indicate that dairy operations are proactively managing their risk.

    “In a year rife with challenges, our staff worked diligently to improve customer service and seamlessly deliver programs to assist agricultural producers,” said Bill Northey, USDA’s Under Secretary for Farm Production and Conservation. “Through patience and perseverance on both sides of the virtual counter, as well as added resources made available to producers and staff for operating in a pandemic, producers were able to timely participate in these programs.”

    Dairy Margin Coverage

    Administered by USDA’s Farm Service Agency, DMC offers protection to dairy producers when the difference between the all-milk price and the average feed price (the margin) falls below a certain dollar amount selected by the producer.

    Nearly three-quarters of all U.S. dairy operations with established production history are enrolled in DMC for the 2021 program year. Compared with 2020 enrollment of 13,532 operations, participation for 2021 increased to cover nearly 18,500 operations nationwide – meaning an additional 4,900 dairy operations recognized the value of DMC to their bottom line.

    This enrollment success is a testament to the value of DMC to dairy operations. DMC is a cashflow-friendly program that offers enrolled operations the option to select a $4.00 catastrophic level of coverage with no premium fee or elect to buy up coverage. The premium on buy-up coverage is based on margin triggers between $4.50 and $9.50 on 5 to 95% of established production history. For coverage at the maximum margin trigger of $9.50, producers pay $0.15 per hundredweight of established milk production history.

    To date, DMC has paid out more than $500 million in program benefits to dairy operations enrolled in calendar years 2019 and 2020. Margin payments triggered seven months in 2019 and four months, to date, for the 2020 DMC program year.

    Additional Protection for Dairy

    Approximately 3,000 operations purchased additional protection under DRP, which covers 30% of the milk supply and has provided more than $400 million in payments to covered operations since 2019. DRP, now in its second year, has grown from 2,500 policies in 2019. Additionally, 200 producers purchased coverage through LGM. Both LGM and DRP are managed by USDA’s Risk Management Agency.

    While DRP insures against unexpected declines in the quarterly revenue from milk sales, LGM provides protection against the loss of gross margin (market value of milk minus feed costs) on the milk produced from dairy cows.

    More Information

    Enrollment for 2022 coverage for DMC will take place in the fall of 2021. For more information about DMC and to use the online program decision tool, visit the farmers.gov DMC webpage, or contact your local USDA Service Center. To locate your local office, visit farmers.gov/service-center-locator.

    All Federal crop insurance policies are available from Approved Insurance Providers (AIP). To learn more about DRP and LGM and other crop and livestock insurance products, contact your local AIP. A list of AIPs is available at all USDA service centers and on the RMA website at the Agent Locator Page.

    All USDA Service Centers are open for business, including those that restrict in-person visits or require appointments. All Service Center visitors wishing to conduct business with FSA, Natural Resources Conservation Service, or any other Service Center agency should call ahead and schedule an appointment. Service Centers that are open for appointments will pre-screen visitors based on health concerns or recent travel, and visitors must adhere to social distancing guidelines. Visitors are also required to wear a face covering during their appointment. Our program delivery staff will continue to work with our producers by phone, email, and using online tools. More information on working with our Service Centers can be found at farmers.gov/coronavirus

    USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender.

  • Vaccination Update for Agriculture Workers

    The Almond Alliance has been in touch with County Health Officers about the number of vaccinations available in each county and to gather information on how the vaccinations are being distributed.  As you have heard and read, the process of vaccination has differed in each region and in many cases has been confusing.  

    Vaccinations are being distributed categorically as defined by the California Department of Public Health with input from the Community Vaccine Advisory Committee. Given the limited supply of COVID-19 vaccines, CDPH recommends balancing the prioritization of these scarce resources to maximize the goal of achieving community immunity for all Californians. 

    Vaccine Supply is Limited, But Preparations Are Underway for Phase 1B

    Preparations are underway to begin rolling out vaccines to those eligible in Phase 1B as soon as possible but that is dependent on vaccine availability.  For those eligible in Phase 1B, including educators, public safety, social services and food and agriculture workers some counties are evaluating and/or planning for worksite vaccinations, so you should expect that employees may start making inquiries.  The next phases of COVID Vaccine Distribution are as follows:

    Both federal and state distribution of vaccines has been delayed. As of January 13, a total of 971,829 vaccine doses have been administered statewide. As of January 13, a total of 2,948,350 vaccine doses, which includes the first and second dose, have been shipped to local health departments and health care systems that have facilities in multiple counties.

    Vaccination plans for each county are available at county websites. Find your county’s COVID-19 website, Click Here.

    It has also been reported that Phase 1B may be divided into two tiers. The first could include 1.4 million education and child-care workers including teachers, 1.1 million emergency services workers, 3.4 million food and agriculture workers including grocery store workers and 2.6 million people who are 75 or older.

    Recommendations from the Almond Alliance in preparation for food and agriculture vaccinations.

    1. Know your County Health Officer and Ag Commissioner (we can provide contact information and introduction). We are strengthening those relationships for our industry and are happy to share what we know. It will be critically important to familiarize yourself with your county’s vaccination plan and you should expect it to evolve as we move through initial phases of vaccine roll-out, e.g. the recent move-up in priority of those 65 and older.  It is likely there will be multiple vaccination pathways for you and your staff including worksites (mentioned above), community vaccination sites (e.g. schools, churches or fairgrounds), community clinics, pharmacies and healthcare providers

    2. Offer you site and a location to administer the vaccination if it makes sense.

    3. Provide your workforce educational materials about the vaccination.

    4. Make sure your workers understand what information they will need to receive the vaccination. No officials’ instructions have been provided, but we recommend the following:

    Staff should be prepared to show one or more of the following four pieces of identification to prove they are food and agriculture workers:

    • Employee badge with photo, OR
    • Professional license AND a photo ID, OR
    • Signed letter from employer on facility letterhead AND a photo ID, OR
    • Payment stub from employer with your name AND a photo ID.

  • CDFA Seeking New Grower Representative for Citrus Pest & Disease Prevention Committee

    The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) is seeking a grower representative with operations in the Fresno County area to sit as a member on the Citrus Pest and Disease Prevention Committee. The Committee advises the CDFA Secretary on activities associated with the statewide citrus specific pest and disease work plan that includes – but is not limited to – outreach and education programs and programs for surveying, detecting, analyzing, and treating pests and diseases specific to citrus.

    Committee members receive no compensation but are entitled to payment of necessary travel expenses in accordance with the rules of the Department of Personnel Administration. The term for one grower representative from Fresno County expires on Sept. 30, 2023. Applicants should have an interest in agriculture and citrus pest and disease prevention. Individuals interested in being considered for a committee appointment should send a resume by Feb. 15, 2021 to the California Department of Food and Agriculture, Citrus Pest and Disease Prevention Division, 1220 N Street, Sacramento, California 95814, Attention: David Gutierrez.

    For additional information on the committee vacancy, contact: David Gutierrez, Branch Chief, Citrus Pest and Disease Prevention Division at (916) 274-6300, or e-mail David.Gutierrez@cdfa.ca.gov.

  • CA Walnut Industry Welcomes Joshua Rahm as Director, Technical & Regulatory Affairs

    The California Walnut Board (CWB) and Commission (CWC) are pleased to welcome Joshua (Josh) Rahm as their new Director, Technical & Regulatory Affairs. Joshua comes to walnuts with a strong technical and regulatory background in domestic and international agribusiness. Prior to joining the Board and Commission, Joshua worked for Wonderful Citrus as a Director, Global Sourcing & Procurement. Previously, he worked for PepsiCo, in global procurement operations, agriculture and agronomy project management and food safety. Additionally, he spent several years with Syngenta and DuPont Pioneer (Corteva Agriscience). During his time with global leaders in agribusiness, Joshua worked closely with growers, manufacturing and supply chain, product management and marketing teams, as well as research and development and agronomics.

    With a broad crop protection and crop commodity portfolio experience combined with a family farming background, he looks forward to adding further value to the industry. Joshua holds a Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Agronomy & Agribusiness from South Dakota State University.

    “We are thrilled to welcome Joshua to the CWB/CWC team,” shared Michelle Connelly, Executive Director & CEO of the California Walnut Board and Commission. “With a broad crop protection and crop commodity portfolio across the domestic and international landscape, combined with a family farming background, Josh is an added value that will serve well to our grower and handler community.”

    This is appointment comes at such a critical time in the industry, as the regulatory environment is ever-evolving and keeping California walnut growers abreast of the latest information is key to helping them to stay ahead of the curve. Josh will specifically be working to build and maintain positive, effective, and proactive relationships with state and federal regulatory agencies, provide strategic direction of the CWB/CWC Post-Harvest Research program, projects and initiatives, and provide regulatory stewardship and compliance leadership for the walnut industry, among other items.  Pacific Nut Producer Magazine welcomes Rahm as a new friend and defender of the industry.

  • Sonoma County Winegrowers to Launch U.S. Wine Industry’s First Innovation Accelerator

    Due to the ongoing pandemic, Sonoma County winegrowers gathered around their laptops and computer screens to review the organization’s efforts last year and learn about the future direction from the Sonoma County Winegrowers’ president, Karissa Kruse, as the 30st annual Dollars and $ense Seminar and Trade Show went virtual for the first time Thursday morning. Additional speakers included Ray Isle, Executive Wine Editor from Food & Wine magazine; Glenn Proctor from Ciatti Co.; Danny Brager, Brager Beverage Alcohol Consulting; Peggy Gsell, of Nielsen and several breakout session speakers.

    In recent years, this event has generated significant wine industry news and the 2021 meeting did not disappoint.  Kruse used this year’s forum to announce that the organization will be establishing the nation’s first innovation accelerator for the wine industry to encourage, collaborate and assist in the development and creation of both short-term and long-term vineyard resiliency solutions.

    Known as Sonoma VITS (Vineyard Innovation Through Science), this effort builds upon the reputation of Sonoma County Winegrowers as a global leader in sustainability and climate adaptation while meeting the objectives of the industry’s 100-year business plan to preserve local agriculture. Sonoma County is the nation’s first 100% certified sustainable wine region and Sonoma County Winegrowers (SCW) is the exclusive participant in the California Land Stewardship’s Climate Adaptation Certification Program which is the world’s first program of its kind for agriculture.

    “Think of it as ‘Shark Tank’ comes to Sonoma Wine Country.  We want to motivate creative solutions to the various challenges facing our industry now and in the future such as water use, habitat protection, climate adaptation and more,” said Kruse.  She added, “This is our ‘man to the moon’ call to action to leverage the best thinking from all innovators.  Those companies or individuals with the best ideas will present to an advisory group who as ‘sharks,’ will decide whether our organization will partner in their company and match winning proposals with local growers.”

    Sonoma VITS will serve as a bridge among the scientific, technology and innovation communities and local winegrape growers to encourage and develop the best ideas that will benefit the region’s vineyards, wineries, and residents for years to come.    The advantage of this cutting-edge effort will encourage the best thinking and creative ideas that will help Sonoma County grape growers pursue a path forward, providing real solutions to some of the most pressing issues facing the industry in the years to come.  The first “pitch day” will be this summer.

    Sonoma VITS is the next initiative of Sonoma County’s Center for Ag Sustainability, which was established to problem solve and develop new, fresh ideas that will advance farming not only in Sonoma County, but may also revolutionize grape growing and the larger wine industry across the globe.

    Kruse also took time on Thursday to update the audience on the organization’s additional activities for the year ahead.

    Three years ago, SCW launched a “sustainably farmed grapes” label  and followed this with a region first of using augmented reality to tell consumers the story of sustainability.  In 2021, the label and augmented reality will be expanded.

    Also, this year, Sonoma County Winegrowers will continue to build on its popular Millennial Ambassador program which coordinates more than 175 local contacts throughout the country who serve as local influencers on behalf of Sonoma County.

    Kruse also took time to update the audience on the ongoing efforts of the Sonoma County Grape Grower Foundation which is the only non-profit in Sonoma County that solely serves the region’s farmworkers.  Among its many activities this year, the Foundation will conduct four listening sessions with local farm workers and their families to ensure the Foundation is working to meet the needs of the community.

    The event ended with the virtual awarding of the Nick Frey Community Contribution Award which was presented to a group of individuals and and organizations who went above and beyond in a challenging year to support local grape growers and farmworkers.

    The honorees were Ag Health Benefits Alliance; American AgCredit; Atlas Vineyard Management; Bahco; Casa Cristal Nursery, Inc.; Comcast NBCUniversal Foundation; Dave Martinelli of Tolay Vista Vineyards; Dutton Ranch; Exchange Bank; George Petersen Insurance; Grow West; Hinkle Charitable Foundation; Judy Jordan; Judy Newman through the Robert F. Ford Charitable Foundation; Kaiser Permanente Northern California Community Benefit Programs; Peterson Cat; Rodney Strong Wine Estates; Sherry and Pete Swayne; Silicon Valley Bank; Sonoma Clean Power; Sonoma County Vintners Foundation; Vineyard Industry Products; Wilbur-Ellis; Wonderful Nurseries; and The Zenith Agribusiness Solutions.

     

    About Sonoma County Winegrowers:

    The Sonoma County Winegrape Commission, also known as Sonoma County Winegrowers (SCW), was established in 2006 as a marketing and educational organization dedicated to the promotion and preservation of Sonoma County as one of the world’s premier grape growing regions. SCW has oversight by California Department of Food and Agriculture which supports producer regions. With more than 1,800 growers, SCW’s goal is to increase awareness and recognition of the quality and diversity of Sonoma County’s grapes and wines through dynamic marketing and educational programs targeted to wine consumers around the world.

     

    In January 2014, SCW committed to becoming the nation’s first 100% sustainable winegrowing region in 2019. As of September 2019, 99% of the vineyard acreage in Sonoma County has completed certification by a third-party auditor making Sonoma County the most sustainable wine region in the world.  SCW’s sustainability efforts have been recognized with California’s highest environmental honor, the 2016 Governor’s Environmental and Economic Leadership Award (GEELA).  Learn more at www.sonomawinegrape.org

  • Western Growers Inaugurates Next Generation of Agricultural Leaders

    To identify and prepare the next generation of Western Growers (WG) members for positions of leadership within the Western fresh produce industry, WG has inaugurated the sixth class of the Future Volunteer Leaders Program (FVLP). This year, for the first time in program history, the FVLP welcomes a future leader from Colorado, which became the third membership state in the WG family in 2015.

    The following nine individuals have been selected to represent the next generation of industry leaders:
    •    Phillip Adam, Innovative Produce
    •    Mason Brady, Homegrown Organics Farms
    •    Kristen Smith Eshaya, JVSmith Companies
    •    Rocky Hampton, LIDCO
    •    Tracy Jones, Booth Ranches
    •    Colby Pereira, Braga Fresh Family
    •    Garret Powell, Peter Rabbit Farms
    •    Amber Strohauer, Strohauer Farms
    •    Grant Talley, Talley Farms

    “The increasing number of FVLP alumni serving on our board of directors is testament to the value of this leadership program,” stated Western Growers President and CEO Dave Puglia. ”This incoming class is a vibrant group and I look forward to their participation and future industry leadership.”

    Over the course of the next two years, the Future Volunteer Leaders will shadow current members of the WG Board of Directors during board meetings, learning about federal, state and local issues affecting the Western fresh produce industry. Additionally, during the second year of the program, Class 6 will travel to Florida to tour a host of agricultural operations as part of an exchange program with the Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association’s Emerging Leader Development Program. Future Volunteer Leaders will also participate in agtech initiatives through the Western Growers Center for Innovation & Technology, as well as engage in media relations and social media efforts.

    Since the program’s inception in 2011, seven FVLP alumni have graduated into a seat on the WG Board of Directors, including six who are on the current 2021-2022 board: 
    •    Alexander Muller, Pasquinelli Produce
    •    Brandon Grimm, Grimmway Farms
    •    Eric Reiter, Reiter Affiliated Companies
    •    J.P. LaBrucherie, LaBrucherie Produce
    •    Neill Callis, Turlock Fruit Company
    •    Stephen Martori, Martori Farms

    Click here to visit the FVLP website and learn more about the Class 6 participants.

    About Western Growers:

    Founded in 1926, Western Growers represents local and regional family farmers growing fresh produce in California, Arizona, Colorado and New Mexico. Western Growers’ members and their workers provide over half the nation’s fresh fruits, vegetables and tree nuts, including half of America’s fresh organic produce. Connect and learn more about Western Growers on Twitter and Facebook.

  • Mira Winery Announces Ed Thralls as President

    Mira Winery, which produces a limited amount of hand crafted, all natural wines, each a singular expression of unique grapes, announced today that Ed Thralls is joining the team as President. The hiring follows the opening of Mira winery and hospitality house last fall on the 16-acre estate just south of Yountville in the heart of the Napa Valley.

    “Ed has the one two punch of extensive wine business experience and in-depth understanding of high quality winemaking that will only accelerate the establishment of Mira as one of the world’s leading producers of fine wines,” said Jim “Bear” Dyke, Mira Proprietor. “Ed elevates an already exceptional team and I am thrilled he is joining us.”

    Thralls came to Mira from Benovia Winery where he served as General Manager, driving Benovia’s high-growth consumer-focused business model and creating a world-class customer service reputation, directing all sales, marketing, hospitality, finance and business operations for the winery as well as production planning for the 72 acres of organically or sustainably farmed estate vineyards. Prior to that role, he served as the director of consumer sales & marketing Flowers Vineyards & Winery and Huneeus Vintners. 

    Mira recently announced they were incorporating the Western Hemisphere’s only wooden egg wine fermentation tank at their new winery in Yountville, CA as another component of their innovation and commitment to the highest quality wines. This unique vessel called “Ovum” by its creator, French cooperage Tonnellerie Taransaud, joins Mira’s custom designed hand-crafted tank cellar and adds an exciting new facet to Mira’s pure, terroir-driven winemaking.

    Thralls holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Science from the University of Florida, an MBA in Finance from Georgia State University and brings more than 25 years of combined experience in both wine and financial technology industries. He studied winemaking at UC Davis and is a Certified Specialist of Wine (CSW).

    The “Miracle” of Mira

    In 2009 entrepreneur Jim “Bear” Dyke and winemaker Gustavo A. Gonzalez launched Mira Winery and began to produce limited production single vineyard 100% varietal wines that are interesting, balanced and a true reflection of their place, varietal, and season. Mira is the Latin root of miracle. Mira opened a new winery and hospitality house at 6170 Washington Street in August of 2019 and takes tour and tasting reservations by appointment only. For more information on Mira, please visit our website http://www.miranapa.com or follow us on Instagram and Facebook.

  • 2020 Paso Robles Wine Industry Persons of the Year

    Paso Robles Wine Country Alliance — We are thrilled to announce the 2020 Paso Robles Wine Industry Persons of the Year awardees, founders and owners of Peachy Canyon Winery, the Beckett Family!

    This award, bestowed by the Paso Robles Wine Country Alliance (PRWCA), annually recognizes an individual(s) who exemplify the spirit of Paso Robles Wine Country with outstanding leadership, vision, and stewardship. This award is typically presented at the PRWCA’s Annual Gala, which will not take place this year due to limitations on large gatherings. Instead, the Beckett Family, including Doug and Nancy Beckett, Jake Beckett, and Josh Beckett, will be honored in an upcoming Where Wine Takes You podcast as well as an episode of the weekly Paso Wine Zoom Hangout. An in-person celebration to honor the Beckett family will take place in the future once large gatherings are able to take place.

    “We would like to thank the Paso Robles Wine Country Alliance, its members and associates, for recognizing the Beckett family and our involvement in promoting Paso Robles Wine Country,” said Doug and Nancy Beckett, Founders of Peachy Canyon Winery. “Together, we sincerely appreciate this honor.”

    Nancy and Doug Beckett moved to Paso Robles in 1982 seeking a life in the country. In 1984, Doug’s love of wine led him to a job making wine with Pat Wheeler at Tobias Winery. In 1988, Doug and Nancy founded Peachy Canyon Winery. Over the years Peachy Canyon Winery grew into a multi-state distributed brand, bringing the Paso Robles American Viticultural Area (AVA) name to many markets both nationally and internationally.

    “Thank you to everyone in the Paso Wine community. My family and I are grateful to be a part of something very special. We will carry this special recognition as a part of who we are for generations to come. Cheers!” said Josh Beckett, Winemaker and Director of Viticulture. Jake Beckett, General Manager, followed up, “This is a huge honor. I am humbled and thankful to be a part of this community.”

    Brothers Josh and Jake Beckett returned to join the family business after college, Josh in 1998 and Jake in 2000. Josh took on winemaking duties at the family brand and Jake manned the tractor in the vineyard as well as took to the road further establishing Peachy Canyon Winery as a national brand. In 2008, Josh and Jake partnered together to start their own winery, Chronic Cellars. In 2010, they left Peachy Canyon to dedicate themselves to Chronic Cellars full-time. Their success was swift and quickly recognized, attracting WX Brands to purchase Chronic Cellars. The timing was serendipitous when Doug decided he was ready to retire and his sons returned to take the reins in April of 2019. Jake Beckett now serves as Peachy Canyon’s General Manager and Josh has reprised his former role as Winemaker and Director of Viticulture.

    The Beckett family is committed to the local community as well as the greater wine industry. Doug and Nancy Beckett are dedicated to the arts in Paso Robles with both serving on the board and supporting the Paso Robles Youth Arts Foundation (PRYAF). Nancy has served as the President of the PRYAF in the past and is still actively involved in their leadership. Doug and Nancy are also larger contributors and supporters to the Cancer Support Community – California Central Coast. Doug, Josh, and Jake have all served on the board of directors for the Zinfandel Advocates & Producers, an organization that promotes and protects California’s heritage wine grape variety.

    The annual Paso Robles Wine Industry Person(s) of the Year award is voted on by the membership of the Paso Robles Wine Country Alliance. Members are comprised of wineries, vineyards, and related businesses. The PRWCA Board of Directors is the nominating body for this annual honor that was established in 1990. – By Jennifer Bravo, Paso Robles Wine Country Alliance