California Ag Network

Category: Non-Video

  • National Cancer Institute Endorses Dairy Council of CA’s Nutrition Education

    Dairy Council of California, a quasi-state government nutrition education organization committed to elevating the health and wellness of children and families, announced its fourth grade Nutrition Pathfinders program was accepted as a Research-Tested Intervention Program (RTIP) by the National Cancer Institute.

    NCI’s RTIPs is a searchable database that provides public health practitioners with easy access to evidence-based cancer control interventions and program materials. To qualify, listings must demonstrate measurable impact as research-tested intervention programs.

    Dairy Council of California’s Nutrition Pathfinders for fourth grade is part of a K-12 nutrition education curriculum designed to teach students healthy eating habits and encourage physical activity. Evaluated by an independent research group tracking the program’s effectiveness of improving knowledge, attitudes and nutrition choices, Nutrition Pathfinders demonstrated effectiveness in teaching healthy eating and exercise patterns to children and their families.

    The study showed:

    • Improved student knowledge of the food groups, key nutrients in foods and how to make nutritious food choices.
    • Improved nutrition behaviors in students and families, including decreased consumption of highly processed foods and sugary drinks.

    “Dairy Council of California’s free nutrition education curriculum is an effective classroom resource teachers can use to educate and empower their students to eat healthfully,” said Dr. Megan Greene, a fourth-grade teacher at Cesar Chavez Elementary. “It’s easy to teach, aligns with Common Core Standards and truly does empower students to make healthier choices in the cafeteria.”

    “Educators are influential gatekeepers of children, teaching lifelong skills every day in the classroom,” said Tracy Mendez, R.D.N. and director of nutrition education at Dairy Council of California. “Integrating nutrition education lessons in the classroom equips students with the right tools to make healthy eating decisions that will last them a lifetime.”

    Dairy Council of California’s nutrition education resources are developed using the latest nutrition research. They align with Common Core State Standards and include teacher-friendly, plug-and-play lessons that use proven behavior-change models. Available to educators teaching K-12, the nutrition lessons cover relevant food topics like identifying nutritious foods, food label evaluation, appropriate serving sizes, how to create nutritionally balanced meals and snacks, and the importance of physical activity.

    Free to California schools, Dairy Council of California’s nutrition education curriculum can be ordered at HealthyEating.com/Order. For a small fee, out-of-state schools can also order classroom lessons by calling 1.866.572.1359.

    About Dairy Council of California
    For a century, Dairy Council of California has empowered stakeholders, including educators, health professionals and community leaders, to elevate the health of children and families through the pursuit of lifelong healthy eating habits. Funded by California’s dairy farm families and local milk processors and under the guidance of California Department of Food and Agriculture, Dairy Council of California’s free science-based nutrition education resources, Mobile Dairy Classroom assemblies, training programs and online resources educate millions of students and families in California and throughout the United States. Learn more at HealthyEating.org.

  • BASF Launches Operation Weed Eradication to Help Growers Eradicate Weeds

    BASF launched a new industry-wide initiative to eliminate on-farm weeds. Operation Weed Eradication calls on growers and partners to take action against troublesome weeds in their fields, through cultural practices, chemical control and enhanced diligence.

    Research by Stratus Ag shows that nearly 75 percent of growers nationwide are dealing with glyphosate-resistant weeds in their fields and today’s management practices are not sustainable for long-term control of problem weeds such as pigweed.

    “Our approach to on-farm eradication will uproot problem weeds and help secure a sustainable farming future that builds a successful legacy for seasons and generations to come,” said Scott Kay, Vice President U.S. Crop, BASF Agricultural Solutions. “Weed eradication will be a personalized, tailored journey for each grower with different start and end points. BASF will support growers with expertise and continuous innovation to support this journey.”

    Operation Weed Eradication takes a balanced approach of utilizing cultural practices such as conventional tillage, chemical control such as rotating chemistries, and eradication diligence such as hand weeding to help growers eradicating troublesome on-farm weeds.

    In the coming months, BASF will assemble a coalition of industry leaders, develop a specific eradication customer offering and launch an educational initiative to support its efforts with Operation Weed Eradication.To learn more, please visit

    OperationWeedEradication.com.

  • Gerawan Farming and Wawona Packing Merge to Create Leading Stone Fruit Producer

    Gerawan Farming Inc. (“Gerawan”) and Wawona Packing Co., LLC (“Wawona”), today announced that they have completed a merger. Paine Schwartz, an existing investor in Wawona and a global leader in sustainable food chain investing, is partnering with both companies to facilitate the transaction. The financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

    Both Gerawan and Wawona are third-generation family businesses. Gerawan is a stone fruit industry pioneer with best-in-class farming, packing practices, and proprietary varieties marketed under the Prima® brand. Wawona is a California-based supplier of high-quality stone fruit and a leader in the organic segment of the market. The merger builds upon the legacies and reputations of the two industry-leading companies and creates an enhanced platform for growth and innovation. The combined business will be able to better serve its customers and create significant opportunities for employees.

    The combined company will be led by Dan Gerawan, who will be the largest individual shareholder and Chief Executive Officer of the merged entity. Brent Smittcamp, current Executive Chairman of Wawona, will also remain a significant shareholder and continue to be highly involved with the combined company. The management team will be comprised of leaders from both companies.

    Mr. Gerawan said, “At Gerawan, innovating on a large scale to grow, pack and ship the world’s best fruit has been key to our success, and those efforts have always hinged on investing in our employees. These same values underpin Wawona’s success. This merger is an exciting next step to unlock the full potential of both companies.” Mr. Smittcamp, Executive Chairman of Wawona, said, “Over the last several years, we have focused on accelerating Wawona’s growth by building on the inherent strengths of our business and management team. Our acquisition last year of Burchell Nursery Inc. was one example, and now this historic merger with Gerawan takes it to yet another level. We are eager to bring the benefits of this merger to our employees, suppliers and customers.”Mr. Gerawan continued, “We have great respect for Wawona’s management and employees, all of whom share our passion for producing the highest-quality stone fruit. We look forward to working closely with them and the team at Paine Schwartz to deliver even more of the best quality fruit to our customers.”

    Kevin Schwartz, Chief Executive Officer of Paine Schwartz, said, “This merger represents a tremendous milestone and the type of growth opportunity that we can achieve by leveraging Paine Schwartz’s agribusiness sector expertise and close collaboration with family-owned businesses. We look forward to this new chapter for two companies that have been incredibly successful on their own, and we believe they can achieve even greater success through this merger. Dan’s experience and commitment are invaluable assets, and we look forward to supporting him in leading the combined company in this next stage of growth and value creation.”

     

  • New Signup Deadline for Dairy Margin Coverage is September 27

    The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today extended the deadline to September 27 for dairy producers to enroll in the Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) program for 2019. The deadline had been September 20.

    Authorized by the 2018 Farm Bill and available through USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA), the program offers reasonably priced protection to dairy producers when the difference between the all-milk price and the average feed cost (the margin) falls below a certain dollar amount selected by the producer.

    “More than 21,200 dairy operations have already signed up for DMC, but we’re providing an additional week to help ensure interested producers have time to come into the office,” said Bill Northey, USDA Under Secretary for Farm Production and Conservation. “With smaller margins and increased feed costs, DMC has resulted in almost $230 million in payments disbursed. I know that some farmers may still be cautious given their experiences with former dairy support programs, but producers who have not signed up yet should come into a local office to learn how much money the program can put into their pockets.”

    Almost half of the producers who have signed up so far are taking advantage of the 25 percent premium discount by locking in for five years of margin protection coverage. FSA has launched a new web visualization of the DMC data, which is available here.

    Margin payments have triggered for each month from January through July. Dairy producers who elect higher coverage levels could be eligible for payments for all seven months. Under certain levels, the amount paid to dairy farmers will exceed the cost of the premium.

    For example, a dairy operation that chooses to enroll for 2019 with an established production history of 3 million pounds (30,000 cwt.) and elects the $9.50 coverage level on 95 percent of production will pay $4,275 in total premium payments for all of 2019 and receive $15,437.50 in DMC payments for all margin payments announced to date. Additional payments will be made if calculated margins remain below the $9.50/cwt. level for any remaining months of 2019.

    “My message to those dairy producers who are hurting out there: Don’t leave this kind of financial assistance on the table,” said Northey, who announced the deadline extension today as part of a hearing in front of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Agriculture. “Producers across the country have told us that DMC is a great risk management tool that works well, and it can work for you, too.”

    More Information

    On December 20, 2018, President Trump signed into law the 2018 Farm Bill, which provides support, certainty and stability to our nation’s farmers, ranchers and land stewards by enhancing farm support programs, improving crop insurance, maintaining disaster programs and promoting and supporting voluntary conservation.

    For more information, visit farmers.gov DMC webpage or contact your local USDA service center. To locate your local FSA office, visit farmers.gov/service-locator.

  • ACP-HLB Task Force Recommends ACP Treatment in Bakersfield

    To prevent Asian citrus psyllid populations from developing in Kern County this fall, the San Joaquin Valley ACP-HLB Task Force recommends growers with citrus blocks east and south of Bakersfield make a soil-applied imidacloprid treatment or a foliar-applied Actara treatment before mid-September.

    Over the past several years, psyllid detections in Kern County have usually occurred in the fall – starting in September and peaking in October. The San Joaquin Valley ACP-HLB Task Force has been tracking and analyzing psyllid detections to date in Kern County and believes a soil-applied imidacloprid treatment or a foliar-applied Actara treatment will help suppress this historical increase in the fall psyllid population and minimize the risk of Huanglongbing (HLB) transmission.

    In order to protect our citrus from HLB, it is extremely important to keep psyllid populations as low as possible. Last year’s coordinated treatment significantly helped mitigate and suppress this historical increase in the fall psyllid population and inhibit possible transmission of HLB. This is especially important in light of the significant level of HLB-positive citrus trees in Los Angeles, Orange and Riverside counties.

    The San Joaquin Valley ACP-HLB Task Force recommends growers with citrus blocks east and south of Bakersfield should:

    • Treat all of their citrus blocks, including non-bearing trees, located east and south of Bakersfield with imidacloprid (Admire Pro, generic imidacloprid 2F or 4F, etc.) or a foliar-applied Actara treatment.
    • Make the application sometime between mid-August and mid-September.
    • Read and follow all label instructions. Read the University of California’s recommendations.
    • Submit your Pesticide Use Report for this application electronically if possible. If you cannot send electronically, send a copy of the original PUR directly to Kern County grower liaison Judy Zaninovich at jsleslie@msn.com.

    Questions? Contact Judy Zaninovich at jsleslie@msn.com or 559-730-8691.

  • USDA to Survey Fruit Growers about Chemical Use

    In the next few weeks, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will survey fruit growers in 12 states, including California, for its biennial Fruit Chemical Use Survey. Growers across the nation will provide information on bearing acreage, pest management practices, fertilizer types, and application rates for more than 21 fruit crops.

    “Growers benefit from providing this information because it is used to re-register products for their use, to illustrate the industry’s environmental practices, and to assure the quality of U.S. food to consumers here and around the world,” said Gary Keough, director of the NASS Pacific Regional Field Office, “I encourage every grower to take the time to respond if they receive this survey.”

     The Fruit Chemical Use Survey will provide much needed information about the current crop production practices used in the United States. The results of this survey will paint a detailed picture of pesticide use and other pest management practices used by the fruit growers across the nation. To conduct the survey, NASS representatives will contact selected California growers to arrange in-person interviews. The results of this survey will be available in aggregate form only, ensuring that no individual operation or producer can be identified, as required by federal law.

    Survey results will be published in NASS’s online database, Quick Stats, in July 2020. This database and all NASS reports are available on the agency’s web site: www.nass.usda.gov. For more information on NASS surveys and reports, call the NASS Pacific Regional Field Office at 1-800-851-1127.

  • Blue Diamond Growers Celebrates Grand Opening of New Salida Manufacturing Facility, Unveils Industry-First Technology for New Pasteurization Line

    Blue Diamond Growers today announced the official grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony of its new 52,000 square-foot, energy-saving manufacturing facility in Salida, California. The event marks the completion of the facility to add new pasteurization technology and processing lines. The announcement follows the cooperative’s recent groundbreaking of its receiving warehouse on the same property in Salida, which is the largest almond receiving station in the world.

    “It’s an exciting time for Blue Diamond as we continue to invest in our facilities here in Salida and across the Central Valley to better meet the growing demand for our products worldwide,” said Mark Jansen, President and CEO for Blue Diamond Growers. “The new building design and innovative processing technology we’re deploying provides the highest quality almonds to our customers and consumers.”

    The new energy-saving and sustainable manufacturing facility spans 52,000 square feet and has been engineered to support future expansion plans as needed. Within the facility, Blue Diamond is the first in the almond industry to use Log5 technology across two of its natural pasteurization lines – one for processing whole almonds and the other for dry roasting on an integrated line. A third line uses innovative design with custom features to produce the finest flour texture in the industry.

    The new CALGreen facility features several energy-saving attributes including LED lighting, a multi-staged HVAC system, and temperature-controlled processes. To meet and exceed today’s stringent food safety standards, the new facility houses separate room enclosures with electronic-controlled entry to better control environmental conditions, along with automated pressurized air, and automated controls for all processes and packaging, including monitoring line performance, yields and downtime.

    Additionally, the integrated processing lines move finished product direct to cold storage and shipping and will greatly reduce material handling and trucking costs. Beneath the facility, buried perforated pipe will keep stormwater on- site to recharge the ground water and deliver it directly to the soil.

    Continuing its investment in the local community, the company also announced a partnership with Valley Children’s Hospital for its new Pelandale Specialty Care Center, located approximately one mile from the Blue Diamond Salida facility. A $25,000 partnership will help the hospital as it grows to support the more than 12,000 Stanislaus County pediatric outpatient visits per year.

    About Blue Diamond

    Blue Diamond Growers is the world’s leading almond marketer and processor. It led the development of California’s almond industry since it was formed as a nonprofit, grower-owned cooperative over 100 years ago. Today Blue Diamond has over 3,000 growers across California. Blue Diamond markets and sells a wide range of almond-based snacks, beverages, and ingredients, including Blue Diamond Snack Almonds®, Nut-Thins® crackers, almond flour, and the number one almond milk in the U.S., Almond Breeze®. For more information, visit www.bluediamond.com.

     

  • California Wine Country’s Back Roads

    Here’s a discovery well worth toasting: A research team led by Professor Brandon Gaut with the University of California, Irvine and Professor Dario Cantu with the University of California, Davis has deciphered the genome of the Chardonnay grape. By doing so, they have uncovered something fascinating: grapes inherit different numbers of genes from their mothers and fathers. Their paper has just been published in Nature Plants.

    The team devoted three years of study to what are known as structural variants, or chromosome changes, in the genomes of the Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes to determine their genetic similarity. Each of the fruits has about 37,000 genes.

    “Each of us inherits one copy of their gene from their mother and one from their father,” said Professor Gaut. “One would assume that the grapes inherit two copies of every gene, too, with one coming from each of their two parents. However, we found there was just one copy, not two, for 15 percent of the genes in Chardonnay, and it was also true of Cabernet Sauvignon grapes. Together, that means that grape varieties differ in the presence or absence of thousands of genes.”

    “These genetic differences probably contribute to many of the differences in taste between wines made from different grape varieties” said Professor Cantu. And they definitely contribute to one important feature of grapes: their color.

    The research team showed that red grapes have mutated into white grapes on several different occasions. Each mutation included a large chromosomal change that altered the number of copies of key color genes. Fewer copies of the color genes cause white grapes.

    In addition to providing key scientific knowledge to vintners, the scientists say their findings have important implications for understanding the nutritional values among other fruits and vegetables. Structural variations have largely been unexplored in plant genomes, but Professor Gaut says the research is important for understanding what lies within the fruits and vegetables we eat. “For example, even between the various types of heirloom tomatoes, structural variations could account for differing nutritional values,” he said. “Better understanding the genetic composition of species enables us to access tools that improve plant breeding.”

  • Winegrape Growers Affected by Wildfires Can Apply for Assistance Through WHIP+

    U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue this week announced thatgrowers who suffered crop losses due to natural disasters in 2018 or 2019 can apply for assistance through theWildfire and Hurricane Indemnity Program Plus (WHIP+). Winegrape growers who suffered losses due to smokeexposure events in 2018 are eligible.

    The California Association of Winegrape Growers (CAWG) worked with members of the Californiacongressional delegation to ensure winegrapes are covered by WHIP+. CAWG President John Aguirrecommended the actions of key members of the California congressional delegation. “The efforts of Sen. DianneFeinstein and Reps. Mike Thompson and Jim Costa were critical in ensuring California’s winegrape growersaffected by wildfires would qualify for assistance under WHIP+.”

    USDA is now accepting claims for WHIP+ assistance. USDA recommends growers contact their local FarmService Agency (FSA) county office to schedule an appointment. Growers in all California counties are eligiblefor assistance under WHIP+ for wildfire-related losses, provided their county received a Presidential EmergencyDisaster Declaration or Secretarial Disaster Designation or their FSA county committee approves a loss claimdue to a qualifying disaster event in 2018 or 2019.

    Winegrapes are the only commodity under WHIP+ eligible for payments due to quality losses. Growers canreceive WHIP+ payments for unharvested grapes resulting from wineries that rejected smoke exposed fruit,provided growers can document the fruit had elevated levels of smoke compounds. In addition, WHIP+ willcover quality losses attributable to smoke where the affected grapes had a value of less than 75 percent of theaverage market price of undamaged grapes of the same or similar variety. In this instance, growers must submitverifiable documentation that a reduced price resulted from smoke exposure.

    “WHIP+ represents a substantial improvement over the 2017 version of WHIP in that it covers quality losses,”Aguirre said. There are a variety of scenarios where the value of a grower’s crop may have been discounteddue to smoke exposure related quality issues, either at the time of sale or subsequent to being processed intowine. CAWG is reviewing the just released details of WHIP+ to determine how the program applies to thesedifferent scenarios.

     

  • El Dorado AVA’s Harvest Benefits from Predictably Long Ripening Window

    The mountain vineyards of El Dorado AVA report that Labor Day weekend was largely the beginning of the 2019 harvest season in El Dorado County. According to several El Dorado vintners, this is late by one or two weeks compared to average pick time dates in the AVA. The later start will only enhance a favorable condition in high-elevation vineyards ranging from 1,200 to more than 3,000 feet — a longer picking window.

    Since the harvest in El Dorado County usually begins after the peak temperatures of August, vintners pick through the shorter days and cooler nights in the fall, and fruit has more time on the vine to ripen. A longer ripening season gives El Dorado vintners a better chance of picking each variety at the most favorable ripeness.

    Paul Bush, proprietor and winemaker at Madrona Vineyards and Rucksack Cellars, explains how it works for winemakers and growers in the El Dorado AVA: “If you’re picking during the heat spikes, grapes are ripening quickly and often forcing winemakers to triage their pickings, and perhaps [you’re] missing the optimum ripeness level on a particular variety. If the grapes are still in the lower range of ripeness during these peak August temperatures, as they are in El Dorado, we can wait to pick until they are ripe.” Bush explains the upside of having later- ripening fruit in higher elevations: “By waiting, each day gets shorter [with less sunlight], the nights get longer, and the ripening slower — giving us a larger spread of time of optimal ripeness between varieties.” He points out that longer and cooler nights keep acid from transpiring at night too.

    Of course, the El Dorado AVA’s sparkling wine producers pick earliest, during August. One of the first to pick was Gwinllan Estate Vineyard and Winery, producers of a line of sparkling and still wines. Jonathan Pack, family winemaker/consultant, said they started picking on August 16 and 17 for their Rosé Champagne, off two weeks from a typical year. He remarks, “It looks like it is going to be a very late and long harvest, especially if we cool down a lot in September.”

    Justin Boeger, general manager at his family’s Boeger Winery — situated in the northern end of the county in the Camino Fruitridge region at elevations from 1800 to 2300 ft. — gives a still- wine perspective specific to the 2019 harvest. The winery’s Labor Day picks included Pinot Noir for Rosé wines, Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon, and Flora. Boeger reports, “This is a later start date for us than the last several years, mostly due to a prolonged winter that was wetter and cooler for a longer period of time. The year 2019 has been mild on many counts, including mild summer temperatures.” Testifying to the year’s pleasant conditions, Boeger recalls, “I woke up one day towards the end of May realizing I never once this year checked temperatures overnight for the threat of frost.”

    To the south and in the Fair Play region of the El Dorado AVA, picking started at Skinner Vineyards just before Labor Day weekend, with Roussanne already in the press by the weekend. Petit Bouschet, Mission, and Trousseau Noir were harvested for what winemaker Adam Smith calls “an experimental project.” Smith is fermenting the three varietals in concrete at low brix, with lots of stem inclusion, and no filtration. Smith says, “The intent is to create a food-friendly early release red with white wine zip and wildness!”

    Also in the southern reaches, in the Somerset area, grape grower Donna Sauber of Sauber Vineyards reports that “plants look healthy and grapes are clean.” Yet the winery is still a week or two from harvesting some 11 varietals that grow on its 40 acres ranging from 2,600 to 3,000 feet elevation.

    Two years of good rainfall and a cooler summer in the region have contributed to healthy crop loads and larger yields. Adam Smith concurs with the optimism of his fellow El Doradowinemakers and growers: “All in all, our wet winter and cool summer is sure to produce wines of elegance and complexity. We’re psyched!”

    The El Dorado Winery Association (EDWA), is an association of wineries located in the Sierra Foothills’ El Dorado County. Active members, united through cooperation, encouragement, shared knowledge and education, strive to improve wine quality and the tasting experience. High elevations and cool climate mark its distinction as one of California’s unique wine regions.

    www.eldoradowines.org

    www.eldoradograpes.com