California Ag Network

Category: News

  • Barn Owl Helps Clean Up Rodents Naturally

    Woodland, Calif., (November 16, 2017) – The screech of a barn owl at night may be startling or annoying to some. But others may find their harsh calls satisfying, knowing that barn owls are out, feeding on pesky rodents.

    Barn owl adult, photo by G. Rohman, grohman@gmail.com

    They’re fierce hunters with a voracious appetite for mice, voles, gophers, and rats. A family of five barn owls, including two adults and three young will feed on about 1,000 rodents during a season. When they nest twice in a year, that number doubles and you wind up with some good help on rodent control that’s safe and free.

    So, the next time you hear that eerie, rasping sound at night, don’t panic. Instead, think about all the good the owls are doing. Even better, invite a family of barn owls to your property by building a nest box for them and creating a home.

    Identifying barn owls. If you’re lucky to spot one in an old barn where they’re often found (hence their name), they have iconic white heart-shaped faces, white chests, and tan-colored backs with spots. Barn owls are nocturnal and can be recognized by their drawn-out rasping screech. Unlike other owls, they don’t hoot. They often shriek when they leave their roost to hunt and make hissing and snapping sounds when startled.

    Barn owls have excellent vision and hearing for finding prey in the dark and capturing it with their sharp talons and beaks. They’re quiet hunters, flying close to their prey without being heard, due to specialized feathers, making them incredibly good predators. Barn owls are found world-wide and occupy a wide range of habitats, including natural, agricultural, and urban areas, but prefer to hunt in more open areas as opposed to forests. They readily hunt rodent pests in grape vineyards, alfalfa fields, and along levees, making them valuable allies for farmers.

    Barn owl with a gopher on a nest box. (Photo: G. Rohman)

    How do you attract barn owls? Barn owls are cavity nesters, including cliffs, trees, and buildings such as barns, so they will readily use nest boxes. Plans for how to build nest boxes can be found in the UC Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR) booklet, Songbird, bat, and owl boxes. This handy guide also shows how to attract insectivorous birds and bats to help control insect pests naturally.  Barn owl boxes and plans can be found online or through local sources, such as G. Rohman (photographer). Barn owls begin nesting in February, so now is the time to put up a house before males and females select nest sites. Boxes should be mounted 10 feet off the ground on metal poles to prevent mammal predators from accessing the boxes and feeding on eggs or chicks.

    Barn owl house on a pole. (Photo: G. Rohman)

    Paint the boxes white to keep them cooler and help prevent weathering and face them northeast. Add some timothy hay for bedding (often sold in small bags in stores for rabbit feed). Wooden nest boxes are generally preferred over plastic ones. Fifty gallon drums can also be used; just remove the top, retaining a lip so the chicks don’t fall out, add some hay, and hoist it up on a rafter in a barn and secure it well with a chain. Avoid disturbing nest boxes during the breeding season (February through August), as barn owls will often abandon nests if disturbed while nesting.

    Who moves into the nest box? A family of barn owls. Females generally lay four to seven eggs from February to April, which hatch in about 30 days. While they incubate the eggs, the males bring food to the nest. The baby owls fledge in about 10 weeks, but stay around the nest until fall, when they wander off, usually within 30 miles of where they were born. Sometimes a second clutch of eggs is laid in May. Barn owls do not migrate, so tend to stay in an area year-round and will reoccupy a nest box the following year. They generally forage about one to three miles from their roosts. They are only mildly territorial in that they will defend their nests if you get too close. This means that you can put up several nest boxes in an area and expect occupancy from several families. Barn owls generally only live for about two years. Great horned owls are the fiercest predator of adult barn owls (and collisions with cars).

    Barn owl bringing prey back to the nest box. (Photo: G. Rohman)

    What are they eating? The favored prey of barn owls is rodents, including voles and gophers. Like other owls, they often swallow their prey whole and then undigested bones and fur are coughed up (regurgitated) as owl pellets. These pellets can be dissected and prey readily identified by the skeletons left behind. Farmers appreciate owls and other raptors because they feed on rodents that can damage their crops and irrigation systems (Wildlife Survey).

    Barn owl pellets. (Photo: Chuck Ingels)

    UC ANR researchers, including Roger Baldwin, UC Cooperative Extension vertebrate pest control specialist, are currently evaluating the economic impact of barn owls for rodent control in agricultural lands. It is important to note that rodents reproduce rapidly so barn owls cannot always keep up with rodent outbreaks and other methods of control might be needed to prevent crop damage (Rodent Control). But, every rodent a barn owl takes is one less we have to deal with!

    How about maintenance? Barn owl boxes need to be cared for and cleaned once a year during fall or winter (October to December) as the pellets can quickly fill up a nest box. Doors for accessing the inside of the boxes need to be secured, hinges lubricated, and mounting structures checked during annual inspections. Avoid breathing unhealthy dust when cleaning the house and always make sure no one is home. Although this takes time, the pellets cleaned out might have added value. A Yolo County farmer mentioned he has a buyer for his pellets, which are used for science projects where students dissect them to learn about skeletons and barn owl diets. He read his recent owl pellet invoice noting, “The pellets are graded from small at 10 cents each to premium at 20 cents each and I sold over 100. Barn owls are great!”

  • Almond Board Celebrates Breakthroughs in Almond Quality & Food Safety

    MODESTO, Calif. – (Nov. 15, 2017) – A groundbreaking mandatory pasteurization program created by Almond Board of California (ABC) and its strategic partners has supported an enviable industry-wide food safety record over the last decade. Since the program’s launch, there have been zero outbreaks of foodborne illness attributed to California Almonds. Today, more than 200 treatment processes have been validated for use on almonds following specific guidelines and review by ABC’s Technical Expert Review panel.
     
    The almond industry initiated these efforts in the early 2000s, when Salmonella concerns were intensifying across the food industry. At the time, conventional wisdom suggested that low moisture foods, such as nuts and seeds, did not pose a threat, since the microorganisms of concern could not grow in these products. ABC engaged food safety experts, USDA and research partners to holistically identify potential risks and develop strategies for control. This collaboration ultimately resulted in the mandatory pasteurization program for Salmonella reduction and implementation of best practices, including Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) for growers and Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs) for processors, as well as updated HACCP guidelines and Pathogen Environmental Monitoring (PEM) resources.
     
    “The health and wellbeing of almond consumers matters deeply to everyone in the California Almond industry. We’re not afraid to tackle food safety challenges head-on, aided by the expertise of our partners, and we’re proud of our pioneering best practices,” said Tim Birmingham, director, Quality Assurance and Industry Services, Almond Board of California. “In response to concerns about Salmonella, we conducted research and led extensive discussions with industry, university and government experts before adopting mandatory pasteurization. After 10 years with zero outbreaks, we’re grateful that we took action.”
     
    From 2007 to 2017, ABC invested more than $5 million in food quality and safety research. It remains firmly committed to educating industry members on how to produce the safest and highest quality almonds possible. All findings are translated into clear, practical guidance for growers and processors.
     
    “I find it especially gratifying to see research results put into action. Almond Board of California transforms their food safety and quality research into practical resources that growers and processors actually use,” said Dr. Linda Harris, chair and specialist in Cooperative Extension in the Department of Food Science and Technology at the University of California, Davis. Harris conducts laboratory research and provides extension education and practicable advice to growers and the almond processing and affiliated industry organizations.
     
    “I’m proud of the industry-wide steps we’ve taken to improve food safety. Those investments protect almond consumers and allow us to focus on delivering the quality, freshness and great taste they enjoy,” said Martin Pohl, a Central Valley almond grower and president of Hughson Nut. “As a result, we’ve seen tremendous industry growth over the last decade.”
     
    The California Almond industry will continue evolving its best practices as new scientific discoveries unfold. The industry also is well positioned to comply with FDA’s Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) because it has proactively, voluntarily created and implemented so many programs that are already in line with FSMA requirements.
     
    The Produce Safety rule under FSMA goes into effect in January 2018 for large-scale orchards or huller/shellers considered farms. Preventive Controls compliance for larger businesses began September 2016 and mid-sized compliance started September of this year. To date, more than 100 industry members have completed the FDA recognized Preventive Controls Qualified Individual (PCQI) training, hosted by ABC.
     
    As FSMA compliance periods take effect, ABC continues to help growers, processors and other stakeholders understand which FSMA rules apply, what actions to take to ensure compliance and when specific requirements come into effect for different operations.
     
     

  • Research is Making Plant Waste a Viable Option in Ethanol Production

    Riverside, Calif., (November 15, 2017) – UC Riverside researchers have developed a streamlined process that could finally make the ethanol production cost from abundant “second generation” plant wastes competitive with “first generation” ethanol made from sugars.

    “We introduced a way to improve the production of fuel ethanol from non-food plant wastes by closing the performance gap between first and second generation feedstocks,” said Charles M. Cai, an assistant research engineer at UCR’s Center for Environmental Research and Technology, or CE-CERT, and an adjunct professor of chemical and environmental engineering.

    The research was published in October in the leading journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, or PNAS.

    Diagram of a biomass conversion process that integrates CELF pretreatment with Simultaneous Saccharification Fermentation (SSF) to produce ethanol.

    Non-edible plant wastes such as corn waste (or corn “stover”), grasses, rice straw, wood chips, and other agricultural or forestry waste products, also called “lignocellulosic biomass,” are abundant all over the world and they contain plenty of energy to support current and future energy needs.

    But breaking this biomass down to its sugars is difficult and process-intensive, typically requiring independent steps: first pretreating the biomass material to make it easier to break down, then using expensive enzymes that help digest the biomass to release sugars, and then performing fermentation. Sugars from biomass are the important food source that microbial yeast consumes during fermentation, producing ethanol.

    Sugars from first generation food crops such as corn starch and sugarcane juice can be extracted with little effort. But the supply and production of these raw materials, or “feedstocks,” has raised concerns about their competition with our food supply and environmental impact. Second generation feedstocks, conversely, are usually byproducts, and cheaper than food crops. For example, a ton of corn stover costs about $50 a ton, whereas refined sugar from sugarcane costs about $350 a ton.

    The problem: the high processing cost associated with producing biofuels from second generation biomass.

    Now, UCR researchers have identified a way to improve the yield of ethanol from biomass. It involves direct fermentation of solid biomass, moving straight from pretreatment to a single process that both releases sugars and ferments them into ethanol. This streamlined strategy, called simultaneous saccharification and fermentation, or SSF, makes for a simpler process, and potentially reduces the enzymes needed to digest the solid material.

    Ethanol yields from SSF strategies in the past have been too low, with a limited concentration of ethanol. Enter the new pretreatment method invented by the UCR researchers, called CELF, short for co-solvent enhanced lignocellulosic fractionation. Using CELF, researchers can pretreat biomass such as corn stover and produce a sugar-rich and highly digestible biomass that – using the SSF strategy –  can be converted to ethanol while also maintaining high ethanol yields.

    In fact, the UCR team achieved maximum ethanol concentrations similar to those produced from the expensive refined sugar of food crops, while saving more than 50 percent in enzyme costs than other SSF strategies.

    “We were first to demonstrate an SSF-based strategy that was no longer limited by the process,” Cai said. The burden of further improving ethanol yields now depends on genetically modifying the yeast to tolerate higher concentrations of ethanol. The yeast dies from the high ethanol concentrations in this system.

    This research was funded by the National Science Foundation and the BioEnergy Science Center through the Department of Energy’s Office of Science.

    Cai’s co-authors in this paper, “Overcoming Factors Limiting High Solids Fermentation of Lignocellulosic Biomass to Ethanol,” include Thanh Yen Nguyen (Co-first author), Rajeev Kumar, and Charles E. Wyman, the Ford Motor Company chair in environmental engineering, all of whom are UCR colleagues.

  • Plant Science Club Wins Fourth President’s Trophy In 6 Years

    Fresno, Calif., (November 15, 2017) – The Fresno State Plant Science Club again received the President’s Trophy for beating many of the nation’s top agricultural universities at the recent Students of Agronomy, Soils and Environmental Sciences national club speech contest.

    The nation’s top university plant science competition was held Oct. 22 at the Tri-Societies national conference (American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America and Soil Science Society of America) in Tampa, Florida.

    Fresno State claimed similar top honors in 2012, 2014 and 2016 for its presentation about the club’s community service, educational outreach and professionalism in plant, crop and soil sciences.

    Other notable universities that competed in the 15-team field included Auburn, Colorado State, Iowa State, Kansas State, North Carolina State, Oklahoma State, Purdue and Texas A&M.

    “I could not be more proud of our club members for their representation of our University and California agriculture,” said senior club president Vivien Maier, of Belmont. “The conference was also an incredible opportunity to meet industry leaders and fellow agricultural students and learn more about research being conducted internationally that is tied to our future careers.”

    Among the 12 Fresno State students who attended the conference, Maier delivered the team’s PowerPoint presentation.

    Three seniors entered research poster competitions: Diana Camarena (Modesto), Jose Delgado (Gonzales) and Briana Quintero (Salinas).

    Other students who traveled to the event included seniors Katie Asai (Fresno), Mark Castanon (Fresno), Bibiana Urbina (Monterey), Ricardo Rodriguez Baeza (Mendota), Nancy Valdez (Wasco) and Travis Woods (Woodlake); junior Georgina Reyes Solorio (Livingston); and sophomore Anthony Venegas (Salinas).

    Fresno State students also competed in a quiz bowl and crop judging competition and attended research presentations and sessions for career planning, community outreach and grant writing.

    Travel expenses for Maier, Reyes Solorio, Valdez were covered by the American Society of Agronomy after they were nationally recognized as a Golden Scholar and Greenfield Scholars in July. Remaining students received funds from Associated Students, Inc., plant science career fair industry sponsors and a private donor.

    “We are grateful for all the support that we have received from industry, our community, Fresno State and our department and hope to continue on this path of success for years to come,” Maier said. “Our collective win is another reminder of what can be achieved through the collaborative effort of many passionate and dedicated individuals.”

    For more information on the conference, visit www.acsmeetings.org.

     

  • USDA Encourages Producers to Consider Risk Protection Coverage before Crop Sales Deadlines

    Washington, D. C., (November 14, 2017) – The Farm Service Agency encourages producers to examine available USDA crop risk protection options, including federal crop insurance and Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) coverage, before the applicable crop sales deadline.

    Producers are reminded that crops not covered by insurance may be eligible for NAP. The 2014 Farm Bill expanded NAP to include higher levels of protection. Beginning, underserved and limited resource farmers are now eligible for free catastrophic level coverage, as well as discounted premiums for additional levels of protection.”

    Federal crop insurance covers crop losses from natural adversities such as drought, hail and excessive moisture. NAP covers losses from natural disasters on crops for which no permanent federal crop insurance program is available, including perennial grass forage and grazing crops, fruits, vegetables, mushrooms, floriculture, ornamental nursery, aquaculture, turf grass, ginseng, honey, syrup, bioenergy, and industrial crops.

    Producers can determine if crops are eligible for federal crop insurance or NAP by visiting https://webapp.rma.usda.gov/apps/actuarialinformationbrowser2017/CropCriteria.aspx.

    NAP basic coverage is available at 55 percent of the average market price for crop losses that exceed 50 percent of expected production, with higher levels of coverage, up to 65 percent of their expected production at 100 percent of the average market price, including coverage for organics and crops marketed directly to consumers.

    Deadlines for coverage vary by state and crop. To learn more about NAP visit www.fsa.usda.gov/napor contact your local USDA Service Center. To find your local USDA Service Centers go to http://offices.usda.gov.

    Federal crop insurance coverage is sold and delivered solely through private insurance agents. Agent lists are available at all USDA Service Centers or at USDA’s online Agent Locator: http://prodwebnlb.rma.usda.gov/apps/AgentLocator/#. Producers can use the USDA Cost Estimator, https://ewebapp.rma.usda.gov/apps/costestimator/Default.aspx, to predict insurance premium costs.

  • Mechanized Agriculture Lab Renovations Made Possible by Moller Family Gift

    Fresno, Calif., (November 14, 2017) – The Jordan College of Agricultural Sciences and Technology at Fresno State showcased initial renovations to its mechanized agriculture laboratory on Tuesday, Nov. 14 that were made possible by a $250,000 gift by Dr. James Moller and his wife, Carol Moller.

    The event was attended by University President Joseph I. Castro, Jordan College Dean Sandra Witte, faculty, staff, students, alumni of the mechanized agriculture program and James Moller.

    The donation was made in memory of Moller’s father, Leonard Moller, who owned and operated the Acme Machine Shop in Fresno until 1973. The shop was originally started by Herman Moller in the 1920s, and he later co-owned it with his son, Leonard.

    James Moller, a University of Minnesota professor emeritus of pediatrics and medicine, grew up in Fresno near the original Fresno State campus. On a visit in September 2016, he saw the laboratory’s traditional but outdated welding and mechanical equipment during a tour led by mechanized agriculture faculty member Ken Heupel.

    “Educational institutions, especially state universities and colleges, have pressing financial concerns, and Ken quietly expressed the program’s obvious needs,” Moller said. “The surroundings reminded me so much of my father’s machine shop that I could visualize him there, and it really touched me. Even though I moved away 60 years ago, I wanted to express my appreciation for the educational opportunities that I was afforded as a third-generation Fresnan while helping to create better opportunities for future students, many of whom are training to be educators and key members of the Central Valley ag industry.”

    The gift has already provided for a revamped welding area this fall with new multi-processing booths, racks, gas line manifolds, work tables, a computer numerical control (CNC) plasma cutting table and a freshly-painted interior.

    Future planned improvements will include new tungsten inert gas (TIG) welders, a hydraulic shear, hydraulic brake, drill press, iron worker, band saw and chop saw equipment, engine stands and metal material storage units.

    The mechanized agriculture program in the Plant Science Department is overseen by John Williams, a 2008 Fresno State agricultural education graduate and former student of Heupel’s. Williams has served as a part-time faculty member since January 2015, and he was elevated to full-time faculty after Heupel’s retirement in August.

    Heupel had directed the program since 1997, and his 51-year vocational teaching career also included 25 years at Merced College and six years at Manteca High School.

    “Thanks to Ken’s hard work and vision, our curriculum is essential in preparing students to safely operate and maintain a wide variety of modern production agriculture equipment,” Williams said. “Students from ag education, plant science, viticulture, industrial technology, ag business and our campus farm develop skills from the hands-on labs that will be essential for the rest of their careers.”

    Fresno State is the only California State University campus that offers a mechanized agriculture emphasis for agriculture education majors. Its curriculum includes six classes in small gas and diesel engines, power equipment safety, advanced farm machinery, tractor topics, mechanized agriculture skills and basic agricultural machinery. A permanent fabrication class is also planned so students will get experience building and designing equipment and projects.

    The laboratory also provides students with applied learning experience by helping conduct Future Farmers of America high school state judging contests in farm power and machinery, small gas engines and mechanized agriculture.

    To discuss potential partnership opportunities to fund further research or academic programs, contact Alcidia Freitas Gomes at alcidia@csufresno.edu or 559.278.4266.

  • USDA California Crop/Weather Report

    Sacramento, Calif., (November 14, 2017) – Temperatures across the State last week were typical for the fall season. Along the northern coast, close to two inches of precipitation was reported. More precipitation is expected to fall in the coming week for parts of the State.

    Temperature highs were in the 50s to 60s in the mountains, 60s to 70s in the valley, 60s to 80s along the coast, and 70s to 80s in the desert. Temperature lows were in the 10s to 30s in the mountains, 20s to 50s in the desert, 30s to 40s in the valley, and 30s to 50s along the coast.

    Early plantings of small grains had germinated and showed good emergence and growers continued to prepare more fields for fall planting of wheat, barley, and oats.  Alfalfa for hay production was finishing up with the last cuts of the season and growers windrowed, baled and stacked the hay. The fields received herbicide treatments. Corn, milo, and sorghum continued to be harvested for green chop. Silage corn grew well and harvesting was ongoing. Rice harvest neared completion. Cotton fields were defoliated and harvesting was in full swing. Black-eyed beans were being harvested and processed. Most summer crops have been harvested, and fields were being prepared for winter planting.

    Apple harvest was winding down. Pruning has started in some stone fruit orchards.  Some old orchards were being removed and prepared for replanting. Wine grape harvest was almost complete.  Thompson seedless grapes were being rolled and picked up for raisins.  Table grape harvest was winding down for the season. Quince, pears, pomegranates, kiwifruit, and persimmons were harvested. Olive groves were pruned. Early Navel orange harvest was underway. Lemon, grapefruit and pomelos were harvested. Tangerine harvest began.

    Almond harvest was complete. Orchard pruning and planting of new orchards was ongoing.  Walnut and pistachio harvest was wrapping up. Harvested nut orchards were irrigated.

    Harvest continued for green beans, cucumbers, daikon, eggplant, yellow bell peppers and tomatoes. Processing tomato harvest was completed and the harvested fields were cultivated. Melon harvest was near completion. Garlic harvest was complete. New garlic crops were being planted. New fresh market onions were being treated for worms. Organic cantaloupe harvest ended. Organic broccoli, celery and spinach fields were growing nicely.  Head, leaf, and romaine lettuce for the fall season grew nicely with many fields starting to be harvested.

    Non-irrigated and foothill rangeland forage was primarily in poor to very poor condition. Supplemental feeding of cattle was ongoing. Cattle were moved down from high elevation ranges. Sheep grazed on harvested alfalfa and grain fields. Some bees were moved to Fresno County to overwinter. Local bees were provided with supplemental feed.

  • CERCLA Reporting

    Modesto, Calif., (November 13, 2017) – The United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) has a requirement that businesses that emit more than a threshold level of certain emissions into the air must report those emissions to the National Response Center (NRC) under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). Most emissions from agriculture to do not fit the reasons for which reporting was required under the Act originally and could overwhelm the NRC with calls where no response is expected or will occur any way. Therefore, US EPA adopted regulations in 2008 exempting most of agriculture from reporting under CERCLA. Environmental activists groups sued USEPA challenging that exemption and won their case. EPA has asked for a stay of that court ruling so that agriculture does not have to report, however the U.S. Court of Appeals has not ruled on EPA’s request to continue the stay of the court’s ruling. If the court does not grant EPA’s request, Some Dairy Farms May Need to Report Air Emissions from Manure on November 15, 2017 under CERCLA if emissions for ammonia and hydrogen sulfide exceed the threshold quantity of 100 pounds in a 24-hour timeframe. EPA has made a strong case in favor of granting the stay. At this point, NMPF continues to urge dairy producers NOT to file any air emission reports. If you do, you are asking for trouble. Also, the reporting process is changing, the new process is outlined below and is not available yet.

    If you have questions on this reporting requirement, call Paul Sousa at 209-556-2490.

    FROM EPA:

    Several issues that have arisen relate to the initial notification to the National Response Center (NRC). First, there is the potential for the NRC to be overwhelmed with calls on November 15th due to the number of farm owners/operators that will need to report. Second, some farm owners/operators have begun reporting to the NRC. The automated system the NRC uses to ensure release notifications get to the appropriate Federal, State, and local response officials, has resulted in some State and local officials calling the farm owners/ operators to get more information about the release they reported and what response is needed.

    • The NRC will establish an email notification system so farm owners/operators can email their continuous release reports to the NRC rather than calling the NRC 800 number. Farmers who have multiple farms can list the name and location of all farms, as well as the associated name(s) of hazardous substance(s) released, in one e-mail.
    • Once the email is received by the NRC email notification system, it will generate an automatic response e-mail with a generic identification number (CR-ERNS) for the farm. The farm owner/operator will place that CR-ERNS number on the follow-up written notification report that is required to be submitted to EPA Regional Office within 30 days.
    • Additionally, the NRC will email the farm owner/operator’s continuous release notification to the EPA who will organize the notification in a spreadsheet and make that information available to the EPA Regional offices. This will alleviate inundating the EPA Regional office with continuous release reports.

    The initial notification by e-mail, rather than by telephone, will help to avoid expected long hold delays, telephone system “crashes,” and related inconveniences when reporting for farmers starts on November 15, 2017. EPA and the NRC consider the use of e-mail in this instance as complying with the immediate notification requirement of CERCLA section 103.

    We are working to have this system in place by Tuesday, November 14th or sooner if possible. We will be revising and updating our website and guidance to communicate this streamlined reporting option for farmers:

    “Due to the potential for large call volumes to the National Response Center (NRC), we are establishing an email option for initial continuous release notifications. The system should be available by November 15, 2017. Farm owners/operators should consider using the email option once it is available. This expedited option will allow one email notification for owners/operators with multiple farms.

  • UC IPM’s Farrar Briefs Legislatores on Threats to California Winegrapes

    Sacramento, Calif., (November 13, 2017) – Recent surveys in the North Coast have found that 90 percent of the powdery mildew samples collected were resistant to strobulurin fungicides, the director of UC Integrated Pest Management Program told legislators at a joint hearing of the California Assembly and Senate Select Committees on California’s Wine Industry. A potential solution is breeding winegrapes to be resistant to powdery mildew, but a drawback is that the wine industry is largely known for its varietals.

    Jim Farrar, left, updated legislators on pests and diseases that pose a threat to California wine grapes.

    “Professor Andy Walker at UC Davis has succeeded in crossing winegrapes with a wild grape species that is naturally resistant to powdery mildew and then crossing the offspring back to the parent winegrape variety for several generations,” said James Farrar, who was invited to speak at the committees’ informational hearing on “Fire Recovery and Pest Management Awareness” at UC Santa Barbara on Nov. 7.

    In addition to powdery mildew, he also talked about red blotch virus, which was relatively recently identified in California, and grapevine leafroll associated virus and the mealybug species that transmit the virus. Bob Wynn from the California Department of Food and Agriculture gave an update on Pierce’s disease and its vector glassy-winged sharpshooter.

    Farrar warned the legislators of increased human health risks due to “unintended consequences of social pressure” on the herbicide glyphosate, which growers use to control weeds under grapevines rather than tilling the soil, to comply with Natural Resources Conservation Service and Salmon Safe guidelines.

    Powdery mildew symptoms shown on cabernet sauvignon grapes.

    “Recent social pressure resulting from the International Agency for Research on Cancer labeling glyphosate a probable human carcinogen and news stories indicating detection of glyphosate in wine have caused some growers to look at other herbicides,” Farrar said. “The other choices are glufosinate, which is more risky to applicators, less effective, and more expensive, and paraquat, which has similar price and effectiveness, but much greater risk to applicators. Paraquat is a restricted-use pesticide that is highly toxic to humans – 3 teaspoons will kill an adult. It has a higher risk ‘Danger’ label in contrast to the lower risk ‘Caution’ label for glyphosate.

    “This is an increased risk to human health as a result of misplaced public perception of risk.”

    Farrar closed his comments by saying, “The County Agricultural Commissioners and county-based University of California Cooperative Extension advisors are vital in the continued efforts to manage winegrape pests and diseases. They are the frontline support for growers and pest control advisers in this effort.”

    To read the full transcript of Farrar’s comments, visit http://ucanr.edu/files/273433.pdf. His handouts on grape pest management are at http://ucanr.edu/files/273434.pdf.

  • Ag Commissioner Wins Award for Farm Worker Advisory Committee

    Monterey, Calif., (November 13, 2017) – In 2016, Agricultural Commissioner Eric Lauritzen, together with Juan Uranga of Center of Community Advocacy, launched a Farm Worker Advisory Committee to work on safety issues, particularly around pesticide use.

    As its first priority, the Farmworker Advisory Committee focused on establishing a trusting, professional relationship between County regulators and leaders in the farmworker community.  Information was exchanged about pesticide use, enforcement, farmworker rights, and improving communication and collaboration.  This helped establish strong personal relationships and the free exchange of ideas and concerns.

    Each year the California State Association of Counties (CSAC) invites counties to submit nominations for the CSAC Challenge Awards. These unique awards recognize the innovative and creative spirit of California county governments for finding new and effective ways of providing projects, programs, and services to their citizens.

    In June of this year, Monterey County submitted an entry to the 2017 CSAC Challenge Award competition titled Monterey County Farmworker Advisory Committee. On September 7, 2017, CSAC notified the County that the Monterey County Farmworker Advisory Committee entry was awarded a Challenge Award, one of 14 awarded from over 250 applications received.

    Assistant Ag Commissioner Bob Roach received this award from CSAC during a presentation at the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday.  Others who were key in the development of the Farmworker Advisory Committee and were also present for the presentation:

    Sabino Lopez, Interim Executive Director, Center for Community Advocacy (CCA)

    Joel Hernandez-Laguna, Center for Community Advocacy (CCA)

    Juan Uranga, Past Executive Director, Center for Community Advocacy (CCA)

    Norm Groot, Executive Director, Monterey County Farm Bureau

    Jim Bogart, President, Grower-Shipper Association of Central California

    Monterey County Farm Bureau congratulates Eric Lauritzen and Bob Roach on this achievement, a first of its kind collaboration in California.  We also wish Eric best of luck in his new position at CA Department of Pesticide Regulation where he will work as an executive advisor on programs and issues critical to the DPR. The position will focus on pesticide program effectiveness and needs assessment, working with agricultural commissioner’s offices on the Central Coast.

    We thank Eric for his dedicated commitment to Monterey County Agriculture as our Ag Commissioner for the nearly 20 years of his tenure.  We will miss Eric but know that he will be working to support local producers and processors in his new position with DPR.