Cultivating industry prosperity for the long term is at the core of the California walnut industry’s strategic plan.  A year ago, the Grades & Standards Committee began working with US Department of Agriculture (USDA) looking into ways to update the outbound inspection process in order to remove redundancies and duplicative costs to bring more efficiency to the industry. As part …

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) announced today an investment of over $30 million for 33 grants that support farmers and ranchers who grow and market high-quality organic food, fiber and other organic products. This investment is part of NIFA’s Organic Agriculture Program. NIFA’s investment in Organic Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative projects …

On September 13th, President Biden announced his intent to nominate several individuals to serve as key economic and trade representatives, including the Elaine Trevino to serve as Chief Agricultural Negotiator at the United States Trade Representative. Elaine Trevino is the President of the Almond Alliance of California (AAC), a member-based trade association that advocates on regulatory and legislative issues in …

Almond Alliance of California — The transportation crisis continues for agriculture exporters and seems to be worsening as the holiday season nears. Increased costs, rescheduling, cancellations, detention and demurrage charges up 300% and lost markets are some of the realities the industry is facing. Based on numerous sources, over 20% of sales cannot be completed due to ocean carrier rates, …

The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) and the U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC) joined several other organizations urging the Biden administration to take additional steps to alleviate the ongoing ports crisis in a letter sent today to the White House from a coalition of 77 agriculture and food associations. Since early 2021, dairy and other agriculture exporters have been facing …

The University of California, Davis, Food Systems Lab has released a white paper showing the need to support California’s small and mid-scale meat suppliers and processors in order to build a more resilient meat supply chain. It describes how the meat supply chain and rural economies could benefit from regulatory changes and more collaboration among producers and other stakeholders in …

Governor Newsom has on his desk an historic package of budget bills that include much-needed investments to help our food and farm system recover from the impacts of the pandemic and shore up resilience to climate shocks. A total of $1.3 billion in Fiscal Year 2021-22 will fund a range of programs and projects to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, support …

Building healthy soils has tremendous benefits. Increasing the amount of organic matter within the soil can improve water retention and protection, reduce erosion, sequester carbon, and improve crop yields. Increasing water scarcity and severe drought conditions make boosting soil resilience an even greater priority for California. Researchers are exploring how the environmental benefits of healthy soils initiatives can extend even …

The PD/GWSS Board is pleased to announce that Dr. Kristin Lowe will oversee and guide the Board’s extensive research program as research coordinator. With over 20 years of experience working with growers and researchers at the junction of viticulture science and practical farming, Dr. Lowe brings a valuable perspective to the Board’s mission of investing in research and outreach to protect California …

USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service — The initial 2021-22 California Navel orange forecast is 70.0 million cartons, down 14% from the previous year. Of the total Navel orange forecast, 67.0 million cartons are estimated to be in the Central Valley. Cara Cara variety Navel orange production in the Central Valley is forecast at 6.0 million cartons. These forecasts are based on the …