Honoring West Side
Agriculture
A Special Supplement to the West Side Index & Gustine Press-Standard
Thursday, March 19, 2020
2 | HONORING WEST SIDE AGRICULTURE
THURSDAY, MARCH 19, 2020
Attention to detail, innovation in Groefsema orchards GUSTINE - A family farming operation with solid roots in the Gustine area continues to thrive today under the direction of a third-generation member. Clay Groefsema, who grew up in the Lemoore area, today manages Groefsema Enterprises orchards in the Gustine and Waterford areas. He also provides custom farm management for clients in the Stockton area and operates a custom spray business. The company’s home ranch on Orchard Road has been in the family since the late 1990s, when his father Clay and grandfather Ken purchased the ground. “This is the largest of all our ranches. We keep all of the equipment here and move it around,” Groefsema explained. Water was a driving factor in the family’s transi-
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Clay Groefsema manages family almond orchards in the Gustine area.
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HONORING WEST SIDE AGRICULTURE | 3
THURSDAY, MARCH 19, 2020
GROEFSEMA
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2 Decisions are made from a long-term perspective, he added. “Every year we evolve and try to make things better,” Groefsema explained. “Being a farmer, you have to learn that from something you do today you may not see (benefits from) for the next year or two.” Groefsema said he has implemented a number of changes since rejoining the family operation. Many are aimed at improving water penetration and boosting fertility. Groefsema said the almond industry has seen a number of fundamental changes. Water management practices have evolved significantly through the years, he said, resulting in much more precise watering. “All of our systems have soil moisture probes so we can see exactly what is
going on when we apply water,” Groefsema told Mattos Newspapers. “We know what our demand should be, based on the weather, the age of the trees and the soil.” Irrigation management practices are also a component of the pest control program in the Groefsema orchards. Materials used in orchards have also evolved, he noted, creating targeted pest control as opposed to a shotgun approach that kills everything, he explained. Through such management practices, Groefsema said, “we can keep beneficial insects in our orchards.” Even with more tools to draw from and advances in the industry, management techniques and attention to detail remain essential to success. “You can spend a lot of money applying fertilizer at the wrong time, and the tree won’t take it up,” he said by way of example. The company also regu-
larly samples soils. “Our pH was a little off balance when I got here, so we had to build that and build our calcium levels,” Groefsema stated. Those steps are investments in success that would not be possible through cutting corners. “We can always get better. We put in more inputs, and you get out what you put in,” he emphasized. The company’s commitment to quality includes attention to detail and placing a premium on taking the time required to be effective - without taking too much time. Whether it is harvesting almonds or spraying orchards, Groefsema remarked, trying to be too quick results in damage to nuts or a spray application that is not as effective as it could be. He is also an advocate for the almond industry. “They are high maintenance but you can only grow them in California,” he reflected. “I think we take a lot of pride in it.
A custom spraying business is part of the operation overseen by Clay Groefsema. They are pretty trees, and a healthy product when all is said and done.” Advancements have changed farming capabilities and management practices through the years, but the lessons of childhood remain as
strongly ingrained as ever for Groefsema as he goes about his work. “Growing up, my dad would throw me into pruning crews for the summer. At the time I wasn’t a fan of it, but you realize how much hard work there is
in these labor crews and what they do day in and day out,” Groefsema said. “My grandfather always said hard work builds character. You look back and appreciate those hot summers.”
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THURSDAY, MARCH 19, 2020
Delgado’s Welding Shop has been serving the West Side ag community for nearly three decades. Arnie Delgado, left, took the operation over from his father Fidencio in 2013.
Welding, fabrication shop helps keep wheels of ag turning CROWS LANDING Farmers and ranchers in the San Joaquin Valley fuel the local economy while helping feed the world. Behind one of the world’s most prolific agricultural producers, however, is a network of businesses and service providers who help keep the wheels of ag turning. Among them is a small Crows Landing welding shop which traces its roots back decades. Delgado’s Welding Shop, operated by second-generation owner Arnie Delgado, is part of that critical support network serving farmers and ag-related processors. Delgado took over the operation from his father Fidencio (who still works part-time at the shop) in 2013 and has continued providing the welding and fabrication services on which his clients rely. Family ties to the busi-
ness stretch back decades, to the years when longtime owner Ken Tyler had the shop. Fidencio Delgado worked for Tyler for about 30 years, his son explained. The younger Delgado grew up around the shop, he related, and during his youth was able to try his hand at welding. “”We used to come and clean the shop, and (Tyler) would let us use the welding machine,” Delgado explained. “We would make toys.” The shop sold to another owner around 1990, and then Fidencio Delgado had the opportunity to take over the business two years later. A year or two later Arnie, who had been working previously at Newman Flange, joined his father in the welding business. Throughout the years, Delgado said, the commitment to serving the ag community has continued.
The shop provides a variety of fabrication services for its customers as well as welding, he noted. “The welding is easy. When you are fabricating something you have to have experience because when you heat up metal it tends to pull,” Delgado explained. “You need to know all those things.” He and his father fabricate parts for a variety of equipment and machinery, including tillage implements. “Sometimes farmers come in and have old equipment that they can’t find a part for. They will bring it in and we will make it for them. If they need it, we make it,” Delgado stated. The custom blades which bean growers attach to tractors to cut their bean plants for harvest are a specialty at the shop. “My dad is the only one around here who does the
bean knives,” Delgado explained. In addition to the shop work, Delgado will travel to weld in the field as needed. He is available for afterhours and weekend work as needed to keep his customers up and running - particularly during the planting and harvest seasons when farmers are at their busiest. “That is when they are all in a hurry to beat the weather,” Delgado remarked. “You cannot compete with the weather. It controls everything.” Delgado took over the shop during tough times, he recalled, and farmers helped him through the rough patches - sometimes paying him in advance for his work. “All the farmers have been very supportive,” Delgado reflected. “I am grateful for all the customers we have.”
He, in return, strives to meet their needs. Satisfied customers, Delgado shared, are his greatest reward. “The thing that mo-
tivates me is when the farmer comes and you do the work and they like it,” he commented. “Helping people is the motivation.”
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Walnuts the heart of Jensen farming, processing operation GUSTINE - Walnuts have been a staple crop spanning generations for one West Side family. Today the Jensen family, which traces its local agricultural roots back to the early 1900s, is involved in not only the walnut production (as well as some almonds) but walnut hulling, processing and marketing as well. Today, in addition to the orchards operated by the family, a state-of-the-art huller stands on the family’s original Jensen Road ranch outside Gustine and brothers Kirk and Mark Jensen own Patterson Nut Company, where walnuts are taken for processing. Kirk oversees orchard production, the huller operation and the processing and marketing side of the family enterprises at Patterson Nut, while brother Mark, who is an attorney, looks after the business details. “We have a good partnership and combination of skills. I enjoy the production; my brother covers the business aspect,” Kirk shared. “We would not be able to do what we do without the combination that we have.” Their father, Wilmar Jensen, remains active on the ranch and in the management side of the
operation, and Kirk’s son Andrew, who is an independent pest control advisor, is also involved in the business. Farming ties run deep in the family, Kirk said. His great-grandfather settled on the Jensen Road ranch in 1904, growing row crops and raising cattle and chickens. His grandfather purchased an adjacent ranch off Whitworth Road in the mid-1930s and planted a small walnut orchard to complement the row crops and livestock. “My grandfather always had a small huller,” Kirk related. “In his time, you poured walnuts in to the huller by the sack or bucket.” He said the family’s first serious push into walnuts came in the late 60s or early 1970s when Wilmar, who is an attorney, purchased 80 acres of additional land adjacent to the ranches purchased by the prior generations. “My dad always loved farming,” Kirk shared. “He went through college at a young age and went into the service at World War II. When he came home farming was at a standstill. That was when
See JENSEN | PAGE 6
Pictured in the new hulling facility at the Jensen ranch are, from left, Kirk Jensen, Wilmar Jensen, Andrew Jensen and foreman Tyler Lemas.
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CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2 he went to law school. As soon as he could he bought his first ranch, and still loves it.”
THURSDAY, MARCH 19, 2020
The family has pushed more deeply into trees in the past 25 years, Kirk said, and is now “probably two-thirds walnuts and one-third trees.” Kirk introduced almonds into the overall op-
eration after purchasing property between Newman and Gustine in 1996. “I like almonds as well,” he noted. “In these years when things are a little tougher you get some balance.”
Kirk Jensen has continued the growth and evolution of a family farming legacy which dates back to the early 1900s.
The only row crops now grown are those planted between trees for a few years until they come into production, he added. Kirk said most of the family’s farming operation falls under J. Wilmar Jensen, Inc. “I have some of my own ranches, we all have some together, I have some with my brother,” he explained. In the 1990s, the Jensens branched out by building a huller on the original family ranch. “We kind of outgrew (his grandfather’s huller) and outsourced our hulling through the early 90s. Walnuts take a lot of care for quality, and it was something we wanted to be in control of so we decided to build our first huller,” Kirk explained. Patterson Nut was founded in 2001 after Kirk and Mark Jensen acquired an existing walnut processing facility. “In the last 20 years we have been pretty serious about hulling,” Kirk said. Through much of that time, the Jensens ran their crop through the home ranch huller while using their Patterson huller for custom work. As the industry evolved, however, the need for a new huller became evident. Four years ago, the new huller built by Kirk, Mark and Wilmar came into pro-
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fects not taken out in the process and are dried for eight to 24 hours to reach a specific moisture content. “As soon as they are dried they are hauled out to the processor. At Patterson they are graded, fumigated and put into storage,” Kirk said. Some will be marketed as in-shell walnuts, while others are cracked and shelled. “The shelling process is delicate,” Kirk shared. “Walnuts were not meant to be cracked by a machine. The goal is to get two halves out of each one, which is a challenge.” Quality is emphasized at every step in the process, whether it involves walnuts from the Jensen orchards or those being processed for other growers. “I envisioned being a neighborhood huller and processor who people can put a lot of confidence in,” said Kirk. “As a farmer you put a lot of trust in your processor.” The vertical integration of the operation includes a Jensen Ranch trucking enterprise, he added. While the operation has evolved significantly, Kirk said he does not see substantial expansion on the horizon. “I don’t have a lot of desire to be bigger,” he commented. “I can still be my own boss and have a hands-on approach.”
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duction - offering more than twice the capacity of the two previous, nowretired hullers combined while consolidating the operation. Changing trends and increased demand for hulling services drove that transition. “There used to be probably 10 varieties of walnuts, with harvest spread out from September until the end of October,” Kirk explained. “Now there are predominantly three, that start Oct. 10 and finish at the end of October. The fields are bigger and the harvesting is faster. “You can’t pile walnuts on the ground like almonds. You have to take them in and run them that day,” Kirk told Mattos Newspapers. “For quality, there is a timeliness to it. You can’t say that you will get to it in a week.” Walnuts coming into the plant go through a process which removes debris such as leaves and sticks, then a pre-cleaning before going through the huller which removes the remaining green hull and washes the nuts. The walnuts then process through a pneumatic process called aspiration which removes lighter nuts (which lack fully-developed walnut meats), are electronically sorted for defects, undergo inspection by employees checking for any de-
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Lara hulling operation expands to meet demand NEWMAN - A local farming operation which takes almonds from orchard to shelled meats is undergoing an extensive renovation to increase capacity of its rural Newman processing facility. The huller is part of Richard Lara Farms, Inc.,
which also has about 700 acres of orchards primarily in the Westley/Patterson area. Corporate President Mike Lara, said he and three sons also operate a variety of West Side orchards that, in addition to almonds, produce walnuts
Paul Lara, left, and his father Mike Lara, pictured at the rural Newman hulling operation of Richard Lara Farms, Inc.
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and cherries. “They all farm on their own as well as working for me,” he explained. The family farming operation, which traces its heritage back to Mike Lara’s father Richard and his brothers, once was focused on row crops but
in more recent years almonds have emerged as the focal point of the operation. Lara Farms Inc, the predecessor to Richard Lara Farms Inc., at one point operated in Fresno County, the Newman area and Westley/Patterson.
The operation began growing almonds in the mid-1970s, Lara said, and in the mid-1980s built the Stuhr Road huller. The brothers split into three separation corporation around 1993, he said, and Richard Lara Farms has owned the huller since. Lara said he continued to farm in Fresno County, but left that area in 2000 due to lack of water, choosing to concentrate instead on the huller and farming operations in the Westley/ Patterson area. “It was a constant battle. I couldn’t do it any more,” he said of the challenging water shortages in Fresno County. Now, he continues as a grower and processor on the West Side. The huller processes not only almonds grown on the various Lara farms but those from other area producers. Demand has grown along with the state’s almond acreage and production, Lara told Mattos Newspapers, and an extensive renovation under way this spring will significantly increase capacity and efficiency. The renovation is the latest chapter in the evolution of the huller. One of the biggest
changes to the operation has been implementation of digital product tracking. Each load is issued a bar code when it comes across the scale, which allows processor and grower to track their product throughout the process. At the Lara operation, the focus is on quickly processing the product and shipping it to the buyer. “We try to store nothing here. We only do one thing. We take almonds from the field product to clean meats,” Lara commented. “They are getting shelled out all the way in one operation. Ours was one of the first plants to do it that way. We will have the capacity to do in-shell as well but I am not going to push for that. There are enough guys doing in-shell.” Once processed, the almond meats are promptly delivered. “Ours go straight to Blue Diamond. Some go to Stewart & Jasper,” Lara noted. “We try to deliver in no more than two weeks.” In the orchards, water remains an ongoing challenge. In response and anticipating future drought,
See LARA | PAGE 9
HONORING WEST SIDE AGRICULTURE | 9
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LARA
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 8 Lara said, he has gone to planting almonds on root stock that better tolerates the saltier water which farmers must sometimes turn to from their own wells when that is the only supply available. Almond production suffered during the last drought because of the high salinity water growers were forced to use, he pointed out. “When we have good water we have good (almond) quality. When we have bad water we have shrivel and other problems,” Lara stated. “Lower quality products are much more difficult to run.” He strives to maximize efficiency in his orchards, relying on probes to monitor moisture levels and flying over with a drone to get a birds-eye view of the trees. “You can see the dry spots, and where the trees are smaller,” Lara ex-
plained. Farming is a family affair for Lara, as three sons hold management roles in the operation. Paul Lara oversees the huller operation. Jarod Lara manages the orchards, and Jason Lara oversees the shop. Each year, farmers operate on no small measure of faith and perseverance with no promises of what each harvest will bring in terms of yield or market price. As he looks to 2020, Lara acknowledges that water is an ongoing problem but also expressed optimism. Weather during the pollination period was close to perfect, he said, and while the market price might not be at a premium Lara is optimistic that global demand will absorb even a bumper crop. The pollination period has given way to spring, and in a few short months the huller will be humming once again as the Lara crew processes almonds coming in by the truckload from West Side orchards.
Workers at the Lara huller near Newman complete a number of projects in the off-season in preparation for the next crop coming in.
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Rose family farming operation evolved with shifting trends NEWMAN - A local family farming operation has evolved with the industry, shifting in response to new trends while retaining diversity. And, a new generation has joined the operation started by Mannie Rose, as sons Brett and Justin have roles to play as well. Mannie, a 1978 Orestimba High graduate, is also a pest control advisor who works for Mid-Valley Agricultural Services in addition to looking after his family’s fields and orchards. Brett came on board after completing his studies at Fresno State in 2018. In addition to working on the family farm, he operates a custom spraying operation which started while he was in college. “I always had the dream of starting my own spray business and coming back and growing the family
farm,” Brett remarked. Justin, who completed his studies at Fresno State in 2016, is currently an agronomist with a bio-nutrient company and is also participating in the 2020 almond leadership program sponsored by the Almond Board of California. Justin also helps out with the overall direction and management of the Rose family operation, providing recommendations on matters ranging from fertilization and pruning to planting styles. Mannie acknowledged that his sons have introduced new ideas and practices to the farming operation....”things that weren’t taught 20 and 30 years ago that are now common technology.” Those advancements, he added, include use of GPS,
See ROSE | PAGE 11
Pictured in their Upper Road almond orchard are, from left, Brett, Mannie and Justin Rose.
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Merced County crop values fall slightly in ‘18 Merced County farmers and ranchers produced commodities valued at $3.25 billion in 2018, continuing a series of declines which followed a record year in 2014. According to the 2018 county report on agriculture, the most recent year available, the decline reflected softening prices for ag commodities. The value of the county’s ag commodities skyrocketed to $4.4 billion in 2014, but has declined each year since - most drastically in 2015, when the crop values were placed at $3.6 billion. Since that time, the crop value has declined by approximately $100 million annually. The report reflects gross farm commodity values and do not take into account production costs. Net income to the producer is not reflected. Milk continued to be the driving force in the county’s ag economy by a wide margin. The value of milk produced in Merced County in 2018 was $991 million, more than double the $453 million value of almonds, the county’s sec-
ROSE
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10 automated irrigation systems and more. “(Farming) is a lot more efficient now,” Mannie said. Mannie was raised on his family’s Upper Road ranch. After graduating Orestimba he went on to study plant science for two years at Modesto Junior College, got his pest control advisor license upon completion in 1980 and went to work for Cerutti Brothers. He worked for Cerutti for 11 years, and shifted over to MidValley Agricultural Services. He also established his own farming operation, which his sons grew up around. “We started farming in 1980, little fields here and there,” Mannie explained. Eight years later, he purchased what is now his home ranch on Sanches Road as the operation continued to evolve. Initially Rose grew silage corn, alfalfa and green beans. Demand for green beans dried up when freezer plants closed, he said, but the operation stayed with silage corn and alfalfa, grow-
ond-leading commodity. The ranking of the top six commodities remained unchanged from 2017. Following are the top 15 commodities, their value and their change in ranking from 2017 to 2018. 1) Milk, $991 million (no change) 2) Almonds, $453 million (no change) 3) Chickens, $357 million (no change) 4) Cattle and calves, $250 million (no change) 5) Sweet potatoes, $215 million (no change) 6) Tomatoes, $118 million (no change) 7) Corn silage, $111 million (up one place) 8) Hay, $85 million (down one place) 9) Eggs, $76 million (no change) 10) Nursery products, $72 million (no change) 11) Cotton, $68 million (up two places) 12) Wine grapes, $51 million (no change) 13) Miscellaneous vegetables, $47 million (down two places) 14) Turkeys, $43 million (no change) 15) Silage, $37 million (up one place)
ing commodities needed by the dairy industry. The evolution continued, and has now shifted to include almonds (which were put in six years ago) and grain corn as well as some alfalfa and wheat. Mannie said the family’s almond acreage will increase as another block of land transitions to orchards. “A lot of row crops are not economic to grow any more,” he explained. Through his work as a pest control advisor, he was already wellversed in almond production when planting his own trees for the first time. “We had the opportunity to get into it, and so far it has been good,” Mannie said. While California agriculture faces a number of challenges, the Roses said, they are optimistic about the future of the industry. “There are so many varieties of crops (grown) here that other places can’t,” Brett said. “It seems like there will always be a need for agriculture in California.”
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Stewart & Jasper A family run business since 1948 and located in California’s Central Valley, our philosophy is to give our customers the finest quality products by controlling every aspect of production, from the Orchard to the Marketplace - from the ground up. We specialize in gourmet California almond products for every occasion including weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, corporate gifts, welcome bags, VIP gifts and so much more.
Stanislaus County ag values fell 2 percent in 2018 Stanislaus County farmers and ranchers produced agricultural commodities valued at $3.5 million in 2018, a decline of 2 percent from the 2017 value of $3.6 million. The values of ag commodities for 2018, the most recent year for which data was available, are outlined in the annual report issued by the county’s agricultural commissioner. A number of factors impacted the report. Poultry remained a strong industry in Stanislaus County, with chicken values increasing $22 million. Almond values climbed by $51 million gains which were largely attributed to an additional 8,496 acres of the increasingly-popular crop being harvested.
Those increases, however, were more than offset by decreases in walnut values attributed to global competition, fewer nursery products sold than in the previous year, depressed milk prices and the fluctuation of turkey production within the county. The overall number of acres harvested in Stanislaus County fell by 28,623 as a result of a sharp reduction in silage acres harvested. As dairies close, the crop report stated, many silage acres are being planted in almonds orchards which have yet to bear crops. The top 10 agricultural commodities in Stanislaus County were as follows. 1) Almonds, $1.1 billion 2) Milk, $636 million
3) Chickens, $276 million 4) Cattle and calves, $237 million 5) Nursery products, fruit/nut trees, $170 million 6) Silage, $136 million 7) Walnuts, $103 million 8) Almond pollination, $76 million 9) Turkeys, $64 million 10) Peaches, $57 million
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HONORING WEST SIDE AGRICULTURE | 13
THURSDAY, MARCH 19, 2020
Immigration, water issues at forefront for valley ag As a third-generation farmer and member of Congress for the past 15 years, I work every day to support California agriculture. Our farmers, ranchers and dairymen and women do an incredible job to create an abundance of the healthiest food produced in the world for America’s dinner tables. Ag and water issues are their top priorities. Top among them are creating a steady, skilled workforce and building a reliable water supply. Let’s take a closer look at the progress we’ve made the past year.
Labor In California, it is estimated that nearly 60 percent of our 420,000 farm workers are undocumented. The Farm Workforce Modernization Act, which I helped introduce last year - and which has already passed in the House of Representatives with
JIM COSTA strong bipartisan support - will help these workers gain legal status provided they meet certain requirements. It will also reform the current H-2A guest worker program to provide more flexibility for employers, while ensuring critical protections for workers. It also establishes mandatory, nationwide E-verify system for all agricultural employment with guaranteed due process for authorized workers who are incorrectly rejected by the system. The Farm Workforce Modernization Act is one step toward fixing a broken immigration system and
will help build a legal and reliable workforce, for seasonal and permanent farm workers. I am working with my colleagues to build a bipartisan coalition in the U.S. Senate to finalize this legislation so it can be sent to the President. If passed, it would be the first immigration legislation to become law since the Immigration and Reform Control Act of 1986. This bill is good for farmers, farm workers and American agriculture. Not only is it long overdue, it’s the right thing to do.
Water Fixing our aging water infrastructure is no less critical nor easy to do. Our canals are decades old and showing their age. We also need to increase our water supply by using all the tools in our water toolbox. Last month, I introduced The Conveyance Capacity Correction Act, a bill that
would provide $400 million dollars to complete repairs to the Delta-Mendota Canal and the California Aqueduct. Built in 1951 and 1963, both canals are vital but aging pieces of infrastructure responsible for carrying water supplies to residents and farming communities of the central San Joaquin Valley. This bill works in tandem with others I helped introduce this year: • The Move Water Now Act, which helps fund necessary repairs to the Friant-Kern Canal. This canal - and those mentioned above - have been damaged by dramatic sinking ground levels and their capacity to move water has been greatly diminished. These two bills will form part of a financing package along with state and local resources to repair these vital canals. • The SAVE Water Resources Act, which ad-
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dresses the ongoing challenges our valley faces in securing water for our farmers. By implementing competitive financing programs and funding infrastructure projects, this legislation would lay important groundwork for further efforts to expand our valley’s water supply. Fourteen million dollars in funding has already been appropriated to help tackle this issue. • The Nutria Eradication and Control Act, which reauthorizes funding to eradicate and control the population growth of nutria in California. Nutria are an invasive species that present significant issues for our way of life in the valley. They plague our waterways by destroying wetlands and undermining our canals and levees, in turn cause flooding that can have devastating effects for our farmers. I have also been ac-
tively working with state and federal officials on a deal that would create a reliable water supply for farmers and clean drinking water for our communities. The success of agriculture operations in California depends of hundreds of thousands of skilled workers, and the availability of a clean and reliable supply of water is the foundation of our valley economy. I will fight to see that all four of these bills are signed into law. We need to invest in our water infrastructure and fix our broken immigration system now! California’s future depends on it Jim Costa represents California’s 16th District in the United States House of Representatives.
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THURSDAY, MARCH 19, 2020
State government needs to work with farmers, not against them Farmers have no end of worries: Will it rain too little? Will it rain too much? What is ailing the bees? Will the price of nuts be high enough to cover my costs? State government can’t do much to alleviate such worries. But we shouldn’t be increasing them by piling more regulations and reporting burdens onto the backs of farmers. Start with trucks. You’ll find them on every farm. Under a 2014 law, diesel trucks made before 2010 are supposed to be removed by 2023. Most of the gross polluters are big rigs used to haul goods up and down California’s highways. Since only a relative few big trucks are used in farming, farmers were given limited exemptions. A 2018 lawsuit forced the state to alter its rules for granting those exemptions. Now, relatively small diesel trucks – including many pick-ups – fall under the state’s stricter rules. So a farmer who bought a one-and-a-half-ton truck in 2009 to haul farm equipment from one orchard to the next will have to replace it. Never mind that she might use that truck only six or seven times a year or that it rarely leaves the farm; it’s got to go. For keeping an infinitesimally small amount of carbon out of the air, the small farmer will pay an enormous cost - $80,000 to $100,000. That’s nothing compared to the threat of lawsuits. Farmers are not secretive, especially with each other. Sharing information about what works (and what doesn’t) is an essential part of neighbors helping neighbors. For example, when farmers began applying fertilizer through
ADAM GRAY drip and micro-irrigation systems – now it’s called fertigation – they shared their methods and now it’s common practice. Farmers are required to share how much fertilizer, like nitrogen, they use with their local Farm Bureau. Nitrogen helps plants grow and increases yields, but using too much allows it to seep through the root zone and into the groundwater below. The bureau compares yield to use, and if a particular farmer is using too much, they are asked to explain. Fertilizer is expensive, so most farmers are amenable to learning about better methods. In my district, farmers meet annually to discuss practices, problems and solutions. Earlier this month, some 3,000 farmers, mostly from District 21, got together to share information. Now, other entities are insisting this specific farming data should be public, making it available to people who don’t understand farming or who don’t like it. Such people could use that data to sue individual farmers for using more fertilizer than they deem necessary. Big, corporate farms still rare in my district have experts to deal with all the regulations and reporting requirements imposed by the state. Small farmers have only themselves. Sadly, these requirements are driving many small farmers to sell out and move on. Often, the
buyers of their farms are large corporations. As my friend Wayne Zipser, executive director of the Stanislaus County Farm Bureau, told me, “We’re seeing consolidation of farms and dairies, and a lot of it has to do with regulations. The little guy has to do all this reporting and replacing of equipment, but that little guy needs to be out on a tractor.” Virtually everyone in my district knows a farmer. We trust them to farm in safe and sustainable ways. Why? Because it’s in their best interest - and ours. Farmers in the Northern San Joaquin Valley produce food we can trust, food we all want to eat. Worries over water, bees and fees are enough for them to deal with. At some point, piling more regulations, rules and reporting requirements onto their proverbial plates will mean taking food off ours. Adam Gray represents the 21st Assembly District, which includes all of Merced and part of Stanislaus counties.
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HONORING WEST SIDE AGRICULTURE | 15
THURSDAY, MARCH 19, 2020
Giving farmers a voice in Washington on critical issues Anyone who eats food should care about our farmers. But not enough do. People in Washington can’t see beyond their dinner plate and have no idea where their food comes from. Our farmers deserve respect and support from everyone – especially our elected officials. I fought to serve on the Agriculture Committee in Congress because farming is the lifeblood of our local economy here in the Valley. It is also a key part of who we are – and it has been ever since my greatgreat-grandfather came to Manteca to farm peaches in the 1850s. My job is to be a megaphone for our valley farmers’ concerns and a bulldog for their interests. Not enough is getting done out there in Washington, but I’m proud to have notched several important accomplishments on behalf of the men and women who grow food to feed America You can’t talk about agriculture in California without talking about water. Everyone knows we just came off the worst drought in the state’s history – and with a recordlow rainfall for most of California in February, it is more important than ever that we grow and secure our water supply.
JOSH HARDER Enough with the fighting, we need real results. That’s why the very first bill I introduced was a bipartisan solution that is already gaining traction in Congress - even in the midst of the partisan chaos in D.C. The SAVE Water Resources Act would make key investments in our water infrastructure and support important scientific advancements that will help our farmers have the water they need to do their jobs. My bill would increase water storage here in the valley and help farmers prepare for the stringent demands in the state’s groundwater management law. It would also invest millions of dollars in our aging water infrastructure to help us prepare for droughts. Finally, it would provide incentives for the development of privatesector technology to cut evaporation in our reservoirs and help Southern California develop desalination technology so they don’t have to steal our wa-
ter. My bill has support from local elected officials of both parties. And we even had the Stanislaus County Farm Bureau celebrating the bill’s announcement – next to representatives from the Sierra Club. We focused on projects and policies that will help us move forward without all the fighting. It also names four projects here in the valley and statewide that support our water supply, the Del Puerto Canyon Reservoir, the North Valley Regional Recycled Water Program, Sites Reservoir, and Los Vaqueros. It has already received a hearing and has broad bipartisan support. I am proud we’ve worked to bring the first new federal funding to our area for a water storage project in 50 years. We got $14 million in the federal budget for the four projects in my bill. Combined, they will increase our water storage capacity by about two million acre-feet. That’s how much storage we’re short. Droughts aren’t the only threat to our water infrastructure. Some farmers have noticed a furry invader who threatens our levies and canals – the nutria – a giant swamp rat from South America. Nutria were first spot-
ted in 2017 and since then nearly 100,000 have been removed from an area between the Delta and Merced County. These things are a menace. They threaten our water infrastructure but can also eat the roots of almond trees and destroy our native wetlands. I worked with Louisiana Republican Garret Graves to pass a bipartisan bill that will provide the federal support California farmers need to get rid of these pests. The program we’re bringing back worked wonders for Maryland – and we hope it can do the same for our farmers in California. But water infrastructure (and the critters threatening it) aren’t the only concern for our farmers. I also hear from people concerned about trade. I was proud to support the bipartisan United StatesMexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) last year.
When some people balked at the deal, I pushed for it to be brought up for a vote. My community needed it, plain and simple. The agreement will give valley farmers access and certainty when it comes to selling their products to our trade partners to the north and south. This bipartisan deal also protects American workers from having their jobs shipped overseas. It should be the template for how we do all of our other trade deals moving forward. Next, we’re focused on trade deals with China and India especially. The other major issue I hear about is access to labor – which is why I supported the passage of the first bipartisan immigration bill the House of Representatives has passed in decades. The bill would give our farmers the guaranteed source of farm labor they need to work the fields. I heard way too of-
ten about dairy farms that were struggling because they didn’t have the labor they needed. This bill would fix that. My mission in Washington is to work with folks on both sides of the aisle to get things done. And it’s working. I also want to hear your ideas for how we can improve federal policy to help your business. And my office is always here to help if you’re having an issue with the USDA or any other federal agency. Give me a call in Modesto at 209-579-5458 if you need help. Thank you to all our farmers for feeding our country. We couldn’t do anything else without your efforts. Josh Harder represents the 10th District of California in the United States House of Representatives.
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THURSDAY, MARCH 19, 2020
Merced County Farm Bureau continues proud tradition of giving back to community Merced County Farm Bureau has a proud history of giving back to our local communities through various donations, participation in local field days and scholarship programs. This year has been no different and our “Salute to Ag” is to focus on the deserving students and teachers that have worked hard to achieve successes in our agricultural community. Each year, Merced County Farm Bureau (MCFB) awards a host of scholarships to high school seniors who are continuing their education in an
BREANNE RAMOS agriculturally-related field. This year, we were able to award 15 scholarships totaling $11,750. Two of these students are from Gustine FFA – seniors Aubrie Hazan and Madison Woods. Aubrie has been very active in various programs in the community and Gustine High
Saluting West Side agriculture
School. She plans to attend Modesto Junior College and study animal science. Madison has also been active in the community and the California Junior Livestock Association. She plans to study agriculture business and attend Texas Tech University. Other students who received a MCFB scholarship are Michael Bray and Hayley Vargas of Atwater FFA, Haven Christy of Delhi FFA, Katherine Horal and Madilyn Slate of Golden Valley FFA, Isabel
We would like to acknowledge our local farmers and their families for the tough job they do, and the many contributions they make in improving the quality of our lives.
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CONTINUED FROM PAGE 16 Patterson of Hilmar FFA, Gabrielle Mix of Le Grand FFA, Jennifer Guadalupe Garcia of Livingston FFA, Emmanuel Marquez Yanez and Megan Ebner of Los Banos FFA, Oscar Torres of Merced FFA, Joshua Simas of Pacheco FFA and Alyssa Vander Woude of Stone Ridge Christian FFA. Merced County Farm Bureau has long been the holders of funds generated for the Farm Workers Children’s Scholar-
ship. The committee felt two students were deserving of this award. Andrea Esquivel of Stone Ridge High School and Kristopher Jimenez of Pacheco High School were each awarded $500 for their college endeavors. In addition, our Young Farmers and Ranchers (YF&R) awarded two scholarships each totaling $250 to Paola Ramirez and Oscar Torres. Paola is attending Merced College and Oscar is an FFA student at Merced High School. The Arthur R. Nutcher Scholarship rounds
out the scholarships that were awarded this year. Selected by the Nutcher Family in remembrance of Art, four students were awarded a scholarship to continue their education. In total, the family awarded $6,000 at various levels to Michael Bray, Antonio Puente, Emmanuel Marquez Yanez and Andrea Esquivel. Merced County Farm Bureau unveiled a new program this year for teachers in grade levels TK-6 called Rooted in Ag-
See RAMOS | PAGE 18
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CONTINUED FROM PAGE 17 riculture. This program replaces our Teacher Appreciation Night that we held for approximately five years. Rooted in Agriculture allows teachers to document an agriculture lesson and submit it to our organization for a potential award. The program was established to reward teachers who have engaged their students in an agriculture activity. Teachers can use materials from Ag in the Classroom, California Milk Advisory Board, their school garden, etc. All we ask is
that they document the lesson and turn it in for potential credit. The program is set to present one teacher a $500 award that they can use for school supplies, a field trip, etc. Our committee was so impressed with the applications that they awarded three $500 awards to teachers of R. M. Maino Elementary (Los Banos), Shaffer Elementary (Atwater) and Winton Elementary (Winton). Sergio De Alba of R. M. Maino provided students with a multi-faceted lesson plan of a family farm business where students learned to manage their money, the necessities of various
THURSDAY, MARCH 19, 2020
crops such as citrus and table grapes and development of a business plan. Cristen Cornaggia of Shaffer Elementary focused on math and how it relates to a dairy operation. She was able to tie in calculation scenarios involving nutrition and vaccination needs. Kate Murphy of Winton Elementary School had students research robotics in agriculture. Students were asked to select a robotic component in farming, research the advances and then market it to their fellow students. We want to thank the students and teachers for applying as we appreciate
their time and dedication to agriculture. If you have questions about the above or have an issue you’d like to discuss with our office, we always welcome the opportunity to engage the community. Breanne Ramos is the executive director of Merced County Farm Bureau, a non-profit, grassroots, non-governmental organization that advocates for farmers, ranchers and dairy families that live and/or work in Merced County. She can be reached at (209)723-3001 or by email at bramos@ mercedfarmbureau.org.
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