A Special Supplement to the West Side Index & Gustine Press-Standard
Thursday, March 14, 2019
2 | CELEBRATING WEST SIDE AGRICULTURE
THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2019
Family ties to warehouse, Supporting Agriculture farming operation spannedRECEIVE and Farm Families UP TO more than seven decades RECEIVE UP TO CROWS LANDING - A local bean warehouse operation which traces its West Side roots back more than seven decades recently changed hands, bringing to a close the Dompe family involvement in the operation. Dompe Warehouse marked its 75th anniversary last year, said Paul Dompe, who oversees that arm of the family-owned agricultural interests. The warehouse, along with the family’s farmland, were sold in the recent transaction, Dompe said, closing a West Side legacy which spanned three generations. The Dompe family got its start in San Joaquin Valley agriculture in the early 1930s, according to an article in the California Bean Shippers Association. Dompe said his grandmother, seeing opportunity in the San Joaquin Valley, brought her fam-
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ily north from Ventura growing enough beans that County after her husband they thought they should was killed in a farming ac- b e p r o c e s s i n g t h e m , ” cident and started farming Dompe told Mattos Newspapers. in the Tracy area. In addition to cleanAfter starting with 80 acres of beans and alfalfa, ing and storing their own the family expanded to 350 beans, the warehouse ofacres in the Tracy-Verna- fered the added benefit of 209-826-4807 www.youngsair.com 209-826-4807 retaining www.youngsair.com 209-826-4807 www.youngsair.com employees into lis area in the mid-1930s. Three brothers - Ameri- the winter months, long afco (Paul’s father), Peter ter the harvest was comJ. and Frank M. Dompe - plete. While his uncles handled later moved to the Westley area, but after Pearl the farming operation, Harbor that operation was Dompe said, his father taken over by the USDA to looked after the waregrow Guyule, which was house. “We started doing proused to manufacture rubcessing for others, and ber for the government. The brothers moved on, buying and selling beans,” developing 320 acres of he commented. “We now land south of Patterson to buy the beans from growers and sell them to the plant pinto beans in 1942. That winter, according bean trade.” The Dompe cousins to an article in a California Bean Shippers Association were actively involved in publication, the Dompes the various enterprises purchased an elevated while growing up. “We were all raised in grain warehouse in Crows Landing. “They started accumulating ground, and were See DOMPE | PAGE 3
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THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2019
DOMPE
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2 the business,” he said. “As kids, we were out hoeing weeds in the field or sweeping the warehouse. All the younger Dompes participated in what their father was doing.” The family added three warehouse buildings over time - the first of which was a bulk handling facility which was the only one in the area at the time which used a belt system to fill and empty the massive bins, which were 20 feet square and 30 feet deep. During that time, the warehouse handled only baby Lima beans. Most of those were sold to the Commodity Credit Corporation for the armed forces and the Marshall Plan in Europe. To accommodate that commodity, a second warehouse was built for the sack storage of beans. The warehouse operation grew as more land
came under irrigation and a broader range of bean varieties were planted. The operation was modified to handle smaller lots of beans. The evolution continued with interest shown in the area by seed companies. In response, the Dompes built a specialized bean seed house with the capability of maintaining the purity and identity of the seed beans - an entirely different process than handling edible beans. For a time, the company handled bean seed for every major seed company in California. Large Lima beans were introduced in the Crows Landing area in the 1940s - a crop which was very labor-intensive to harvest and sort. Sorting the beans, Dompe said, was an endeavor which required three shifts a day as the operation ran around-theclock.
See DOMPE | PAGE 4
Pictured in a 1970s-era photo in the Dompe Warehouse are, front from left, Herbert Dompe and Peter L. Dompe. In back, from left, are Frank Dompe Jr., Americo Dompe, Paul Dompe, Peter J. Dompe and Tom Dompe.
4 | CELEBRATING WEST SIDE AGRICULTURE
DOMPE
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3 His father, though, had spotted a machine which sorted coffee beans while attending a convention and saw the opportunity to use modified versions to color sort the beans. “The machines were much more efficient,” Dompe reflected. “We have gone through four generations of machines. We originally had 20; now we have one.” The greatest changes in the industry, he added, have been in the processing technology and practices. “The harvesting equipment is the same that we have had for years. We
have made some improvements, but they are still using the same basic machine from the ‘40s and ‘50s,” Dompe noted. Through the years the Dompe cousins assumed their own responsibilities in the overall company. While Paul looked after the warehouse company, Herb Dompe managed a supply company started by the family and Tom W. Dompe, Frank Dompe Jr. and Peter L. Dompe oversaw the farming aspects. All were involved in the recent sale. The face of West Side agriculture has changed markedly through the decades, Dompe reflected. Dompe Warehouse has been able to maintain its volumes despite less acreage being devoted to beans
THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2019
because several warehouses have gone by the wayside. “There used to be warehouses every six miles up the road,” he said. “Now there are three, one in Tracy, one in Patterson and ours.” The family operation grew from modest roots to become a success, Dompe said. His grandparents came through Ellis Island with just enough to get their start in America, he explained, and his father and uncles built on that opportunity. “We have all been very fortunate for the hard work of our parents who started this,” Dompe reflected. “It has been an interesting journey, and it has provided well for us.”
Dompe Warehouse has been operating in Crows Landing for more than 75 years. The business recently changed hands, as the founding family sold the enterprise.
Merced County Farm Bureau pledges $25,000 toward water fight The Merced County Farm Bureau will pledge $25,000 to a legal effort by the California Farm Bureau Federation to challenge recent amendments to the State Water Resources Control Board’s Bay-Delta Water Quality Control Plan and its related Substitute Environmental Document. The county Farm Bureau board made the decision during its February meeting. If the amendments stand in their current form, the plan would require approximately 40 percent of river flows from the Tuolumne, Stanislaus and Merced Rivers to be maintained instream as “unimpaired flow” in support of fishery goals, at tremendous cost to existing water users throughout the region. “The adopted plan goes much further than displacing a major portion of our agricultural community,” Merced County Farm Bureau President Gino Pedretti III commented. “It ensures ramifications for all, as it
complying with the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act.” The California Farm Bureau Federation filed its lawsuit last month in Sacramento County Superior Court. In the lawsuit, the Farm Bureau contends the water board misrepresented and underestimated the plan’s impact on agriculture, and did not consider reasonable alternatives, including habitat restoration projects and predator control, that would better protect the needs of both communities and the environment. “Agriculture is the lifeblood of Merced County. Without water our county and its farms will cease to exist,” commented Merced County Farm Bureau Executive Director Breanne Ramos. “Not only will agriculture fade away, but so will our schools, jobs and community. The plan will devastate Merced County, and our board felt it necessary to take action for all involved.”
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neglects factors such as impacts to our local economy and clean drinking water for eastern Merced County. This is only the first step in the state’s plan, as the board pursues a multi-phased attack in turning its attention to the Sacramento River and its tributaries, delta east side tributaries and delta outflows and interior inflows.” Pedretti said the county Farm Bureau spoke with water board members and other state officials prior to the plan’s adoption, providing tours and outlining the impacts the decision would have on local communities. “Despite the strong evidence we presented, the board voted to adopt the plan,” he said. “We strongly believe the board needs to re-evaluate the science it cited in approving the plan, and the solutions it offered to offset the plan’s significant impacts. Pumping more groundwater to ease the loss of surface water will not be a solution, as we are already committed to
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THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2019
Merced County ag commodity values fell in 2017 The value of agricultural commodities produced in Merced County fell slightly in 2017, and remained well below the all-time high recorded in 2014. Merced County farmers produced commodities valued at $3.4 billion in 2017, the latest year for which a county ag report was available. That was down slightly from $3.5 billion in 2016 and $3.6 billion in 2015. The more recent downturn follows a number of
generally strong years for Merced County agriculture, which peaked at $4.4 billion in ag values in 2014. Milk and almonds continued to be ag leaders in Merced County. The county’s dairy industry produced 54.3 million hundredweight of market milk in 2017, down from 56.9 million the previous year - but a slight uptick in prices boosted the on-farm value of market milk from $858 million to $901 million. Market and manufac-
turing milk combined were valued at $1.02 billion, up from $939 million in 2016. Almond acreage continued to expand in Merced County, with the number of acres harvested increasing from 103,577 to 108,800. Total production was up slightly, while the price per ton fell from $4,900 to $4,869. The county’s almond crop was valued at $596 million in 2017, up from $578.5 million the previous year. Merced County com-
modities were exported to some 80 nations around the world in 2017. Exported commodities ranged from industry leaders such as almonds and alfalfa to specialty crops such as radicchio and fennel. Organic growers have a niche in Merced County agriculture as well. The county had 50 organic producers, 11 organic handlers and four organic processors in 2017. Organic producers grew over 120 different commodities in
Merced County, ranging from asparagus and beets to eggs and milk. The gross sales of commodities grown on over 55,000 acres in organic production topped $275 million, according to the annual ag report. Merced County’s top 15 ag commodities in 2017 were as follows. Numbers in parentheses reflect 2016 rank.
1. Milk, $1.02 billion (1) 2. Almonds, kernels, $596 million (2)
3. Chickens, $375 million (3) 4. Cattle and calves, $235 million (4) 5. Sweet potatoes, $200 million (5) 6. Tomatoes, $118 million (6) 7. Alfalfa hay, $115 million (9) 8. Corn silage, $93 million (7) 9. Eggs, $70 million (11) 10. Nursery products, $58 million (10) 11. Vegetables, $56 million (15) 12. Wine grapes, $49 million (8) 13. Cotton, $49 million (11) 14. Turkeys, $44 million (13) 15. Pollination, $34 million (14)
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Gustine farm supply store fills niche Machinery parts, hydraulic hoses, belts, fencing materials, tools, feed supplies and more come with a cup of coffee and plenty of conversation at a Gustine farm supply store. Ford’s Farm Supply has grown and evolved through the years in response to the ever-changing agricultural landscape of the West Side, but has never lost the informal, old-style atmosphere which greets its loyal customers. Which is just the way owners Rich and Lori Ford like it. “This is not a parts store where you punch a number into a computer and have it tell you where to go find the part,” Rich Ford explained. “It doesn’t work like that here.” Having a good sense for parts and supplies is more important than an automated system, said Ford, who hand writes sales tags at the wooden counter. The Ford family has operated a business out of the location at Highway 33/140 and Linden Avenue for more than 40 years - but the operation bears little resemblance to that of the early days. Ford’s father, Dick Ford, started a tractor repair shop in 1970 on Steve Bell’s ranch and five years later
Ford’s Farm Supply owner Rich Ford also enjoys raising cattle. He has a herd of about 60 registered Herefords and cross-bred cattle.
moved the shop into town. “It was all tractor repair until we started with the farm supply around 1980,” Ford recalled. “We started just selling equipment parts to begin with, just tractor parts without a store front. Steve encouraged to me do farm supply, because they were having to drive 60 miles round-trip for parts. I figured I would take a shot at it and see if I could make it work.” Ford had worked at the shop during high school, and became actively involved after graduating Gustine High in 1976. Initially, Ford said, he also worked on equipment - usually in the field with a service truck as his dad did the shop work - and tried to build a customer base. When the farm supply line got started, he said, “it took off pretty good. “The only thing that slowed it down was my learning curve,” Ford told Mattos Newspapers, “what I needed to stock, and finding the suppliers.” The company jumped into farm supply at a tough time for agriculture, he added, but the diversity helped the business weather the farming downturn. “For us, business was increasing because we were doing things that we hadn’t
done before. We were doing repair, and then the parts and supplies,” Ford remarked. Ford’s father passed away in 2003, and about a year later he shifted the business to focus solely on farm supply. “After dad died I tried to keep (the repair side) going for about a year, but I just couldn’t do it,” said Ford. “The store was too busy. I would close at 6, go feed cattle and then come back and work on equipment until 11 or midnight. I was a little leery about letting (the repair service) go, but the sales actually increased in the store after I quit working on equipment.” The store kept expanding its inventory in response to customer demand, he said, with an emphasis on product lines that filled unmet needs and complemented products already offered by other local retailers. He decided to add a feed line in 2005, for example, in large part to provide a local supply for FFA and 4-H members with livestock projects. “Feed, just in the last two years, has really picked up,” said Ford, who offers hay and sack feed. Other changes have impacted the business.
With volumes of row crop acreage converted to trees, he said, farmers “don’t run their equipment as often or wear out iron as much.” But the store now stocks inventory geared toward nut harvesting equipment, and is also catering to a sizable base of dairy producers. Lori Ford, who joined the business full-time in 1999, handles the books while Rich looks after the parts and farm supply side of the operation. “We are very blessed,” she commented. “It is not easy. Rich works hard at this, and he’s good at it.... and all of our customers are phenomenal.” Like the farmers, the farm supply store operates with a sharp pencil to be as efficient as possible. Most of the store’s customers are farmers with fewer than 1,000 acres who work on thin margins, Ford noted. Managing the inventory and cash flow is one of the greatest challenges of the business, the Fords shared. “You need as much inventory as you can get, but you still have to have the cash flow through the slow period,” Rich Ford explained. “We have to buy baler twine for the season in October,” he said by way of example. “We might have a $30,000 to $40,000 bill to get the best deal, and if you don’t get the best deal you can’t be competitive. It’s a balance.” In addition to owning the supply store, Ford has run cattle since the early 1990s after starting with 10 head. Today he operates a herd of about 60, a mix of registered Herefords and crossbreds. “It is usually a couple of hours a day, and half your weekend,” Ford said of the time demands. He doesn’t mind. “It is so relaxing out there. You go out after a stressful day and watch the cows eating the grass
and the calves running around,” he reflected. “I would like to do that for a living, but I don’t know how many people actually do.” Their farm supply store has suited their lifestyle
well, the Fords said. “”We enjoy the freedom, even though it ties up a lot of time,” Rich Ford noted. “You get to choose what you get to do every day, and be your own boss.”
Rich and Lori Ford own and operate Ford’s Farm Supply in Gustine. The business traces its roots back to inception as a tractor repair shop in the 1970s.
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THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2019
Custom operation lays groundwork for fields, orchards A West Side custom farming operation is focused on laying the groundwork for row crops and trees to thrive.
Kegle’s Custom Farming specializes in preparing the soil for crops to be planted - a process which requires razor-like preci-
Pat Kegle oversees the books for Kegle’s Custom Farming.
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sion and a sharp eye for detail. The Gustine-based operation is overseen by Bill and Pat Kegle, who are
president and secretary of the corporation, and their son-in-law, Eric Medeiros, who is the chief operations officer. In addition to their work with farmers, ranchers and dairy producers up and down the valley, Kegle’s is also active in duck club maintenance and wildlife habitat restoration - projects that have taken the crews from Northern Californian to Mexico. “It is not strictly custom farming,” said Bill, noting that the company has also worked on everything from parking lots to irrigation systems. The tools of the trade for the management team and their employees includes massive quad tractors, excavators and dozers - an evolution from the early days of the business. Bill, who was raised on a large ranching operation in Kansas and Nebraska, got his start in California agriculture when he joined Pat’s family on a Carnation Road chicken ranch after leaving the military. In addition to working on the ranch, Bill had a baling business on the side. The chicken ranch lasted only a few years, at which time Bill went to work for local farmer Harold Mattos. He went to work for
Joseph Gallo Farms in 1984, where he was employed for more than 30 years. He was the farm manager through most of those years. Along the way, Kegle’s Tractors and later Kegle’s Custom Farming were created. Kegle’s Tractor was formed in 1991, and the firm started doing custom work for Joseph Gallo Farms, doing all the ground preparations for the fields. The company started with rented tractors, Bill recalled, but soon after started purchasing the equipment. Kegle’s Tractor was a sole proprietorship from 1991-2003, Pat noted, and primarily worked for Joseph Gallo Farms. The enterprise then incorporated and split into two entities, Kegle’s Tractors and Kegle’s Custom Farming - the entity which is out in the field today. Eric, who graduated Gustine High in 1996, and went on to get an associate degree in soil science, worked at Joseph Gallo Farms for a short time and later was a state employee for four years before joining the family operation on a full-time basis in 2004. He had already been developing the duck club
business as a part-time Kegle’s employee. The company’s work in the clubs helps insure proper drainage and enabled the clubs to better grow the grasses and waterfowl habitat. “It made it a lot easier for them to farm it like (they needed to). It is farming for ducks,” Eric explained. “We started off just mowing, but we wanted to come in and be able to do whatever kind of maintenance they would need so they were just dealing with one person. That is what we have evolved to in order to make it easier for the owners.” Duck clubs are the focal point for the operation several months out of the year. “Every year, from June to October, you have to block off to be in those clubs. It doesn’t work to put anything else into that mix,” Eric explained. The focus shifts through other months of the year. “Land leveling is the biggest thing we do with the farmers,” said Bill. “We get fields ready for the corn crops, especially for the small dairymen who don’t have the equipment
See KEGLE | PAGE 8
8 | CELEBRATING WEST SIDE AGRICULTURE
KEGLE
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 7 to to it themselves. We don’t do the planting.” Kegle’s also does orchard removal, rips the ground and prepares the soil for whatever crop may follow the trees, Eric noted. Precision is critical, and water is the ultimate judge of a job well done, Eric and Bill emphasized. “Drainage is the most important thing. You want to make sure that there are no areas on the field or orchard that hold water. Any standing water is an issue. If water sits, it lowers the yield,” Eric explained. The technical tools of the trade have changed through the years, they said. In the earlier years of the business, Bill and Eric explained, mapping out a field involved manual surveys done in 100-by-100 foot grids, “You had to walk the
THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2019
whole field. You would go onto a computer, and type in numbers for each grid,” Eric said. “If you had a 100-acre field, it would take you the whole day. Now (with a GPS system) you can do a 100-acre field in an hour.” The technology allows Kegle’s to present precise proposals to customers. “We can tell the farmer what we are going to do, and what it is going to cost,” Bill said of the GPS technology and modeling. If a customer has a specific idea in mind for a field, Eric added, the GPS model will verify if the proposed approach will - or will not - work. “This takes the guesswork out of it,” he explained. “Before we move any dirt, we know what the elevation is going to look like, and how much fall is going to be in the field. We know exactly what it is going to be when you are done.”
See KEGLE | PAGE 9
Eric Medeiros, left, and Bill Kegle are pictured with one of the operation’s large quad tractors.
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KEGLE
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 8 Surrounding land has to be taken into account as well in the planning process. “No matter what you are doing, you have to make sure it matches the landscape around it,” Eric emphasized. Kegle’s also has built methane digesters for dairies, and more recently has been called upon by almond growers (primarily in the south valley) to build holding ponds for irrigation water. Bill said some larger growers are developing ponds because the on-site storage provides greater capacity and control over irrigation. “The pond gives them the capacity to irrigate the whole thing within a day or two,” said Bill, who is a licensed contractor. “If they are just (irrigating) from wells, they can only do so much.” The Kegle’s employees
are instrumental to the success of the company, the management team emphasized. The company employs about six yearround workers, some of whom have been with Kegle’s for many years. The workforce swells closer to 20 through the summer months. “They have to be able to operate pretty independently,” Pat shared. “We sometimes have multiple projects, and are spread all over.” The company strives to be self-sufficient so all aspects of its work are handled in-house, and has diversified through the years in response to changing needs and demands. As with other ag-related enterprises, Eric reflected, no two years are alike. “Each year is different,” he commented. “There were times when we didn’t have a winter and worked straight through. There are years like this one where you slow down until things dry out. You have to adapt to each year.”
Excavators are among the tools of the trade at Kegle’s Custom Farming. Pictured are Bill Kegle, left, and Eric Medeiros.
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Trucking company links hay growers, customers Anthony Peters Trucking traces its roots back to the mid-1970s, when Tony Peters and a family member started a small trucking company to deliver their own baled hay to customers, thus eliminating the middle man. Today, under the ownership of Anthony Peters Jr. and his wife Charlotte, the company operates a fleet of more than a dozen trucks whose drivers fan out across California and through western states, primarily Nevada and Oregon, to pick hay for their customers. Peters grew up around the family farming and trucking operation, and formally joined the business in 1983 - at which time the fleet of equipment included three trucks and one hay squeeze. He bought two family partners out at that time, Peters said, and worked
with his dad on the business. The business incorporated in 1988, and he became sole owner five years later. In the early years, Peters said, he hauled a number of different commodities. “I have hauled tomatoes, sugar beets, Christmas trees. Way back when, I hauled anything to make money,” he shared. But he has always preferred hauling hay, Peters emphasized, and that commodity is the heart and soul of the business he and Charlotte Peters operate with their daughter Natalie Flanagan. The company has grown through the years and evolved with the agricultural landscape. Peters is a broker as well as a hay hauler. “I buy and sell a lot of hay to dairies, feed stores and horse ranches,” said Peters, who serves clients
from the Imperial Valley and Santa Barbara area to the Central Valley and central coast areas. “I buy a lot of hay up in Oregon in Nevada and resell that,” he explained. “A lot of it that I get locally I store so that I have a consistent supply for customers who can only take a load or two at a time.” Mushroom farms have emerged as a new market, Flanagan noted, after growers realized that straw helped promote growth. Flanagan said she has been actively involved in the company for nearly 16 years. In that time alone, she noted, the firm has seen numerous changes, including tighter regulations, new air quality standards which have forced the company to purchase new trucks and a conver-
See PETERS | PAGE 11
Anthony Peters, owner of Anthony Peters Trucking, is pictured with Natalie Flanagan, the company’s finance manager.
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CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10 sion from hand-written to electronic driver logs. In the company’s earlier years, Peters said, he rarely had to look out of state for hay. That has changed with the farming landscape. “With the way the water situation has been, and then the (increase in) trees, it really hit the hay hard. Fifteen years ago, I didn’t go to Nevada hardly at all. Now we run trucks there year-round,” he explained. “Losing so many acres we have to go farther and farther to get hay. We are doing our best to change with the times.” Less frequently, Peters trucks will go all the way to Idaho or Utah for a load, he noted. The company now employs 17 people - who Peters and Flanagan said are instrumental to its success. Treating its employees well - a practice which includes an annual overnight bus trip to Reno for workers and families - is a priority, they emphasized. “Some of them have been around since I was little, and two others started when I did. You usually don’t get that in the trucking world,” Flanagan related. “There is a lot of shortterm employment.” “Any business is only
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Hay for local buyers is kept in storage at the headquarters of Anthony Peters Trucking outside of Gustine. Pictured are Natalie Flanagan, the company’s finance manager, and owner Anthony Peters. as good as the people who work there,” Peters stressed. “I am extremely fortunate to have the people I have.” Charlotte Peters takes the lead in organizing the bus trip and other events which are held to show the family’s appreciation to the employees. The company recently went through a reorganization with Flanagan, the company’s finance manager, taking on additional responsibilities and, for the first time, a dispatcher other than Peters being
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designated. The management structure, Peters said, more evenly distributes responsibilities and gives him more opportunity to focus on sales and other tasks. “It just gave people more specific roles in order to free me up,” he explained. While he grew up around the family farming operation, Peters reflected, he leaned more toward the trucking industry early on. “I saw how hard the farming was when my dad and grandpa were doing it,” he shared. “I just saw a
better opportunity for success in hauling hay than I did in farming, and I love the work.” The choice, he concluded, was sound. “I have enjoyed the people I’ve gotten to meet, and the people I work with every day,” Peters told Mattos Newspapers. “I didn’t have to move away, and was able to be part of a pretty cool community that is very supportive. We were able to raise our kids and grandkids close by..... life doesn’t get much better than that.”
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12 | CELEBRATING WEST SIDE AGRICULTURE
THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2019
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CELEBRATING WEST SIDE AGRICULTURE | 13
THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2019
How foodies, hipsters, and yuppies gave rise to corporate farming Sitting inside any given coffee shop in downtown San Francisco, there are very few safe topics which do not trigger one person or the next into an irate rage about the bane of the military-industrial complex, plastic straws, the existential threat that is climate change, or megacorporate GMO “Big Ag.” These conversations happen over plates of avocado toast, kale chips, cauliflower cheese and gluten-free bacon. While those of us who come from an agricultural background can typecast coastal urban elite yuppies as harshly as they stereotype us, we do ourselves no favors by promoting the same kind of animosity and demonization which has become the norm in Washington, D.C. What we see from the most polarized extremes of our country’s current political spectrum is an absolute refusal to empathize with the other side and a reflex to call anyone who dares stray from the rally-
ADAM GRAY ing cry of their party’s base a traitor. “Build the Wall” “Green New Deal” “Sanctuary City” “Fake News” Too often politicians and voters tie themselves to these slogans without a clear understanding of what they mean or how they’ll occur. And the truth is that party leaders on both sides need the specifics to remain murky because the slogan is usually a lot more appealing than the details. Neither Democrats or Republicans possess the moral high ground across the board, and yet those who try to have open and honest discussions without promoting their hypocrisy are cast as sellouts who
have turned their backs on their moral compass. So what does all that have to do with the avocado toast crowd? A lot actually. While championing family-owned and locallysourced farm-to-fork agriculture, these like-minded groups of people push policies like Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA), cap-and-trade, the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), Renewables Portfolio Standard (RPS), unimpaired flows and curtailed water rights. While there may be a case to made for some of these policies individually, taken as a package they become a tidal wave of increased costs and razor slim margins. Add to that the already comparatively higher costs of operating a business and living in California, and these policies actually fuel the creation of what these groups claim to hate – highly consolidated, corporate-owned megafarms. Take for example the
USDA’s finding that in 2015 farms which yield $1 million or more per year generated 51 percent of the total value of farm production compared with just 31 percent in 1991. Consider also that 36 percent of all cropland in 2012 was on farms with at least 2,000 acres of cropland, compared to 15 percent in 1987. Over the same time, midsize farms fell from 57 percent of cropland operations to 36 percent. This consolidation can be seen even more starkly in livestock. The average egglaying flock size was nearly one million birds in 2012 compared to just 117,000 birds in 1987 while the average dairy herd saw a 1000 percent increase from 80 to 900 cows. While technological advancements such as GPS guidance systems, variable-rate applications, and yield and soil mapping have certainly played a role in these trends towards consolidation, farmers consistently report that the skyhigh costs of doing busi-
ness have forced them to either get bigger or go out of business. Those sky-high costs are even more insurmountable in California. None of this should be unexpected if lawmakers were listening to the agricultural industry. They told us loud and clear that farmers are simply being pushed to consolidate, leave the state, or automate in order to compete. Unfortunately, for most of these policies slogans were louder than facts. While the trend toward consolidation is concerning, it is not all doom and gloom just yet. The Agricultural Census reveals that 97 percent of farms are still family-owned, and even among the largest operations, 86 percent are family farms. In fact, non-family farms produce less than 10 percent of our food, and in California, only 27 percent of our 77,500 farms generated sales over $100,000. But the trend towards consolidation is very real and additional burdens will only
exacerbate the problem. New laws, policies, and regulations on “Big Ag” may sound great as sound bites or hashtags in cities where food comes from the grocery store. But in the communities where that food is grown, those proposals have a very real cost, and it is the family farmers who pay the bill. While ignoring real-life impacts may make it easier to turn a bill into a law, corporate farming operations are all too happy to buy up bankrupt family farms for pennies on the dollar. Progressive minds in the Bay Area and Los Angeles like to wax poetic about buying food from local family farms. What they fail to realize is that is exactly what we have in California, and we all want to keep it that way. Adam Gray represents California’s 21st Assembly District, which includes all of Merced County and a portion of Stanislaus County.
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THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2019
Irrigation water outlook taking shape Farmers and ranchers in the sprawling Central California Irrigation District, which extends from Mendota to north of Crows Landing, can expect a full allocation of irrigation water this year. Those in the smaller Del Puerto Water District, which runs along the I-5 corridor from Vernalis to Santa Nella, are still waiting to learn their final allocation. The federal Bureau of Reclamation’s initial allocation to Del Puerto and similar south-of-the-delta water users was 35 percent of a full contract supply. Anthea Hansen, the Del Puerto district’s general manager, said that the initial allocation is disappointing in light of winter storms that have delivered massive amounts of rain and snow. But her frustration, Hansen said, rests more with the overall situation rather than the initial allocation amount. The bureau, she pointed out, has an obligation to insure its ability to manage summer and fall temperature profiles in the Sacramento River for salmon. “They wanted to get a little further through the winter before they made a big (allocation) commitment they couldn’t keep,” Hansen told Mattos Newspapers. “Do we understand it, yes. Do we like it, no.” Last year, Del Puerto growers wound up with a 50 percent water allocation. Hansen said she believes there is a reasonable possibility that this year’s final allocation will expect that amount. The uncertainty of supply, she added, makes it difficult for growers to plan for the coming year. A full allocation - which the district last received
in 2017 and has gotten only twice in the last 20 years - is just over three feet of water per acre. A regional recycling program is supplementing the district’s supply by delivering treated wastewater from the city of Modesto. That program will expand to bring in water from the city of Turlock as well in the future. Hansen estimates that growers will receive just over four inches of water per acre this year from the recycling program an important resource in a district where every inch of water is critical. The storms of recent months have been beneficial, Hansen added, as the rainfall recharges groundwater and allows growers to preserve water which they may have otherwise had to use for early-season irrigation. “We have delivered very little water in January and next to nothing in the month of February,” Hansen said recently. Growers pay $112 per acre-foot of water delivered through the federal contract. The recycled water is available at a cost of $225 per acre-foot, Hansen reported, while water acquired by the district from supplemental sources runs around $400 per acre-foot. The water costs, she said, are a significant factor in cropping decisions of the district’s growers. Last year, Hansen told Mattos Newspapers, some land in the district was fallowed due to lower commodity prices. “They just didn’t support the cost of federal water these days,” she reflected. All in all, Hansen said, she believes Del Puerto is well-positioned for the year ahead. “I think we have a good
year ahead of us. We have positioned ourselves with options to have some supplemental water should we need it,” she commented. “For this year, at least, my glass is three-quarters full.” Central California Irrigation District The CCID, meanwhile, is an exchange contractor which enjoys much stronger water rights than federal districts such as Del Puerto. General Manager Chris White told Mattos Newspapers that he has been advised that the forecast is for a “non-critical” year, meaning that growers will receive a full allocation of 3.2 feet of water per acre. “The initial forecast was based on the Feb. 1 numbers, and the state has gotten a lot wetter since that time. There is no chance that this is going to go back (to a critical water year),” White stated. The district’s exchange contract states that, even in a critical water year, CCID is to receive 75 percent of its supply. White said CCID growers pay $13 an acre-foot for their base water supply, and can purchase another six inches of water developed from in-district wells at a rate of $40 per acre-foot. Additional water is priced at $95 an acre-foot. The CCID water supply, White said, is adequate to nurture most crops. “It is under what you may need for an alfalfa crop, but most farmers are diversified in the types of crops they have,” White told Mattos Newspapers. “It is an ample amount for the mix of crops within the district.”
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CELEBRATING WEST SIDE AGRICULTURE | 15
THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2019
Almond industry receives trade promotion funding The California almond industry will receive more than $6 million to help identify and access new export markets. United States Department of Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue announced earlier this month that the agency has awarded the Almond Board of California $3.18 million, while Blue Diamond will receive $3.7 million through the Agricultural Trade Program (ATP). The ATP is one of three USDA programs created to mitigate the effects of unjusitified trade retaliation against United States farmers and exporters. The USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service accepted ATP applications totaling nearly $600 million last fall from trade associations, cooperatives and other industry-affiliated organiza-
tions in the United States. “The California almond industry appreciates the funding, which will enable the industry to continue its ongoing, extensive efforts to identify and access new export markets,” said Elaine Trevino, president of the Almond Alliance of California. “The ongoing tariff situation is a very challenging environment for California almond growers.” Amonds are one of California’s top three commodities in terms of value, and the state’s leading agricultural export. The state’s almond industry exports 67 percent of what it produces, making it a valuable commodity that addresses the federal trade deficit. The California almond industry generates about 104,000 jobs, with over 97,000 in the Central Val-
ley - many in areas which suffer from chronic unemployment. The industry also generates more than $21 billion in economic revenue and directly adds more than $11 billion to the size of the state’s total economy. President Donald Trump authorized up to $12 billion in programs to provide assistance to U.S. agriculture through a trade mitigation package announced by Secretary Perdue last September. In addition to the $200 million allocated to the ATP, the package also included the Market Facilitation Program to provide payments to farmers harmed by retaliatory tariffs and a food purchase and distribution program to assist producers of targeted commodities.
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16 | CELEBRATING WEST SIDE AGRICULTURE
THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2019
Almonds add to crop mix on Gomes farm Almonds have been added to the crop mix on the family farm of Tim and Rose Ann Gomes in response to changing trends in the ag landscape. But while the Gomes are joining the ranks of farmers who are turning to permanent crops such as almonds, they are also maintaining a majority of their land in the row crops and open-ground commodities such as alfalfa that have long been their staple. The introduction of almonds represented a shift for the 25-year-old farming operation, said Tim Gomes, and was actually driven by changes in the dairy industry. Many of the crops grown at one time on the Gomes farm were for dairies, he explained, but as dairies grew fewer in number, larger in size and more self-sufficient in producing their own feed, there was less demand for commodities such as corn and oats. “That is why we turned to the trees,” Gomes said. About 200 acres of the 500 operated by the family have been planted into two almond orchards. The first was planted six years ago; the second three years ago. “We put it off for a few
years, but it was the right choice to make,” Gomes said of the transformation. “The biggest challenge is that the start-up is a big expense, and you go three years with no income (until the trees begin producing). You still have all the expenses.” Gomes said he turned to resources such as local almond grower Jim Jasper for guidance with the new orchards. “If we had a question, Jim would be out here to look at what I was doing.... he always had his phone on,” Gomes noted. Stewart & Jasper is the family’s almond processor, he added. The UC Cooperative Extension has been another valuable resource, Gomes pointed out. “It was a learning curve. We would call people like Jim Jasper; we would call the UC Extension if I saw something I wasn’t familiar with. They have answers for you fast, and are very helpful. I still call them,” Gomes told Mattos Newspapers. Gomes said the orchards are nurtured by efficient drip line irrigation system which maximizes water efficiency. “The irrigation systems are very precise,” Gomes explained. “Technology is
just doing wonders.” A specialist visits the orchards weekly to measure soil moisture, providing a snapshot of the soil profile, the amount of moisture available and the recommended amount to be applied. That approach is in contrast to the less accurate and less productive - flood irrigation of the past, Gomes remarked. Well-managed irrigation, he said, is a key element in the increasing yields being produced by almond growers. Gomes said he has enjoyed the addition of almonds to his crop mix. “It kind of rejuvenates you to learn something new. Learning a new crop was fun. Every year it has been something new,” he commented. “I live in the orchards every day. It is a very enjoyable crop to grow.” The almonds complement the row crop commodities which remain a staple on the Gomes farm. Tomatoes, which are grown for DiMare, have been a key commodity for Gomes through most of the 25 years he has farmed. “They have treated us very well over the years,” Gomes said of DiMare. “We grow tomatoes every
The Gomes family of rural Gustine has seen their farming operation undergo a shift with the addition of almond orchards. A new tractor and spray rig were required to accommodate the transition. Tim and Rose Ann Gomes are pictured with daughters Jordynne (front) and Jeanette. year. It is a great crop.” The remaining open ground on his ranches is rotated between tomatoes, cotton and alfalfa. In terms of timing, Gomes said, the almonds fit well with the demands of open ground crops. “We usually grow an early set of tomatoes and a late set so it spreads the work out. We will plant in April, and then we will plant in mid-July. We are not bombarded planting all the acres at one time,” he
explained. “The tomatoes and almonds have worked out well for us,” he added. “I like the diversification between the row crops and the almonds. It is a nice fit right now.” In addition to looking after his own crops, Gomes manages two almond orchards for other property owners (including one Gomes planted a year ahead of his first orchard), and provides a variety of custom farming services.
“We do a lot of commercial work with ground prep, fertilizer application and corn planting,” he said. The family employs two full-time workers and brings in others on a seasonal basis. Every family member is actively involved in some way. Rose Ann Gomes takes care of the books and pa-
See GOMES | PAGE 17
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THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2019
GOMES
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 16 perwork, tending to the growing number of compliance documentation required of farmers. The couple’s two daughters, Jeanette, a senior at Central Catholic, and 9-year-old Jordynne have been raised with a love of farm life. Jeanette said helping on the farm and tending to the flock of sheep that started when she had a 4-H market lamb at age 9 have instilled a love and appreciation of the lifestyle. “That taught me a lot, not just with animals but building fences and working with my hands,” she explained. “You don’t just need academics in your life, you need real-life experiences.” The Gomes family farm has evolved from a modest beginning. Gomes was working as a welder in Newman, he related, but came from an ag background and had a dream of starting his
own farm. “I worked in the welding shop for five years to save money to start farming. The first year we had about 40 acres, and I still worked full-time,” he recalled. “We rented some more ground, and then I worked part-time at the welding shop and farmed full-time for a few years.” The family farm got its start in the Santa Nella area and migrated northward as properties were acquired. The Highway 33 ranch south of Gustine on which the family now lives was acquired more than a dozen years ago, and been their home for the past 10. The lifestyle has suited the family well. “This is a good life we have. I like it out here,” Tim Gomes said. “To be able to raise your family out here, being out in the country and having our nice town, is very good.” “I couldn’t imagine raising my kids any other way,” Rose Ann Gomes concluded.
The Gomes family of rural Gustine walks through a 3-year-old orchard. From left are Tim, Jordynne, Jeanette and Rose Ann Gomes.
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THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2019
Stanislaus County ag commodities see growth in ‘17 Stanislaus County farmers and ranchers produced commodities valued at more than $3.6 billion in 2017, an increase of 12 percent over the previous year. Those figures come from the Stanislaus County agricultural commissioner’s annual report, for which
2017 is the most recent year available. The prior year, the county’s ag industry produced commodities valued at $3.3 billion. The ag report represents gross value of commodities and does not reflect production costs or profits. Almonds and organic
commodities were the county’s leaders in terms of increased values. An increase in harvested acres and higher yields resulted in a $125 million increase in the value of almonds produced by Stanislaus County growers. An increase in the number of organic farmers
and higher prices for their products doubled the value of organic commodities over 2016. Organic products were valued at more than $199 million in 2017, compared to just under $100 million the prior year. Stanislaus County commodities were exported to 106 countries in 2017. Some
62 percent of the county’s nearly 10,000 export certificates issued were to the almond industry, with walnuts second at 22 percent. The top 10 Stanislaus County ag commodities by value for 2017 were as follows.
1. Almonds, all, $1.05 billion 2. Milk, all, $664 million
3. Chickens, all, $255 million 4. Cattle and calves, $233 million 5. Nursery trees, vines, $227 million 6. Walnuts, $164 million 7. Silage, all, $134 million 8. Turkeys, $84 million 9. Almond pollination, $68 million 10. Peaches, $52 million
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