The Peterson brothers, the Kansas farmers who vaulted to worldwide fame with their parody video I’m Farming And I Grow It, have returned with “Farmer Style,” a parody of the hit song and video Gangnam Style.

http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/egov/Press_Releases/Press_Release.asp?PRnum=12-044

Approximately 163-square miles in Tulare County will be restricted for the movement of citrus fruit and citrus plants following detections of the Asian citrus psyllid (ACP) in the Lindsay/Strathmore and Terra Bella areas. The restrictions will encompass two zones, each with a five-mile radius surrounding the find sites.

Because of variations with standard quarantine protocol for this pest, these restrictions, technically, are not considered a quarantine. This is an interim step, permitted under state law, to establish protection against spread of the pest while CDFA and the Tulare County Agricultural Commissioner’s office continue to evaluate whether the detections are evidence of an established ACP population, or non-breeding hitchhikers brought into the corridor along State Highway 65 from infested counties in Southern California. Additional information, including maps of the restricted areas, is available at http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/plant/PE/InteriorExclusion/acp_restrictedareas.html .

The restrictions prohibit the movement of nursery stock out of the zones unless it has been grown in approved pest-resistant structures. Citrus fruit may move outside the zones if it has been commercially cleaned and packed, which includes the removal of stems and leaves. Any fruit that is not commercially cleaned and packed, including residential citrus, must not be removed from the property on which it is grown, although it may be processed and/or consumed on the premises.

The disease carried by the ACP, huanglongbing, or citrus greening, which is fatal to citrus, has not been detected in Tulare County and, to date, has been found at just one property in California – in Hacienda Heights, Los Angeles County. Huanglongbing is known to be present in Mexico and in parts of the southern U.S. Florida first detected the pest in 1998 and the disease in 2005, and the two have now been detected in all 30 citrus-producing counties in that state. The University of Florida estimates the disease has tallied more than 6,600 lost jobs, $1.3 billion in lost revenue to growers and $3.6 billion in lost economic activity. The disease is also present in Texas, Louisiana, Georgia and South Carolina. The states of Hawaii, Arizona, Mississippi and Alabama have detected the pest but not the disease.

The ACP was first detected in California in 2008 and is known to exist in Ventura, San Diego, Imperial, Orange, Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Riverside counties. If Californians believe they have seen evidence of huanglongbing in local citrus trees, they are asked to please call CDFA’s toll-free pest hotline at 1-800-491-1899. For more information on the Asian citrus psyllid and huanglongbing, please visit: http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/plant/acp/

On December 10, the California Department of Food and Agriculture Fertilizer Research and Education Program (FREP) is teaming up with a group of science and agricultural experts from the Netherlands and UC Davis to hold a one-day seminar in Davis on water efficiency and water quality.

Scientists and policy makers in the Netherlands have many decades of experience with these issues due to the country’s important agricultural sector and its unique geography – 20 percent of the country is below sea level, requiring creative approaches to managing water.

Wageningen University in the Netherlands has a memorandum of understanding with UC Davis to collaborate on water issues. Both institutions and FREP believe there are opportunities for information sharing about technological advances that can be used to help solve water quality and efficiency challenges facing farmers and ranchers. For example,  FREP has been actively engaged in funding research to support efficient use of nitrogen fertilizers and, thus, limit the movement of nitrates to surface and groundwater systems. However, there has been little coordination with other countries, like the Netherlands, that have experienced similar issues.

The water seminar is expected to facilitate business-to-business and business-to-government opportunities. Those in academia, government, and the agriculture industry are encouraged to attend.

http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/State_Board/pdfs/CongressionalDelegationFarmBill_Nov2012.pdf

Dear Members of the California Congressional Delegation:

On behalf of the California State Board of Food and Agriculture, we strongly encourage congressional action on the 2012 Farm Bill prior to January 1, 2013. The farm bill is of critical importance to California and the nation in supporting jobs, investing in rural communities, and enhancing our agricultural infrastructure.

As the nation’s largest agricultural state with a record $43.5 billion in farm receipts, inaction on the farm bill will have direct repercussions on California’s economy. Within international trade, California agricultural exports stimulate an additional $22 billion in economic activity within state. Export growth and market development programs are provisions supported within the farm bill.

We also understand the impact to our economy in terms of health care costs. More than $21 billion is spent in California on health care and lost productivity as a result of diet related illness (obesity). The specialty crop and nutritional programs contained within the farm bill assist in promoting healthy foods within our communities that help to lessen the impact of diet related illness.

The farm bill is not only about agriculture, it is about conservation programs to support clean water and clean air; nutrition programs to assist those impacted by food insecurity; and research to ensure food safety and to promote technical innovation and improved efficiencies on the farm. We need a farm bill for California that meets the diverse needs of this state and provides for a robust food and farming system.

We respectfully request that you take action to help pass a 2012 Farm Bill.

Sincerely,
Craig McNamara
President (California State Board of Food and Agriculture)

An account of Thanksgiving in Sacramento in 1850, the year California became a state, describes a scene where New Englanders in residence gathered to celebrate a holiday unfamiliar in the west but already traditional for them, and put on a feast for all, whether or not they were from New England.

That spirit of celebration and generosity, of expressing thanks and giving to others, continues to build to this day in California and around the country. In present day Sacramento, state employees mark the holidays with an annual food drive that CDFA is proud to coordinate, along with our partners at California Emergency Foodlink.  Foodlink is Sacramento County’s official food bank and feeds approximately 102,000 individuals per month in the county. Of these individuals, approximately 35,000 are children and 8,000 are seniors. In 2011, Foodlink distributed over 12 million pounds of food in Sacramento County. Efforts like this are ongoing at food banks everywhere.

To help Foodlink achieve its mission, the 2012 Food Drive goal is to surpass last year’s generous donation level of 618,000 pounds. I call upon all state agencies and departments to help us achieve this goal. We’re off to a good start. Last week, in preparation for Thursday’s holiday tables, state employees donated nearly 1,400 frozen turkeys–almost 10 tons–bringing them to a truck at CDFA headquarters. The Food Drive continues throughout the holiday season, and I know our employees will continue to look for ways to reach out to those who need a little help.

I am thankful for our innovative farmers and ranchers and the great bounty we enjoy in this very special state, and I am proud of the efforts of our employees and many others to share that bounty with those in need.  Food access statewide is a key priority of Ag Vision, a collaborative effort to plan for the future of agriculture. The California State Board of Food and Agriculture, a founding partner in Ag Vision, has committed to doubling California farm contributions to food banks by 2015. California’s farmers produce an abundant variety of fresh, nutritious food and are in a unique position to help the hungry. This is the perfect time of year for them and all of us to do just that.

I would like to wish you and yours a happy Thanksgiving and a joyous 2012 holiday season!