Planting Seeds - Food & Farming News from CDFA

Monthly Archives: October 2013

Secretary Ross co-authors op-ed piece on farms and food banks – from the Monterey County Herald

http://www.montereyherald.com/opinion/ci_24287055/karen-ross-and-sue-sigler-feeding-those-need By Karen Ross and Sue Sigler It’s another day at Ocean Mist Farms in Castroville, and work crews are picking broccoli and cauliflower for two clients — with one harvest bin for retail customers and another for the state’s … Continue reading

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State Board Meeting Highlights the Need for Agricultural Research to Meet Grower Requirements

This week’s meeting of the California State Board of Food and Agriculture focused on agricultural research and how the state can best position itself to meet future research needs.  With increasing on-farm challenges, research institutions need to be flexible and … Continue reading

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Statement on salmonella in poultry

We share the concerns over the recent reports of salmonella illness connected to poultry and wish to convey our empathy for the people who have contracted illness and their families. Food safety is a primary concern of California food producers … Continue reading

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Growing California video series – Here’s the Beef

The next segment in the Growing California video series, a partnership with California Grown, is “Here’s the Beef,” a story about Harris Ranch.

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New California Law Aims to Cultivate Urban Agriculture – from the Los Angeles Times

http://www.latimes.com/local/la-me-urban-agriculture-law-20131003,0,3253879.story SAN FRANCISCO – Sandwiched between rows of homes in the fog-kissed Mission Terrace neighborhood, Little City Gardens provides salad greens and fresh-cut flowers to local restaurants from what was once a weedy vacant lot. Like many of California’s urban … Continue reading

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Glowing Plants – Natural light or controversial GMO? From the Washington Post

Read the original story from the Washington Post Hunkered down in a converted shipping container stationed in a San Francisco parking lot, three young entrepreneurs are tinkering with the DNA of ordinary plants in the hopes of being able to … Continue reading

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News Release – Climate Change Coalition for Specialty Crops releases final report

http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/egov/Press_Releases/Press_Release.asp?PRnum=13-032 As part of the ongoing effort to ensure that California is prepared for the impacts of climate change, the Climate Change Consortium for Specialty Crops has produced a report, Climate Change Consortium for Specialty Crops – Impacts and Strategies for Resilience, which identifies recommendations … Continue reading

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Growing California video series – Apple Hill

This is a reprise post from our Growing California video series. Apple Hill is now open for its annual fall run in El Dorado County.

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Swedish researchers offer hope for bees and colony collapse disorder with new treatment

News release from Lund University in Sweden: A Lund University research team has made an astounding discovery – bees have a battery of healthy bacteria in their honey stomach that protects them. Giving these lactic acid bacteria back to bees … Continue reading

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