Planting Seeds - Food & Farming News from CDFA

Monthly Archives: September 2015

2015 water year hottest and driest on record – from the California Department of Water Resources

The turn of the calendar from September to October each year goes without fanfare in most of California, but for the Department of Water Resources’ (DWR) State Water Project (SWP), each October 1 is the start of a new water … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Exports suffer as California rice crop takes hit in drought – from the Sacramento Bee

By Ryan Lillis It’s harvest time in Sacramento Valley rice country, and like a lot of farmers in the state, rice grower Fritz Durst loves the idea that California agriculture helps feed the world. It’s more than an idle boast. … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

An interview with State Food and Ag Board President Craig McNamara – from the Environmental Defense Fund

By Eric Holst Craig McNamara embodies agricultural leadership in California. He has farmed a 450-acre organic walnut orchard in Winters, California for the past 35 years. He’s been an innovator in implementing conservation practices on his land that both enhance … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

It’s your duty to go to your county fair – op-ed from the Sacramento Bee

By Joe Mathews I feel guilty for having failed, as of this writing, to fulfill a central responsibility of California citizenship. I haven’t been to my county fair this year. The Los Angeles County Fair can be an ordeal. The … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

The drought, a historical perspective – from the UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences

                                    By Jay Lund California’s ongoing drought will continue to break records and grab headlines, but it is unlikely to be especially rare … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Food Safe Families with Oakland school children, the USDA and a ‘Big League Foodie’

I spent an energizing afternoon at Parker Elementary School in Oakland this week, where students took full advantage of a presentation about how to handle, prepare and store food safely and help protect their families from food poisoning. USDA’s Food Safety and … Continue reading

Posted in Agricultural Education, Food Safety | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Nation’s first food waste reduction goals set – from the USDA

USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack and Environmental Protection Agency Deputy Administrator Stan Meiburg have announced the United States’ first-ever national food waste reduction goal, calling for a 50-percent reduction by 2030. As part of the effort, the federal government will lead … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

What’s your water footprint? From the California Rice Commission

The drought has brought increased attention to water supplies and use in California. The California Rice Commission asked the nationally known science and engineering company Exponent to find out how much water is consumed in a typical day by an … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

In praise of farm dogs – from the Fresno Bee

By David Mas Masumoto We have always had a farm dog. The first dog I can remember was appropriately named Dusty. Pat her short fur and a cloud of sandy loam dust always puffed into the air. I didn’t know … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Sales from US organic farms up 72 percent

Today, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) released the results of the 2014 Organic Survey, which show that 14,093 certified and exempt organic farms in the United States sold a total of $5.5 billion in organic … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment