From Morning Ag Clips

USDA Red, the world’s first true red spinach variety has been developed and released by the Agricultural Research Service.

Spinach has always been known as a green leafy vegetable. There are leafy vegetables often called red spinach. But these are actually red-leaf amaranths (Amaranthus spp.) or other plants such as Red Goosefoot (Blitum rubrum), not true spinach (Spinacia oleracea). There are currently some true ”red” spinaches on the market, but the red color is limited to the veins of the leaves. The red-veined spinach variety Bordeaux is a parent of USDA Red.

Spinach consumption (and production) in the United States dropped from 2.3 pounds per person to 1.6 pounds in 2006 following an Escherichia coli outbreak in 2006, and it has never fully recovered.

“A true red spinach like USDA Red will bring excitement to the spinach market and could help attract people back to eating spinach. It can be used as baby or ”teen” leaf in salad bags, as bunched products, and in spring mixes for fresh-market consumption. The red color in spring mixes is currently provided by red lettuce, radicchio or chard. Red spinach will give processors another choice,” said ARS research geneticist Beiquan Mou, who developed the new variety. Mou is with the Crop Improvement and Protection Research Unit in Salinas, California. USDA Red spinach also works frozen or canned.

Spinach is one of the most desirable leafy vegetables with high levels of beta-carotene (provitamin A), lutein, folate, vitamin C, calcium, iron, phosphorus, and potassium.

The red color of USDA Red comes from the phytonutrient betacyanin rather than the more common anthocyanin. Betacyanin is a potent antioxidant that has been shown to significantly reduce oxidative stress in patients and may even help in preventing chronic pathologies, inflammation, and cancer, according to the scientific literature.

The antioxidant capacity of USDA Red was 42–53 percent higher than other spinach cultivars in five tests conducted over three years.

‘Betacyanin adds another benefit to a plant already loaded with phytonutrients, making spinach a true ”super food,”‘ Mou added.

USDA Red is a semi-flat type of spinach with a medium growth rate and semi-erect leaves. Its leaves are spade-shaped with round-pointed tips and purple-red veins and petioles. Compared with other spinach varieties, it has moderate resistance to bolting.

ARS has applied for a Plant Variety Protection certificate for USDA Red and the agency is seeking a partner to license production of seeds for the market.

“Ultimately, consumers will benefit from having access to new vegetable products that are exciting and good for them,” Mou said. This new variety is the result of traditional breeding.

The California Department of Food and Agriculture is celebrating its 100^th anniversary as a state agency in 2019. Throughout the year this blog will feature a number of items to commemorate this milestone. Today we continue with the Centennial Reflections video series, featuring CDFA employees remembering their histories, and the agency’s.

News Release from the Environmental Protection Agency

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has recognized the Calgren Dairy Fuels Pipeline Project and five other groups and individuals nationwide for their innovative work on clean air projects. The 2019 Clean Air Excellence Awards are given to state, local, tribal, and private sector programs that educate the public in improving air quality or reducing harmful air pollutants that threaten health and the environment.

Redding-based Calgren Renewable Fuels/Maas Energy Works was awarded the Clean Air Technology Award for the Calgren Dairy Fuels Pipeline Project. Calgren Renewable Fuels and Maas Energy Works are pioneering the development of dairy digesters throughout California’s Central Valley, leading to emission reductions of methane, carbon dioxide, ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, and other criteria pollutants by more than 130,000 MT-CO2e each year. The digester at Circle A dairy (Tulare Co ) that came online earlier this year is among more than a dozen facilities clustered together that are transforming biogas from manure lagoons into pipeline quality, renewable natural gas.  

“The Calgren Dairy Fuels Pipeline Project is transforming waste into fuel and reducing thousands of tons of harmful pollutants each year,” said Mike Stoker, EPA’s regional administrator for the Pacific Southwest. “This innovative project can serve as a model nationwide to reduce pollutants and create energy.”

Established in 2000, the Clean Air Excellence awards recognize programs and individuals that serve as pioneers in their fields, advance public understanding of air pollution, and improve air quality. 

Quote from CDFA secretary Karen Ross: “We appreciate the contributions of Calgren and Maas to climate smart agriculture in California, and it’s good to see that the EPA does, as well. Dairy digesters and the fuels pipeline are part of a critically important renewable energy approach that demonstrates how farmers are part of the climate change solution.”   

Link to EPA news release

CDFA will be at the fifth annual Latino Farmer Conference on Tuesday, November 19, at the International Agri-Center in Tulare. There will be representation from several CDFA programs, including the Farmer Equity Advisor, CalCannabis, the Office of Environmental Farming and Innovation, and the divisions of Inspection Services and Animal Health and Food Safety Services.

The conference will feature two workshop sessions, a large exhibitor booth and trade show area, a farmer panel discussion, ample opportunity to network, and much more!

Registration is open to all farmers, ranchers, and agriculture organizations statewide. Please register on the conference website: https://latinofarmerconference.ncat.org/register.php.

By Pamela Kan-Rice, UC ANR

California’s working landscape and the industries associated with agriculture and natural resources contribute significantly to the state’s economy, according to a new study by the California Community Colleges Centers of Excellence for Labor Market Research, California Economic Summit and the University of California’s Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources.

“When people think of California’s economy, they think of entertainment, information technology and other industries. They may not think of working landscape,” said Glenda Humiston, University of California vice president, agriculture and natural resources. “People may be surprised to learn that California’s working landscape accounts for 6.4% of the state’s economy, supports more than 1.5 million jobs and generates $333 billion in sales.”

Results of “California’s Working Landscape: A Key Contributor to the State’s Economic Vitality” were announced by Humiston and Karen Ross, California Department of Food and Agriculture secretary, during the Ecosystem Vitality and Working Landscapes session at the California Economic Summit at the DoubleTree by Hilton Fresno Convention Center in Fresno.

To measure the economic impact of the working landscape, researchers from the Centers of Excellence, California Economic Summit and UC Agriculture and Natural Resources analyzed federal data associated with employment, earnings and sales income of the nine segments that are essential to the working landscape: agricultural distribution, agricultural production, agricultural processing, agricultural support, fishing, forestry, mining, outdoor recreation and renewable energy.

Their analysis of 2018 data from the North American Industry Classification System showed the value of the working landscape in California comes in ahead of the health care, real estate, retail and construction industries. The top five economic drivers were government (21.9%), manufacturing (10.2%), information (9.3%), professional, scientific and technical services (7.5%), and finance and insurance (6.4%).

The researchers found the nearly 70,000 businesses associated with the working landscape paid $85 billion to workers in 2018 and generated $333 billion in sales income. In terms of job numbers, earnings, sales income and number of establishments, four segments dominate: agricultural distribution, agricultural production, agricultural processing and agricultural support.

Agricultural production provides the greatest number of jobs, more than 325,000, and generates the second highest sales income, $61 billion in 2018. Although agriculture accounts for 79% of working landscape sales income, it is important to note that other working landscape segments are still sizeable when compared to the rest of the nation. 

In addition to evaluating the contribution of the industries to the state’s economy, the researchers measured the importance and impact of the nine working landscape segments by region. For example, some segments, although relatively small in terms of employment or sales income, are cornerstones of local economies and play a critical role in the livelihoods of communities.

The Los Angeles/Orange County region, the San Francisco Bay Area, and San Joaquin Valley have the greatest concentration of jobs for agricultural distribution, agricultural processing, agricultural support, mining and renewable energy. The San Joaquin Valley leads in agricultural production, followed by the Central Coast. Los Angeles/Orange County has the most forestry, fishing and outdoor recreation jobs.

This report does not include economic values for ecosystem services provided by California’s working landscape such as clean water, nutritious food and a livable climate, or intangible goods that contribute to human well-being, such as recreation, aesthetic inspiration and cultural

To read the report “California’s Working Landscape: A Key Contributor to the State’s Economic Vitality,” visit http://ucanr.edu/WorkingLandscape. A one-page executive summary is available at http://bit.ly/2WTA7Vz.

Quote from Secretary Ross: “It is gratifying to see such a comprehensive study – the first report we know of that quantifies the full economic contribution of California’s working lands. It’s much more than just agricultural production – it’s the full range of products, services and jobs, and it all starts with dedicated stewardship of lands that sustain us.”

CDFA and the Netherlands have reaffirmed their commitment to work together on climate smart agriculture in addition to water management, ag-tech, food waste, antimicrobial resistance, and dairy farming. CDFA secretary Karen Ross and the Netherlands assistant vice minister for agriculture, Guido Landheer, met today in Fresno to sign a letter of intent renewing an international collaboration that began in 2015. The parties agreed to exchange knowledge and expertise to work towards climate smart agriculture by fostering innovation and sharing ag technology solutions.

“The ongoing collaboration that exists between the Netherlands and California speaks to our innovative spirit and shared understanding of the importance of this work,” said Secretary Ross. “In connecting from different parts of the world, we share not only what we have learned, but collectively aim for global solutions to address climate change, and ensure resiliency and agricultural sustainability worldwide.”

The signing was part of a visit from a Dutch government delegation to California’s Central Valley. The goal of this visit is to further develop ideas for a Dutch ag tech presence in California. California and Dutch stakeholders — including the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources (UCANR) and FME, the entrepreneurial organization for the Dutch technology industry — also met as part of a roundtable meeting to discuss opportunities for digitalization and automation.

The California Department of Food and Agriculture is celebrating its 100^th anniversary as a state agency in 2019. Throughout the year this blog will feature a number of items to commemorate this milestone. Today we continue with the Centennial Reflections video series, featuring CDFA employees remembering their histories, and the agency’s.

In January 2018, livestock owners, veterinarians and consumer advocates came together in support of a new law regulating antibiotic use in livestock in an effort to forestall the development of antimicrobial resistance and promote both animal health and human health.

This law moved the oversight of all medically important (dual purpose antibiotics used for both human and livestock health) under the oversight of a veterinarian when the drug is used in livestock.  It also limited the use of these antibiotics in livestock and funded CDFA to gather critical data needed to help provide guidance to veterinarians with the intent of enabling enhanced stewardship of these critical drugs.  

While data gathering is just getting underway, CDFA recently released two reports that begin to build the data needed by veterinarians as they work to protect animal health now and in the future.  The Antimicrobial Use and Stewardship (AUS) Program Annual Report outlines data collection and stewardship projects currently under way and the Veterinary Feed Directive Report more specifically provides baseline data relative to the use of antibiotics in feed.  Follow this link for more information about the AUS Program.

At its monthly meeting today, the California State Board of Food and Agriculture heard a cautiously optimistic appraisal of agriculture’s future through 2050 from economist Dr. Daniel Sumner, director of the Agricultural Issues Center at UC Davis. Dr. Sumner believes that net farm income will continue to grow, even though it may experience ups and downs, and that growth specifics will hinge on the management of five key cost factors:

Labor: Because of the relatively high cost of labor in California, there is a crucial need for innovation to offset that disadvantage. Fruit and vegetable commodities that remain highly labor intensive will face challenges, although guest workers and innovation may provide some relief. Commodities that can cost-effectively manage labor intensity will be more competitive.

Water: Drought, climate change and groundwater regulation are likely to mean a decrease in water available for irrigation. By 2050 effective regulations may minimize the loss of agricultural productivity and lead to a more economically sustainable water system with moderate investment in infrastructure to store and move water. Regulatory change must include innovative policy and rules to secure property rights, and markets to allow for water transfers and groundwater recharge.

Climate Change: The changing climate is likely to drive changes in crop production, especially shifting locations and planting crops or varieties better suited to new climate conditions. We may also expect shifts in locations of crops globally by 2050, so California farms may face new competition for some traditional crops and may switch to crops that had been grown previously in warmer areas. We can also expect different pest pressures. Nonetheless, no unmanageable changes seem to be likely by 2050, given the close attention of researchers and growers.

Regulations: California regulations raise costs of agricultural production in California relative to some competitors, especially competitors in the rest of the United States and in developing countries. California agriculture may mitigate some costs of regulations, in areas like technology or land prices that fall below where they would otherwise be to accommodate higher production costs.

Research and Development: Globally, farm productivity is increasingly reliant on private-sector R&D, but the role of public research and extension remains vital in many situations. California has a long history of having the world’s top public agricultural research enterprise, which has delivered tangible benefits to California producers and consumers. Given the challenges ahead, including challenges to adapt to climate change and regulations, renewed investment seems vital, but the prognosis is uncertain at best. This may mean that more of the R&D effort will shift to private funding and industries unwilling to support such effort will fall behind. The good news is that California is well suited to embrace food and farm trends and anticipate complex customer demands. 

Dr. Sumner states that these five factors will affect all industries and regions to varying degrees and will drive the supply side of California agricultural adjustments between now and 2050, and he believes that overall demand for California Ag products will remain strong as long as income growth continues and consumers continue to make specific choices based on diet and on-farm practices.