In the village of Valthermond in the east of the Netherlands, we visited Wageningen University‘s demonstration farm. Wageningen UR, like UC Davis, is one of the leading agricultural research universities in the world. Here, innovative practices on water and nutrient management as well as soil health are being field tested on the farm – as an incubator for new farming practices that can not only benefit the Netherlands but also has the potential to address food security across the globe.

During the visit in Valthermond we met with Marc van Rijsselberghe, owner of Salt Farm Texel – a producer of salt-tolerant agricultural products. Marc graciously offered us the opportunity to taste his products (tomatoes, potatoes and sea kale) grown with 50 percent sea water. The products are truly amazing and are sold at a premium on supermarket shelves. Marc, like all innovative farmers, took something that was thought to be impossible and made it commercially viable. As we in California address challenges with water quality and saline soils, working with salt-tolerant agricultural products, specifically within the specialty crop sector, can be a positive step in adapting to our changing climate.

While on the farm, we also had the opportunity to get our hands in the dirt, note the qualities associated with having higher organic matter in the soil, and discuss the farming approaches to keep soils healthy. Like California, Dutch farmers understand the importance of healthy soils and what this can mean for productivity, carbon sequestration and environmental sustainability. Farming practices associated with maintaing and increasing organic matter in soils is an area where California truly excels.

In all of our meetings and visits so far, the Dutch have stressed the approach of business, academia and government working collaboratively to solve on-farm challenges associated with climate change. It has resulted in some very impressive work and synergies among various stakeholders. I’m looking forward to a time when we have multi-national collaboration between California and the Netherlands on climate smart agriculture, involving business, academia and government working for a more sustainable future.

Secretary Ross is in the Netherlands as part of a Climate Smart Agriculture policy mission funded in part by CDFA’s Specialty Crop Block Grant Program. This program is a collaboration between the Ministry of Economic Affairs of the Netherlands and CDFA to develop strategies and management practices to enable specialty crop growers to adapt to climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

By Cathie Anderson

The Food Network threw everything from orange push-ups to a vegetable sushi roll at 14-year-old Linden resident Elisabeth Watkins, but she kept her cool and came out a winner on a recent episode of “Chopped Junior.”

The teenager went to New York with her parents, Kenny and Molly Watkins, in August to shoot the show, and though she knew she had won, the only people she was allowed to tell were her parents and her older brother, Kenneth Watkins IV. In the “Chopped” programs, contestants must cook an appetizer, an entrée and a dessert, but the judges try to stump them with four mystery ingredients for each course.

 

As discussions in Paris continue on climate change, I’m excited to be with a California delegation in the Netherlands focusing on Climate Smart Agriculture – defined as an approach for developing the technical, policy and investment conditions for food security amidst climate change.

California and the Netherlands have a lot to share in regards to mitigating and adapting to a changing climate. Like California, the Netherlands is planning ahead to deal with issues associated with rising temperatures, extreme events and a rising sea level. In addition, the Netherlands has an important share of its economy tied to the agricultural sector – it’s the world’s second largest exporter of food and agricultural products. Water quality and water management (surface and groundwater) is critical – with more the 70 percent of the nation below sea-level and with almost 55 percent of the Dutch territory in agricultural production.

In the Netherlands today we had an opportunity to meet with U.S. Ambassador Timothy Broas and embassy representatives for an update on the close collaboration occurring between our countries.

We also met with the Ministry of Economic Affairs to better understand Dutch agricultural production, nutrient management, climate smart agriculture practices, and overall agricultural policy. Sustainability is a key component to everything the Dutch are doing in the farming sector.

Our last visits included a discussion with a regional water board and a tour of JUB Holland, a 105 year old flower producer with innovative practices that include bulb planting in the green spaces of cities and other municipalities.

I’m confident that the many similarities between California and the Netherlands in food production, agricultural research and ground water management will lead to great collaboration on climate smart agriculture – benefitting our farmers through innovative on-farm practices and advanced technology.

Secretary Ross is in the Netherlands as part of a Climate Smart Agriculture policy mission funded in part by CDFA’s Specialty Crop Block Grant Program. This program is a collaboration between the Ministry of Economic Affairs of the Netherlands and CDFA to develop strategies and management practices to enable specialty crop growers to adapt to climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

California is a bountiful state full of some of the most generous and productive land, as well as people. Farmers care deeply about their local communities and many of them contribute to food banks through California Association of Food Banks’ Farm to Family Program. This December is Farm to Food Bank Month and I want to thank the farmers who have so generously donated more than 150 million pounds of fresh, California-grown fruits, vegetables, nuts, dairy and other farm products in 2015.

For those unfamiliar with the program, Farm to Family works with growers, packers and processors to get nutritious farm products distributed to families in need of a little help. We handle all logistics and can work quickly to get surplus or secondary products into a truck that distributes food first to local food banks and then beyond. Farm to Family works with each donor to make sure the program seamlessly fits within existing operations to make participation easy and hassle-free.

Not too long ago, the bulk of products distributed through food pantries were dry goods and other shelf-stable foods. Since then food banks have invested in infrastructure such as cold storage facilities that can house fresh fruits and vegetables, which, believe it or not, are luxury items for many families struggling to make ends meet. With 43 member food banks in our association, needy families throughout the state may gather around their tables and enjoy food they would not be able to afford at the grocery store.

We know it takes a lot for farmers to get product from the field to the marketplace. If outright donations aren’t possible, Farm to Family can work with farmers to offer a small reimbursement to help cover picking and pack out costs. Additionally, many Farm to Family participants can also claim a state tax credit and federal tax deduction.

We’re grateful to the farmers who make California the best food producing state in the nation, and especially those who choose to give back to their community through the Farm to Family program. Please consider making a donation or pledging a contribution from the next harvest season. Contact Steve Linkhart at stevelinkhart@cafoodbanks.org or 510-350-9916.

 

 

By Amy Graf

Christmas trees are the latest casualties of California’s devastating drought.

Northern California tree farmers are reporting that this year’s crop is suffering due to the water shortage.

“Ninety percent of the seedlings we planted last year died,” says Jim Beck, who owns Patchen California Christmas Tree Farms in the Santa Cruz Mountains. “We simply couldn’t get water to them in time.”

Beck closely monitors the mature Douglas Firs on his Los Gatos farm where people come to cut down their own trees. He inspects and measures their needles to determine signs of stress.

In a typical year, the needles grow an inch and a quarter to an inch and a half.

“This year we saw about three-quarters-of-an-inch growth,” said Beck, who has owned the farm with his wife, Marina, for 46 years.

What’s more, Beck said his trees only grew a little over a foot this year while in past seasons they’ve usually gained about two and a half feet.

Beck decided to not raise his prices this year and a six-to-seven-foot tree is selling for $60 as it did in 2014. But he says the trees’ stunted growth is impacting him financially and he’s counting on El Niño as his trees’ sole water supply is rain.

“I hope these weather reports are right,” he said, “But I’m not holding my breath.”

California is in the midst of a four-year drought, the worst in 106 years. Low water supplies are wreaking havoc on agriculture and Christmas trees are the latest victims to make news headlines. Some varieties of established adult trees are growing more slowly while seedlings that require more water are dying all together.

Consumers cutting down trees at those boutique farms known for serving hot chocolate and offering tractor rides will find a smaller selection. Those shopping at city lots and big retailers such as Whole Foods and Home Depot will encounter higher prices due to a shortage of trees.

Many California lots and farms purchase trees wholesale from Oregon, the nation’s largest supplier, but like California, the state to the north is in the midst of a drought that’s exacerbating the situation.

“Trees are indeed more expensive this year due to the drought,” Whole Foods Regional Produce Coordinator Taryn Wolf said. “Fewer trees were planted and the wholesale cost rose significantly.”

Ginger and Jim Armstrong grow prized silver tips for wholesale on wild land outside Auburn. This year they’re not even selling these trees. “We just weren’t sure how much water these trees received and we were worried about needle retention,” Ginger said. A tree that’s starved for water is dry and brittle, she said, and after being cut, they can drop their needles within days.

The Armstrongs also own Snowy Peaks Tree Farm and this part of their business is open. They monitor the trees on the you-cut farm closely and Ginger said the fall rain provided the crop with a boost of growth. “We still noticed some trees that were stunted though,” Ginger said. “We usually see some of these because of soil issues but this year there were more and we’re certain it’s a water issue.”

At Reindeer Ridge in Sebastopol, Debbie Garavalia and her husband Paul are doing everything possible to keep their trees alive.

They typically water their trees in the summer as they get less rain than the Sierra foothills and Santa Cruz Mountains. But this year, they rented water trucks and used hoses to hand water seedlings. They also set up a drip irrigation system and supplied water through spring, summer and fall. Most of the crop is thriving, she says, but the tall trees are clearly stunted.

“I’ve never have seen anything like this,” said Garavalia, who has owned the lot since 1985. “I’ve never gone through such a long extended time without water.

“When we drive around the trees on the tractor, dust is blowing because the ground is so dry. It’s crazy.

“We event brought in shavings to keep the dust down and try to keep the moisture in, if there’s any moisture to be kept in.”

Link to article

The USDA reminds farmers and ranchers that the next general enrollment period for the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) began this week and ends on Feb. 26, 2016. December 2015 marks the 30th anniversary of CRP, a federally funded program that assists agricultural producers with the cost of restoring, enhancing and protecting certain grasses, shrubs and trees to improve water quality, prevent soil erosion and reduce loss of wildlife habitat.

As of September 2015, 24.2 million acres were enrolled in CRP. CRP also is protecting more than 170,000 stream miles with riparian forest and grass buffers, enough to go around the world 7 times. For an interactive tour of CRP success stories from across the U.S., visit www.fsa.usda.gov/CRPis30, or follow on Twitter at #CRPis30.

Participants in CRP establish long-term, resource-conserving plant species, such as approved grasses or trees (known as “covers”) to control soil erosion, improve water quality and develop wildlife habitat on marginally productive agricultural lands. In return, FSA provides participants with rental payments and cost-share assistance. At times when commodity prices are low, enrolling sensitive lands in CRP can be especially attractive to farmers and ranchers, as it softens the economic hardship for landowners at the same time that it provides ecological benefits. Contract duration is between 10 and 15 years. The long-term goal of the program is to re-establish native plant species on marginal agricultural lands for the primary purpose of preventing soil erosion and improving water quality and related benefits of reducing loss of wildlife habitat.

Contracts on 1.64 million acres of CRP are set to expire on Sept. 30, 2016. Producers with expiring contracts or producers with environmentally sensitive land are encouraged to evaluate their options under CRP.

Since it was established on Dec. 23, 1985, CRP has:

• Prevented more than 9 billion tons of soil from eroding, enough soil to fill 600 million dump trucks;
• Reduced nitrogen and phosphorous runoff relative to annually tilled cropland by 95 and 85 percent respectively;
• Sequestered an annual average of 49 million tons of greenhouse gases, equal to taking 9 million cars off the road.
• Created nearly 2.7 million acres of restored wetlands.

For more information FSA conservation programs, visit a local FSA office or www.fsa.usda.gov/conservation. To find your local FSA office, visit http://offices.usda.gov.

Link to news release

Climate change is likely to impede progress on reducing undernourishment around the world in the decades ahead, according to a major scientific assessment by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) on global food security. The report, entitled Climate Change, Global Food Security and the U.S. Food System, identifies the risks that climate change poses to global food security and the challenges facing farmers and consumers in adapting to changing climate conditions.

In the absence of response measures, climate change is likely to diminish continued progress on global food security through production disruption that lead to constraints on local availability and price increases, interrupted transport conduits, and diminished food safety, among other causes. The risks are greatest for the global poor and in tropical regions.

Climate risks to food security increase as the magnitude and rate of climate change increase. Higher emissions and concentrations of greenhouse gases are much more likely to have damaging effects than lower emissions and concentrations. The author team reviewed a range of scenarios. Under scenarios with continued increases in greenhouse gas emissions the number of people at risk of undernourishment would increase by as much as 175 million above today’s level by 2080.

Effective adaptation can reduce food system vulnerability to climate change and reduce detrimental climate change effects on food security, but socioeconomic conditions can impede the adoption of technically feasible adaptation options. The agricultural sector has a strong record of adapting to changing conditions. There are many opportunities to strengthen agricultural economies and bring more advanced methods of crop production to low-yielding agricultural regions. Other promising adaptations include reducing food waste through innovative packaging, expanding cold storage to lengthen shelf life, and improving transportation infrastructure to move food more rapidly to markets.

The USDA’s 10 Building Blocks for Climate Smart Agriculture is a comprehensive set of voluntary programs and initiatives that is expected to reduce net emissions and enhance carbon sequestration by over 120 million metric tons of CO2 equivalent by 2025 – about 2 percent of economy-wide emissions. The ten “building blocks” span a range of technologies and practices to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, increase carbon storage, and generate clean renewable energy.

In California, the Brown Administraton and CDFA are embracing Climate Smart Agriculture by adhering to three main pillars:

• Sustainably increasing farm productivity and incomes.
• Adapting and building resilience to climate change.
• Reducing/removing greenhouse gas emissions, where
  possible.

Programs to help achieve this include the Healthy Soils Initiative, the State Water Efficiency and Enhancement Program (SWEEP), and the Dairy Digester Research and Development Program.

‘Climate Change, Global Food Security and the U.S. Food System’ was prepared as part of the United States National Climate Assessment and part of the President’s Climate Action Plan. USDA led the production of the report on behalf of the thirteen Federal Agencies of the U.S. Global Change Research Program. Thirty-one authors and contributors prepared the report, representing nineteen federal, academic, nongovernmental, and intergovernmental institutions in four countries.

Executive Summary, Climate Change, Global Food Security, and the U.S. Food System

Full Report: Climate Change, Global Food Security, and the U.S. Food System

Link to full news release

NOTE – CDFA’s Specialty Crop Block Grant Program, which distributes funds from the USDA for the benefit of specialty crops, is providing a portion of the funding for this program.

By Dennis Pollock

The Almond Board of California (ABC) is working with partners including the Environmental Defense Fund to start a pilot project funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) which would give growers of almonds and corn greater access to greenhouse gas markets like those under California’s cap-and-trade program.

The $960,000 project is part of a $20.5 million allocation from the USDA Conservation Innovation Grant Program to help farmers and ranchers implement practices to make their operations more resilient to climate change.

Additional money from USDA sets aside $261,812 for incentives to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and nitrate leaching from almond orchards.

The second grant was part of the 2015 Specialty Crop Block Grant Program (administered by CDFA) where California received $19.7 million out of approximately $63 million awarded nationwide.

The specialty funding project is aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions and nitrate leaching in California tree nut orchards. It would quantify GHG emissions and water quality benefits from modified growing practices and carry out cost-benefit analyses for implementing such practices.

Growers could gather ground-based costs of implementation and build upon 10 years of existing ABC-funded nitrogen management and GHG research.

The conservation innovation grant will result in the first large-scale pilot project generating greenhouse gas credits from nutrient management practices in growing almonds and corn. The goal is for growers to enter the cap-and-trade market and sell carbon credits to companies and industries seeking to meet emissions targets.

Coming up with a protocol that would be approved by the California Air Resources Board will be challenging, says Gabrielle Ludwig, ABC’s director of sustainability and environmental affairs.

It is one reason the board has enlisted assistance from the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) and Robert Parkhurst, its director of agriculture greenhouse gas markets. Parkhurst helped frame the 2006 legislation, AB 32, which opened the door to a carbon credits system.

The alliance between the board and EDF grew largely out of a meeting between Parkhurst, Ludwig, and others two years ago in Modesto, where Ludwig said she was highly impressed with Parkhurst’s understanding of carbon markets.

She and Parkhurst say that in order for an agricultural industry to carve out a GHG credits system that it would have to make economic sense to change practices to obtain certification to make sales.

“We need to maximize the ability to produce food while minimizing the environmental footprint and do that in a sustainable matter,” Parkhurst said.

“We can’t work against agriculture; we have to work with agriculture. They’re the ones getting their hands dirty and making it happen.”

EDF helped rice growers develop a carbon offset protocol that won air board approval in June.

“Rice was the first to go through this,” Ludwig said. “We’re riding on their coattails and sorting out what it takes for growers to participate.”

Parkhurst says developing the rice protocol was a challenge as the industry looked at ways to address methane issues created by the flooding of fields and anaerobic conditions. He says modifying practices was done in a way that took into account the beneficial aspects of having some standing water for bird populations.

“It’s a fabulous challenge, a multidimensional chess game,” Parkhurst said.

EDF touts other successes that include working with the Climate Action Reserve which approved a new protocol that rewards farmers for avoiding the conversion of grasslands to cropland.

It is hoped that a “fertilizer protocol” could be a part of the ARB system, and that the protocol could then be modified as needed for other cropping systems.

“The vast majority of crops use fertilizer,” Parkhurst said. “How can we leverage the similarities and respect the differences among crops with an umbrella protocol?”

Ludwig says challenges for agriculture include the fact it is not a “factory, smokestack” industry that can be more easily monitored. And she says many in California are wary of buying and selling of cap-and-trade credits and carbon offsets.

“They want to sure that every pound (of GHG) is being removed,” Ludwig said.

Agriculture’s move into the credit system would be a voluntary effort, says Ludwig, and there would have to be a certification system in place. Moreover, it would be necessary for growers to modify their current practices and quantify results.

It would not be enough, she says, for almond growers, for example, to simply point to a recently released report on research that showed that using byproducts from producing and harvesting almonds is a key to lowering the industry’s carbon emissions.

University of California researchers conducted what they called “a cradle to grave” look at the industry that showed almonds have a relatively small carbon footprint and that it could be further reduced with some changes in management practices.

In almond production, the emissions are largely from nitrous oxide, which is emitted when growers add nitrogen to the soil through the use of synthetic fertilizer.

“Everybody is still learning in this process,” Ludwig said. “We hope that in the next three-to-six months we can outline something (as a protocol) and come back to the growers and try it out.”

Link to article

 

 

Transcript

MICHEL MARTIN: If there is a piece of fruit, a vegetable or even a nut or two on your dinner table tonight, there’s a good chance it was grown in California. That state has endured four years of extreme drought. And while some of California’s agriculture industry is suffering, a few farmers have found a way to adapt and even thrive in the dry conditions. Ben Bergman of member KPCC has this report.

BEN BERGMAN, BYLINE: Tom Rogers’ 175-acre orchard right in the middle of California might very well be the farm of the future, a future where almonds are likely to be the state’s number-one crop.

TOM ROGERS: These were some of the first almonds planted in this area, and this has been a good crop for us.

BERGMAN: In the ’70s, Rogers’ father made a prescient decision. He ditched the low-value cotton, cord and alfalfa his father grew and planted almonds. Thanks to strong demand from Asia, they’ve become a very lucrative crop. The downside is the trees require constant watering.

ROGERS: It’s a scary time. I mean, we’re very concerned about what’s going on.

BERGMAN: Because Rogers now relies 100 percent on groundwater.

ROGERS: By comparison, other years, groundwater amounted to maybe 10 to 25 percent of our annual water usage.

BERGMAN: And do you have an idea how much groundwater is left?

ROGERS: No. I’m going to be very honest – my bottom line answer is I have no clue how long the water’s going to last.

BERGMAN: So this year, Rogers made a major investment, installing a precise high-tech irrigation system that lets him stretch what little water he has as much as possible. In the middle of a row of almond trees, Rogers pulls a soil moisture probe out of the ground.

ROGERS: And up on top is a rain gauge and wind speed indicator. The panel out there measures the amount of sunlight.

BERGMAN: All the data gets uploaded to the Internet every 15 minutes, which allows Rogers to specify exactly how much water the trees need. Instead of getting soaked once a week with sprinklers, his nearly 15,000 trees get tiny doses of water every day.

HEATHER COOLEY: In essence, they’re spoon-feeding the tree.

BERGMAN: Heather Cooley is with the Pacific Institute, an environmental think tank. More efficient irrigation techniques and a shift towards more valuable crops like almonds are big reasons why despite spending her life studying water in California, Cooley is bullish on the state’s agricultural industry.

COOLEY: We can continue to have a very strong, robust agricultural sector in California using less water than we do today.

BERGMAN: In California’s Central Valley, fifth-generation farmer Philip Bowles has been installing more drip irrigation every year, and he’s happy with the results. He’s cut his farm’s total water use by about 25 percent in the last decade while doubling the per-acre yield.

PHILIP BOWLES: Water’s a big expense for us. We don’t want to use any more than we have to.

BERGMAN: Bowles is tired of farmers getting a bad rap these days for using 80 percent of the state’s water. Everyone needs to eat after all, and he says people are making much too big a deal out of the drought.

BOWLES: The system that we have can be adapted. It doesn’t have to be blown up. It doesn’t have to be abandoned. There’s still, you know, a lot of water in the state, and people overlook that.

BERGMAN: And it’s not just farmers who think that way. A team of researchers led by Jay Lund at the University of California, Davis used computer modeling to see what would happen if there was a 72-year mega-drought. Lund says they were surprised how minor the overall impacts would be.

JAY LUND: California, particularly with its very large infrastructure system that can move water around pretty well relative to other states, can accommodate some pretty big water shocks.

BERGMAN: Scientists recently announced it’s been more than 500 years since California has been this dry. Yet, last year, California’s agriculture industry had its second-highest revenues ever. For NPR News, I’m Ben Bergman in Los Angeles.

 

Link to NPR