Planting Seeds - Food & Farming News from CDFA

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California conservation projects in new USDA Regional Conservation Partnership Program

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has announced that 115 high-impact projects across all 50 states and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico will receive more than $370 million in federal funding as part of the new USDA Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP).  … Continue reading

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“Coins for Cans” highlights final days of Holiday Food Drive

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Recent CDFA Border Protection Station activities protect bird flocks and citrus

An old saying goes, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” The California Department of Food and Agriculture practices this principle through its Border Protection Stations. There are 16 of them along the state’s perimeter, staffed by … Continue reading

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The Tournament of Roses – a California Grown opportunity to honor tradition and look to the future

Over the last several years I have been honored to receive invitations from the California Cut Flower Commission to spend time with them at the Tournament of Roses, and I was fortunate to be able to visit Pasadena again last … Continue reading

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Restaurant scraps returned to farms as compost in new program – from the Sacramento Bee

  By Edward Ortiz It’s farm to fork to farm. That describes the loop that is near and dear to Sacramentan David Baker, co-founder of ReSoil Sacramento, a local effort to use bikes to pick up food scraps at area … Continue reading

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Sacramento Valley’s powerhouse rice crop one step closer to cap and trade – from the Sacramento Bee

By Edward Ortiz California environmental regulators are exploring how rice farmers can reduce carbon emissions, paving the way for crops to become part of the state’s greenhouse gas reduction program and affecting one of the Sacramento Valley’s powerhouse agricultural industries. … Continue reading

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And the winner is…

Thanks to everyone for playing in CDFA’s first-ever caption contest. We had nearly 60 entries! Congratulations to our winner, Harold Hackett. His caption is on the left. This nine-and-a-half foot ceramic cow is named Daisy, and it comes from the … Continue reading

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Stingerless wasps released in Asian citrus psyllid fight – from the San Bernardino Sun

By Sandra Emerson RIVERSIDE – Hundreds of wasps imported from Pakistan were released into a 7.5-acre biocontrol grove of citrus trees near the UCR Botanic Gardens by entomologists Tuesday. The wasps, Diaphorencyrtus aligarhensis, are a natural known predator of the … Continue reading

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What’s the deal with that cow? It’s CDFA’s first-ever caption contest.

Please make your caption entries in the comments section. When we announce a winner we’ll explain why the cow is here at CDFA headquarters. Thanks for playing!    

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Festive Farm Dinners Always in Season – from the Growing California video series

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