2023 Grape Harvest Winds Down Across SLO County | |
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San Luis Obispo County Farm Bureau Past President Hilary Graves was among many in the local vineyard industry to wrap up harvest last week. Graves, pictured top row, fourth from right, is Vineyard & Grower Relations Manager for Booker Vineyard.
She posted on Instagram yesterday, "We received our last fruit of the season Friday. Happiness, relief, accomplishment, exhaustion. I cried. My 22nd vintage wrapped up in a bow. We have such an amazing team. I’m grateful to be a small, little part of it. Write this down: vintage 2023 is super good (understatement). Cheers!"
Many vintners are expecting the 2023 vintage to be good quality due to cooler temperatures during most of the growing season. Expected rain storms this week starting Wednesday evening and wrapping up Saturday morning will delay harvest of the remaining wine grapes until field conditions dry out. Track precipitation accumulation through the UC Cooperative Extension San Luis Obispo County Weather Network website here.
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This Week In SLO County Agriculture | |
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Calendar- Upcoming Events & Deadlines:
- November 17- Registration closes for CA Farm Bureau Annual Meeting (Contact the office if interested in attending)
- November 23-24- Office Closed for Thanksgiving
- November 28- SLO County Farm Bureau Board Meeting at 5pm at Office (4875 Morabito Pl. in SLO). All members welcome to attend, please RSVP to office at 805-543-3654.
- December 1-6- Office Closed for CA Farm Bureau Annual Meeting in Reno, NV
- December 25- Jan 1- Office Closed for Christmas and New Year's Holidays
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Community: Harvestly Holiday Market on December 10 from 1-3PM | |
Gov. Newsom designates mushroom found on Central Coast as official state mushroom | Governor Gavin Newsom signed a bill naming the Golden Chanterelle as California's official state mushroom. | | | |  |
Harvestly Holiday Market on December 10 from 1-3PM | |
State Government: California FAIR Plan Increases Commercial Coverage Limits to $20m Per Location | |
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This Week in California Farm Bureau's Farm Bureau at Work State Government Report
November 10, 2023
Insurance
The Senate Select Committee on Wine held a hearing that focused on two primary concerns impacting the wine industry – the lack of comprehensive insurance and the implementation of the bottle recycling program, led by Cal Recycle. You can watch the hearing here.
The hearing was split into two panels to address those two issues. The first panel included speakers from the California Department of Insurance, an independent insurance agent, and wine grape grower. Senators McGuire (D Santa Rosa), Dodd (D Napa) and Alvardo-Gil (D Modesto) attended the hearing and focused on the cost implications of insurance on small, family-owned farm and wineries, where insurance rates have risen up to ten times in just a few years. With insurance not providing comprehensive protection against commodity losses from wildfire and becoming a top five expense for business owners, the industry participants on the panel presented a crisis still impacting rural communities across the state.
CDI presented its plan to restore competition to the admitted market, which we have discussed at length previously. It includes the adoption of catastrophe modeling, reinsurance costs and more changes to how insurers and CDI work to approve rate increases in exchange for a commitment by insurers to write new policies in impacted areas. The second panel featured testimony from CalRecycle and from E.J. Gallo Company, describing the implementation of wine bottles with the state’s bottle recycling efforts. Gallo discussed its investment in the Halo recycling facility, which uses one hundred percent of all inputs to the plant to produce either new clean glass or glass supported by-products for the construction industry. California Farm Bureau was the only organization to provide public comment at the hearing, noting the importance of retuning competition to the admitted market that reflects investments that private landowners, the state and federal governments make in reducing wildfire risks.
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California FAIR Plan Increases Commercial Coverage Limits to $20m Per Location - Reinsurance News | The California FAIR Plan Association (FAIR Plan) has partnered with the California Department of Insurance (CDI) to offer increased commercial coverage | | | | |
PG&E files application to keep Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant operating until 2045 | Tuesday, PG&E submitted an application to keep the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant running 20 years after its scheduled closure date, meaning the plant could operate until 2045. | | | |
Federal Government: Lawmakers Discuss Farm Bill Extension | |
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This Week in California Farm Bureau's Federal Policy News
November 12, 2023
- Reclamation and Sites Project Authority Finalize Plan to Create New Water Storage
- AFBF Economists Study Foreign Ownership of U.S. Agricultural Land
- Reminder: Tax Filing Deadline on November 16th for Select Groups
- Reminder: ECP Deadline on December 29th
- House Labor Working Group Releases Interim Report
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Farmers want more money for crop support programs included in Farm Bill | As Congress negotiates a new farm bill, some are hoping for higher subsides to help save farms hurt by low crop prices or poor harvests. Others argue the backstops are a waste of taxpayer funds. | | | | |
Foreign Investment in U.S. Ag Land - The Latest Numbers | Foreign investment in U.S. agricultural land is a hot topic, largely spurred by media reports raising concerns about bad actors from adversarial nations purchasing land for potentially hostile purposes. Several questions arise when considering this issue. First and foremost, how much agricultural land in the U.S. | | | | |
Lawmakers Discuss Farm Bill Extension | As the House is getting back to work after selecting a new speaker, there are growing calls for an extension for the farm bill. Ranking member | | | |
Business Member Spotlight:
Kaweah Pump, Inc.
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We are an agricultural water resource management company with more than 30 years of pump design, installation, well development and well rehabilitation experience. Our C-57 pump and well drilling contractor license and our Class A general engineering contractor license allow us to perform any construction and electrical work associated with your well, irrigation, industrial or municipal water project. Kaweah Pump, Inc. provides the latest in pump design and VFD technology. We have skilled employees to install, repair and manufacture any part necessary to complete your project.
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Produce: How USDA Plans to Make the U.S. Specialty Crop Sector More Competitive | |
California Fresh Fruit Association names new president | Daniel Hartwig will succeed Ian LeMay, who has held the position since 2019 and will depart CFFA to become president and CEO of the California Table Grape Commission. | | | | |
How USDA plans to make the U.S. specialty crop sector more competitive | The USDA says the specialty crops competitiveness initiative will raise awareness of which of its services and resources are available support to the specialty crops industry and help identify gaps in those services. | | | |
Thank You Farm Bureau Members | |
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Renewing Agricultural Members
Judy Lewis, JoAnn Jones, Anthony Domingos, Richard Lewis, and Don Rose
Renewing Associate Member
SLO Food Bank and Jimmy Panetta
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Featured Member Benefit:
Wyndham Hotels and Resorts
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Whether you are looking for an upscale hotel, an all-inclusive resort or something more cost-effective, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts has the right hotel for you! As a Farm Bureau member in California, you will save up to 20% off the Best Available Rate\* at over 8,000 participating hotels worldwide. Discover the benefits of booking your vacation with Wyndham Hotels & Resorts as a Farm Bureau member. Their vast portfolio of hotels and resorts offer a variety of accommodations to meet your travel needs. Wherever people go, Wyndham will be there to welcome them. **To obtain the discount code, please call the member help desk at 1-800-698-3276 or select this link to book today.** | |
Labor: Employers: Use New Form I-9 After November 1 | |
Watsonville farm charged with involuntary manslaughter | The person died while working on a 16,000-pound spinach harvester. | | | | |
Will Border Security Issues Force Congress To Take Action On Immigration Reform? Ag Economists Say It's Unlikely | The debate over immigration continues to be an issue in Washington. However, the Ag Economists' Monthly Monitor shows economists are still skeptical it's enough for Congress to act on immigration reform. | | | | |
Will Artificial Intelligence Solve Labor Issues In Agriculture? Maybe | Finding enough labor is a constant and universal issue in agriculture. While it might not completely solve that problem, artificial intelligence has the ability to help. | | | |
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Employers: Use New Form I-9 After November 1
All U.S. employers were required to begin using the latest version of USCIS Form I-9 as of November 1, 2023. The new form does not change the I-9 process or procedure, and it does not impose any new duties on employees or employers in verifying employment eligibility. No changes are made to requirements to reverify documents upon rehire or disruption of employment or expiration of documents used to verify identity or employment eligibility.
Section 1 and Section 2 of the new Form I-9 now appear on the same page, the document features minor changes to the List of Acceptable Documents. The preparer/translator certifications and reverification and rehire forms are moved to new Supplements A & B, and the form also includes a new check-box for employers using a new procedure to examine identity and work authorization documents remotely as employers participating in the E-Verify program were recently permitted to do.
Though seemingly simple, the new Form I-9 requires eight pages of instructions and a 146 page handbook to explain both the use of the form and the implementation and requirements of the procedure to verify employment. Bottom line, don't allow this Form I-9 "simplification" lull you into a false sense that your challenges concerning the long-standing requirement to verify the employees' employment eligibility have changed significantly.
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Wildfire: Virtual Public Workshop on California Wildfire Resilience on November 14 | |
Dashboard Virtual Workshop - California Wildfire & Forest Resilience | The goal of the workshop is to gather input from those using the Treatment Tracking System and Dashboard to improve how data is accessed and displayed. | | | | |
A California town wiped off the map by wildfire is still recovering 5 years on | Five years after of one of America's worst wildfires, slow and expensive recovery continues in Paradise, Calif., which could be a portent for what's ahead on fire-stricken Maui. | | | |
Livestock: Beyond Meat Revenue Falls as Rising Demand in Europe Can't Overcome Plummeting US Sales | |
Beyond Meat Revenue Falls as Rising Demand in Europe Can't Overcome Plummeting US Sales | Beyond Meat's revenue fell nearly 9% in the third quarter as higher sales of its plant-based meat in Europe failed to make up for plummeting demand in the U.S. | | | | |
You're more likely to go to prison for exposing animal cruelty than for committing it | California could send Wayne Hsuing, attorney and co-founder of Direct Action Everywhere, to prison for 3.5 years for rescuing chickens and ducks from cruelty. Where does the animal welfare movement go from here? | | | |
Vineyard and Wine: Harvest 2023 - Slow Start +Longer Hang Time = Memorable Vintage? | |
November Seminar: November 15th, 2023 1:00 - 3:00 PM at Castoro Cellars | Big plans are underway to improve efficient transportation along the Hwy 101 corridor. Hear what those plans are and how they may affect your operation. The study area includes US 101 from Cuesta Grade to the San Luis Obispo/Monterey County Line and SR 46 from the US 101 east to Jardine Road in Paso Robles. | | |
Water to wine: Paso Robles winemakers predict promising harvest after winter rains | Paso Robles winemakers are predicting an excellent harvest after a wet season with rain totals not seen in years. | | | | |
Harvest 2023 - Slow start + longer hang time = memorable vintage?* Paso Robles Press | Mother nature decided to arrive fashionably late this year keeping growers and their crew patiently waiting for harvest to kick in. Some continued scrubbing barrels and a few caught some rolling waves. | | |
NASA Helps Researchers Get to the Top of Grapevine Leafroll Virus | Successful early detection could provide grape growers with up to one year of warning to intervene. | | | |
Water: SLO County Farmers and Wineries Brace for Incoming Rainfall After Last Winter's Heavy Flooding | |
SLO County Farmers and Wineries Brace for Incoming Rainfall After Last Winter's Heavy Flooding | San Luis Obispo County farms and wineries are getting ready for rainfall next week. The National Weather Service predicts that rain will move into the area as early as Tuesday night. | | | | |
State, regional water boards' nitrate policies face lawsuits | California environmental nonprofits and local agriculture organizations recently filed lawsuits against the state and regional water boards over nitrate regulations, but for different reasons. Agriculture... | | | | |
UCNFA Roundtable: Nitrogen Reporting Regulations For Nurseries and Floriculture | This is an opportunity for Regional Water Quality Control Board representatives, third party groups and coalitions representatives, UC academics and nursery growers to discuss goals and challenges of the "East San Joaquin order" regulations for nurseries and floriculture. | | | |
CA is out of a drought for first time in 3 years, but local water agencies still encourage conservation | Despite the State of California declaring itself out of a drought for the first time in three years, local community service districts are still urging residents to be water wise. | | | | |
Farmers in Cuyama, Calif. are taking on Big Carrot | Good Food | Melinda Burns reports on the water wars in Cuyama, California, where small farmers are boycotting carrot behemoths Grimmway Farms and Bolthouse Farms. | | | |
Farm Bureau Membership Matters | | |
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We cannot support your freedom to farm and ranch without your membership.
Join SLO County Farm Bureau now or renew your membership online. Go to slofarmbureau.org to join, or download the membership form PDF.
Have your renewal notice available to speed up the process; you will need to enter your membership number, name and ZIP code. Renewal dues may be paid online or over the phone by credit card.
We're here to help! Call us if you need us to lookup your member number or we can process your membership for you, at 805-543-3654.
All California county Farm Bureau memberships are processed through the California Farm Bureau Federation, but please reach out to our SLO County office if you need your membership number or have questions.
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Thank You Platinum Members | |
SLO County Agriculture News is distributed by SLO County Farm Bureau for information purposes only. Stories written by SLO County Farm Bureau may be reprinted with attribution. Some outside story links may require site registration. Opinions expressed in stories, commentaries or editorials included in this newsletter do not necessarily represent the views of SLO County Farm Bureau. For information on advertising opportunities, please email [email protected] or call our office at 805-543-3654. | |
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Your copy should address 3 key questions: Who am I writing for? (Audience) Why should they care? (Benefit) What do I want them to do here? (Call-to-Action)
Create a great offer by adding words like "free" "personalized" "complimentary" or "customized." A sense of urgency often helps readers take an action, so think about inserting phrases like "for a limited time only" or "only 7 remaining"!
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