Cal Poly

1. Compost Application and Reduced Tillage Demonstration Field Day: 10/22

2. Climate Solutions Now Virtual Conference: 10/26-28

3. Cal Poly Fuels Management Training Program webinar: Lompoc Valley Project: 11/3

San Luis Obispo & Central Coast

4. Pasture, Holistic Management Workshops, Cuesta College: 10/8, 11/18-19

   Featuring Cal Poly’s Holistic Management Certified Educator Rob Rutherford

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San Luis Obispo County planning officials say that not one county in California has passed an ordinance to address the rise in private rural campgrounds and overnight parking sites popularized by apps like Hipcamp and Harvest Host. But on Oct.

The value of San Luis Obispo County agricultural products exceeded $1 billion during 2021 - largely due to the success of strawberries and wine grapes. Livestock and field crops, however, failed to escape the drought and lost value last year.

REGIONAL - Gov. Gavin Newsom last week vetoed a bill by Tri-Valley Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan (D-Orinda) that would have limited the use of five pesticides that kill bees, birds and butterflies. The veto disappointed supporters of the bill, which would have curbed the use of neonicotinoid, or neonic, pesticides in non-agricultural settings, such as home gardens and golf courses.

PUBLISHED ON SACRAMENTO - CDFA's Farm Equity Office is seeking public input on drought-related program priorities to help inform the Request for Applications (RFA) for the 2023 California Underserved and Small Producer Grant Program (CUSP). The current CUSP Program was formed in 2021 for COVID-19 economic relief and includes two components for eligible entities.

Taking aggressive action to protect communities, consumers and the environment alike, Governor Gavin Newsom has directed the creation of a new multi-agency, cross-jurisdictional taskforce of enforcement agencies designed to better coordinate agencies combatting illegal cannabis operations and transnational criminal organizations

WASHINGTON-The top Republicans on the House Agriculture and Oversight committees have asked the Government Accountability Office to investigate foreign investment in U.S. farmland, questioning whether Chinese acquisitions in particular could pose a national-security threat. In a letter released Monday, Reps. Glenn Thompson (R., Pa.)

PUBLISHED ON SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - As discussions for writing the 2023 farm bill continue, the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture has added direction to its policy advocacy efforts regarding the bill in several areas.

October 5, 2022 In late August, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Risk Management Agency (RMA) announced several changes to improve the effectiveness of the Whole-Farm Revenue Protection (WFRP) program, the only insurance product designed to protect a farmer's entire operation, not just one crop.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is offering virtual workshops on Oct. 11, Oct. 13, Nov. 15 and Dec. 13 for agricultural producers and stakeholders to learn about the latest updates and improvements to the Whole-Farm Revenue Protection (WFRP) and the Micro Farm insurance options.

Access to high-quality water will be a defining feature of the 21st century. Record heat waves and drought are not only leading to more frequent and intense wildfires but are also putting one of life's most valuable resources at risk: the water we drink.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced loan interest rates for October 2022, which are effective Oct. 3, 2022. USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA) loans provide important access to capital to help agricultural ...

October 6th - Cover crops offer many potential benefits - including improving soil health - but not knowing the costs can be a barrier for growers who want to try this practice.

Drought that stretched across three continents this summer - drying out large parts of Europe, the United States and China - was made 20 times more likely by climate change, according to a new study. Drought dried up major rivers, destroyed crops, sparked wildfire, threatened aquatic species and led to water restrictions in Europe.

Back to News Releases Julie HendersonDirector Yana GarciaSecretary for Environmental Protection SACRAMENTO - The California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) today released a 2020 report finding that the vast majority of fruits and vegetables sampled in the state meet federal pesticide safety standards.

In the past two years, West Coast vegetables growers have been asked to absorb stratospheric aggregate inflationary input costs while at the same time trying to find a way to pass on 20%...

This article was featured in One Story to Read Today, a newsletter in which our editors recommend a single must-read from The Atlantic, Monday through Friday. Sign up for it here. The old, epic story of agriculture in North America had two heroes, long sung and much venerated. One was human ingenuity.

PUBLISHED ON WATSONVILLE, Calif. - To meet increasing consumer demand for the sweet, red berry everybody loves, California strawberry production is expected to hit its second highest season on record, extending peak season well into fall.

To the shock of some labor groups and agricultural leaders across the state, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law a measure aimed at making it easier for farmworkers to unionize in California. California's agriculture industry ...

A farm labor bill nearly a decade in the making makes organizing easier for labor groups, but farm advocates say it was made without input from employers.

Gov. Newsom signed AB 2183 Wednesday as originally written after saying he could not pass it in the bill’s original form.

Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed legislation that will allow unions to collect signed ballot or authorization cards to organize farm employees in lieu of holding secret ballot elections for union certification.

By Christine Souza The federal government is asking for input as it shapes a grant program intended to improve the resiliency of the food and agricultural supply chain by addressing labor shortages, legal migration pathways and protections for farmworkers.

As world temperatures rise and are expected to continue rising, heat-related illnesses (HRIs) are becoming a major issue in occupational health-especially in agriculture, with its high rates of outside work combined with injury statistics that are large to begin with.

With the risk of wildfire rising every passing year thanks to persistent drought and climate change, home insurance is becoming more inaccessible and unaffordable to many Californians. A new report from Policygenius, in fact, found home insurance rates in California went up nearly 10% from May 2021 to May 2022.

Should Californians be able to require higher welfare standards for farm animals that are raised in other states if products from those animals are to be sold in California? The U.S. Supreme Court will confront that question when it hears oral argument in National Pork Producers Council v. Ross on Oct.

As of Jan. 1, 2022, USDA NASS reported total sheep and lamb inventory levels at 5.065 million head, down 2.0% or 105,000 head from 2021. This was the largest decline of inventory since 2014, which saw a 2.3% decline, but over the last five years the annual average decline has been less than one percent.

SAN FRANCISCO - In a recent hearing of a lawsuit challenging the authority of the US Department of Agriculture's (USDA) New Swine Inspection Service (NSIS), US District Judge Jeffrey White of the Northern District of California ruled in support of the new rule. NSIS permits plant employees to pre-sort animals before slaughter.

Wine Enthusiast Magazine has announced that the San Luis Obispo Coast AVA (American Viticultural Area) has been nominated in the "Wine Region of the Year" category of the publication's yearly Wine Star Awards competition.

PUBLISHED ON DAVIS, Calif. - Exposing wine grapes to sunlight was the key to making a good quality cabernet. But even the toughest grapes may not withstand the extreme heat that comes with climate change. Too much heat, like California has experienced with recent heat waves, can lead to jarringly jam-like wines that are high in alcohol and sugar and lacking in acidity.

The explosive growth of Paso Robles' wine industry since the 1990's is often touted as a major economic success story on the Central Coast. But some benefit from this more than others, as lower-income families struggle making enough to live in Paso Robles - if they can afford it at all.

FAIRMEAD, Calif. (AP) - As California's drought deepens, Elaine Moore's family is running out of an increasingly precious resource: water. The Central Valley almond growers had two wells go dry this summer. Two of her adult children are now getting water from a new well the family drilled after the old one went dry last year.

Ninth Circuit states that the operators must comply with both the law that authorized the dam and the Endangered Species Act

Responding to the fee increases, Brent Burchett, executive director of the San Luis Obispo County Farm Bureau, said, “We recognize there’s a cost to administer these programs, but I feel they don’t consider the reality facing our farmers, so it’s another example of death by a thousand cuts.”

Farmers are experiencing record-high costs for inputs such as fuel and fertilizer on top of the added costs to comply with the programs.

“The list of expenses for farmers in California continues to grow faster than our ability to sell more and grow our farms,” Burchett said. “This is just one more example of how out of touch state leaders are with what’s happening in agriculture.”

Under the “ag order,” Burchett said farmers face testing and monitoring requirements and costs borne by the growers.

“They have to pay someone to go out and collect the samples or some of them try to do it themselves,” Burchett said. “We understand that water quality is important, but a lot of times these (regulations) are onerous and duplicative and don’t achieve the goals that the regional water board or the state water board think they do.”