- (Strategic Initiative) Sustainable Food Systems
- Author: George Zhuang
30,000 acres of San Joaquin Valley vineyards have adopted mechanization using UCCE research-based guidelines, potentially saving $15 million per year and promoting economic prosperity in California.
The Issue
Grape is the second largest commodity of California agriculture in terms of value ($6.25 billion in 2018) with approximately 900,000 acres. Currently, increasing labor costs and severe labor shortages are starting to damage...
- Author: Jeffrey P Mitchell
- Contributor: Anil Shrestha
- Contributor: Kate M Scow
- Contributor: Rad Schmidt
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Findings from a unique study site affirm the value of using the core soil health management principles of conservation agriculture to improve soil function, climate resilience, and increase the ecological sustainability of agriculture.
The Issue
California farmers overall recognize the theoretical benefits that might come from implementing basic soil health management principles, but they lack concrete information and experience on how to actually use these principles at their farms and they also are in general, not currently implementing them. In other words, despite the now widespread high visibility that soil health is receiving from government programs, actual adoption of...
- Author: Jeffrey P Mitchell
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
- Author: Anil Shrestha
- Author: Wyatt Brown
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Universities adopted UCCE agriculture production innovation and technology video series, contributing to workforce competency.
The Issue
Projections for near-future retirements of people working in California's agricultural production, marketing and post-harvest handling sectors indicate severe re-staffing needs in the coming years. Technological advances have reduced manual labor in agriculture, but increased the need for skilled labor to maintain the sustainability of the vegetable industry. Maintaining California's leading role in producing abundant, safe vegetables is critical not only to Americans' health, but also to the state's...
- Author: Surendra K. Dara
UC ANR Cooperative Extension Advisor Surendra Dara's new IPM model is considered a practical and sustainable approach by educators and practitioners around the world, with an estimated benefit of $33.5 million from improved returns or savings.
The Issue
Integrated pest management (IPM) is a concept of pest management in an ecologically sustainable manner. Although IPM implementation has been promoted for decades and many farms apply IPM practices to some extent there are certain deficiencies in the understanding of IPM and its components and finding non-chemical management options or exploiting cultural practices to...
- Author: Surendra K. Dara
UC Cooperative Extension Advisor Surendra Dara organized a conference on biologicals that drew growers from California, other states, and outside the U.S. 95.7% of those surveyed plan to use information learned on nearly 70,000 acres which they farm, manage, and influence.
The Issue
The term biologicals in agriculture refers to biocontrol agents such as parasitic wasps and predatory arthropods, microbial and botanical pesticides, biostimulants and other bio-based inputs used for pest management or improving crop health and productivity. The potential of...
