- Author: Chris M. Webb
Local Ventura and Los Angeles County area fine wines, micro-brews, spirits, locally grown and produced foods, and chefs will join together create an exceptional culinary event on Sunday, March 4.
Open to the public, the California Small Farm Conference Tasting Reception is sure to provide great tasting food and drink. As an added benefit, proceeds from the event benefit will local farmers by raising funds to provide conference scholarships. Registration information and links to participating food producers and chefs can be found on this page of the Small Farm Conference website.
The California Small Farm Conference is “the state’s premier gathering of small farmers, agricultural students, farmers’ market managers and others involved in the small farm industry. There is still time to register for the conference. To learn more about the conference or to register, please visit this page.
- Author: Chris M. Webb
The recent issue of UC’s California Agriculture is packed with interesting and informative articles. Two articles help to directly connect farmers and consumers. All articles can be accessed online.
Please see topics below:
- 150 years after Morrill Act, land-grant universities are key to healthy California
- Uncertain future for California’s biomass power plants
- Community Supported Agriculture is thriving in the Central Valley
- UC Cooperative Extension explores a farm-to-WIC program
- Crop rotation and genetic resistance reduce risk of damage from Fusarium wilt in lettuce
- Citrus growers vary in their adoption of biological control (availible only in E-Edition)
- Author: Chris M. Webb
California Women for Agriculture (CWA) is a volunteer group dedicated to promoting agriculture. With twenty-two chapters and over 2,000 members statewide it is the “most active, all-volunteer, grassroots, agricultural support organization in California.”
Established in 1976 the Ventura County Chapter is one of the founding chapters. Throughout each year dedicated women work together to provide education and outreach opportunities, award scholarships, and promote local agriculture.
Their efforts are guided by the following five objectives:
- To speak on behalf of agriculture in an intelligent, informative, direct, and truthful manner
- To keep CWA members informed on legislative activities pertaining to agriculture
- To join forces with other organizations when the need arises to deal with agricultural issues and challenges
- To share with the public the farmers perspective
- Develop a rapport with consumers, educators, and governmental and business leaders in communities throughout the state
To learn more about this organization, their upcoming events, or to get involved please visit their website.
- Author: Chris M. Webb
Agricultural innovation and technological advances have been harvested from UC Davis over the last century. As advances are achieved, our growing global population applies pressure for researchers to achieve more. California is a top world-wide producer of agricultural products, and California researchers work hard to find new and better ways to produce food.
The UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CA&ES) does much to contribute towards this effort. The recent CA&ES Outlook: Feeding a Hungry Planet highlights current research and innovations to provide agricultural producers knowledge and technology needed to make better, faster, and economically sound decisions. This work is focused towards agriculture, conservation, and economics. The articles are interesting and provide much food for thought.
For instance:
- Everyone needs to eat, and our global population is growing quickly. Economists have documented substantial long-term benefits of agricultural research.
- To continue feeding a growing population we have two options: increase yields on land already in production, or expand agriculture onto new land.
- UC researchers are developing “precision agriculture”, which used global positioning systems (GPS), geographic information systems (GIS), wireless networks, and innovative sensor technology to deliver precise amounts of water, fertilizer and pesticides for individual plants or small blocks of plants. This individualized management will save growers money and lesson the potential environmental load possible from excess fertilizer and pesticide use.
- Using GPS, a mechanical weeder has been developed. This will save growers money and reduce the need for herbicide use. On-campus testing has been successful and the weeder will be tested in a commercial field next year
- Increasing biodiversity on and near the farm provides many benefits towards increased food production while increasing the sustainability of farming systems.
Learn more about these topics and many others in the Fall/Winter edition of CA&ES Outlook. To find out more about UCD’s College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, or to view previous publications please visit their website.
- Author: Chris M. Webb
Did you know there are over 81,000 farms in California? Over 100 specialty crops are grown on these farms.
Partnering in part with UC’s Small Farm Agricultural Tourism Directory, the California Agricultural Almanac is an interactive and user-friendly website that helps viewers learn more about foods grown in California.
At the site viewers can learn about:
- Agricultural places
- Where and when crops are grown
- Where farms are located, and how farmers can add their farm to the database
- Farm fresh markets throughout the sate
- Workshops, farm tours, tastings and other California farm events