Notes from a Neighbor - Grower

This is a recent opinion piece in the Ventura Star, Santa Paula Times and Thousand Oaks Acorn by grower Lisa Tate:

OPINION (https://www.vcstar.com/opinion/)

Letters to the editor: Be an Ag hero with fruit flies

Ventura County Star

Keep your fruit in your backyard

Re: your Oct. 27 story, “Fruit fly in T.O. prompts county's second quarantine”: (https://www.vcstar.com/story/news/2023/10/26/ventura-county-quarantine-invasive-queensland-fruit-flies-thousand-oaks-california/71176056007/)

Ventura County residents have always shown their dedication to preserving local agriculture. Today, our farmers urgently need your help.

Recently, the Queensland fruit fly was discovered in backyard fruit trees in the Thousand Oaks area. As a result, agricultural zones in T.O. and Moorpark are now under quarantine. The CDFA, USDA, and our County Agricultural Commissioner's Office are working tirelessly to shield our local farms from this destructive pest.

The repercussions of losing this battle could be catastrophic for our county and our SOAR-protected agricultural lands. Fruit fly infestations can wipe out entire crops and impede our farmers from selling their produce locally and globally — and the exorbitant costs of treating crops to prevent infestations could force some cherished family farms out of business.

What can you do to help save Ventura County agriculture? Don't move your fruit. Be an Ag hero and keep your fruit in your backyard. Prevent the spread of fruit flies and protect our local farms by not moving your backyard fruit. Dispose of excess backyard fruit by double bagging it and placing it in the trash, not the yard waste bin for composting. If you're visiting friends or family this holiday season, resist the urge to bring home backyard fruit from other areas — don't pack a pest back to Ventura.

You can be an Ag hero. Spread awareness about the risks of moving backyard fruit, and kindly refrain from sharing your bounty with friends and family this holiday season. Let's unite as a community of Ag heroes and help protect our local farms. Taking these small steps can make a significant impact and safeguard the future of our SOAR Ag lands.

Lisa Tate

Queensland Fruit Fly - Bactrocera tryoni

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