U.S.-Mexico
tomato fight puts jobs, prices on the line [Los Angeles Times]
MEXICO
CITY — Mexico and the United States are gearing for a costly showdown over
fresh tomatoes — a $3.5-billion business for the two countries — in a move that
could boost the fortunes of some American tomato farmers but raise prices for
U.S. consumers. Growers in Florida have demanded cuts in imports from Mexico,
and Washington appears inclined to support the Floridians and the few farmers
from other states who have joined the complaint. That would require ending a
16-year-old trade agreement and endanger tens of thousands of jobs on both
sides of the border, especially in California and other border states,
advocates for the Mexican tomatoes say. It also would probably increase the
cost to U.S. consumers of fresh tomatoes, though it's unclear by how much.
Mexico provides the United States with about half the fresh tomatoes it
consumes, and many of the rest are grown in Florida, the United States' No. 1
producer of fresh tomatoes, followed closely by California. (The Golden State
surpasses Florida when processed tomatoes are thrown into the mix.)…There are
fears of a wider trade war if Mexico retaliates by trying to restrict the tons
of U.S. meat, poultry, grains or other agricultural products that Mexico buys.
Mexico is the United States' largest destination for exports overall, after
Canada.
No
help yet for $19.5 million in flood damage to crops [Imperial Valley Press]
Imperial
County is attempting to qualify for emergency funding in the wake of the storms
that tore through the county in July and August, but there is no mechanism in
place that would make funds available.
The
county Agricultural Commissioner’s Office said damage to crops was about $19.5
million, with the biggest loss to alfalfa seed….Disaster programs are typically
written into farm bills, mechanisms through which the federal government
addresses agricultural issues. The most recent Farm Bill, which expired Sept.
30, did not include disaster-type programs for 2012, Singh said. Furthermore,
it is not clear if the new Farm Bill will include disaster provisions. “We have
to wait and see if Congress puts forth an extension of the Farm Bill that
expired, or a whole new Farm Bill becomes law, and if production-loss is included,”
she said.
Farmworker
dies in Salinas Valley heat [Salinas Californian]
A
51-year-old farmworker died Monday after passing out in the afternoon heat
while picking lettuce on a Salinas Valley farm — one day after Gov. Jerry Brown
vetoed a bill that would have provided field workers additional protection from
heat-related illness and death. CalOSHA spokesperson Erika Monterroza confirmed
Tuesday that her agency received a report from both Dole Fresh Vegetables Inc.
and the Monterey County Coroner’s Office notifying the state agency of the
death. A call placed to the Coroner’s Office seeking the name of the farmworker
and autopsy findings was not immediately returned late Tuesday afternoon.
CalOSHA is calling it a “potential heat-related death.”…CalOSHA’s investigation
will entail an on-site inspection of the farm; review of safety documentation;
interviews with employees, the employer and other witnesses; and laboratory
analysis and expert opinion — in this case from the county coroner’s
investigator. If it is determined that violations occurred, the company could
be cited for as little as $7,000 or as much as $70,000. The Monterey County
District Attorney’s office would need to make the determination whether any
criminal wrong-doing occurred.
Recent
heat good for grapes, tough on residents [Santa Maria Times]
According
to the National Weather Service, Santa Maria topped out at 100 degrees on
Monday and hit 94 Tuesday — both records — but today’s forecast is for a more
seasonable 76 with temperatures expected to remain in the 70s throughout the
rest of the week. Stollberg oversees operations on 344 acres east of Santa
Maria that is mostly chardonnay and pinot noir. He said the warm spell, the
valley’s first real hot days of the summer, speeds up the ripening process,
raising sugar levels in the grapes…. Some of those measures are pretty simple,
like making sure workers stay hydrated. Wineman said 85 degrees is the
benchmark when growers need to make sure their workers have access to shade. In
many cases that’s as simple as bringing in a trailer with a shade canopy. “Some
of the measures are observing for heat illness, making sure they drink plenty
of water, closely observing new employees, and ensuring there is good
communication,” said Wineman, adding that Monday and Tuesday were hot even in
normally fog-shrouded Guadalupe. “Crops, like people, aren’t really expecting
great changes in the temperature. Growers are working to maintain optimum
conditions in their fields.”
OID
votes to pursue Brisbane water sale talks [Modesto Bee]
Negotiation
of a water sale to the city of Brisbane can proceed, the Oakdale Irrigation
District board decided Tuesday, but members made clear that it's not a done
deal. The board voted 4-1 for a "term sheet" outlining tentative
details of the sale, which would equal 0.8 percent of the OID's usual supply
from the Stanislaus River….The Brisbane City Council was scheduled to vote on
the term sheet Monday, but postponed it to Nov. 19 because one member was
absent….The OID vote came two weeks after the Modesto Irrigation District
dropped its proposal to sell some of its Tuolumne water to San Francisco. The
main hang-up was dry-year protections for the MID's farmers and for Modesto-area
domestic users. The OID has been a notable player in the business of water
transfers, which have emerged in California since the 1980s.
Bagrada
bug population explodes at organic farms [Ventura County Star]
Farmers
of organic Asian leafy greens and other crops are facing a new threat this fall
from the Bagrada bug, which is infesting their fields in record numbers. The
invasive pest, also called the painted bug, normally feeds on California's
hills of mustard grass. Now out of food, the bug is ruining organic crops as
growers prepare for winter harvest….As evidence of Ventura County's expanding
problem, Florida agriculture inspectors recently rejected a shipment of mixed
root crops from a grower here because the bok choy was infested with the bugs,
said Ventura County Agricultural Commissioner Henry Gonzales.
"This
is more than just a pest problem; it's also a quarantine problem for us
now," Gonzales said.
Ag
Today is distributed to county Farm Bureaus, CFBF directors and CFBF staff, for
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