Yuba County farmer earns Discussion Meet title
ByChristine Souza Indiscussing thepluses andminuses of big data in agriculture, a contestant from Yuba County earned top honors in the California Young Farmers and Ranchers DiscussionMeet. MadelineMeyerofWheatland,amember of the Yuba-Sutter FarmBureau, emerged as the winner after addressing the use of data collected on the farmas amethod of increasing productivity and profitability, andweighing the technology with under- standinganyassociatedrisksandliabilities. The finalsof thecompetitionoccurredin Sacramentoat theCaliforniaFarmBureau building, as part of the organization’s 102nd Annual Meeting. The Discussion Meet featuredparticipants fromacross the state, who were evaluated on their ability to exchange ideas and opinions. DarinDuPontofMercedCountywas first runner-upinthecontest.Theother finalists wereRyanAmaralofStanislausCountyand Joseph Jacksonof TulareCounty. The final round of the contest was moderated by state YF&R Discussion Meet Committee Chair Carrie Isaacson of SacramentoCounty. In discussing the use of big data on the
“Oneof the large concerns for farmers is they don’t have time to sit down and scroll throughpagesandpagesandpagesofdata, whiletryingtomanagetheir farms,”hesaid. DuPont suggested the University of California Cooperative Extension system when trying to create management tools forbigdata, and that countyFarmBureaus couldhost tech summits to connect farm- ers and engineers. Amaral,ofDenair,whoworksatModesto JuniorCollege, saidtechnologycompanies should consult with farmers and ranchers when creating agricultural software. “Thesestartupsarecoming inandtrying to figureout howtocollect andanalyze the data, so we really need to make sure the farmers are in the conversation,” he said. “As thesecompaniesarecoming inandac- quiring thestartups, the farmersneedtobe part of that conversation as well, because that’s when we’re going to see a seamless use of the technology.” Jackson, of Visalia, works for irrigation technologycompanyPhytec.Hesuggested tech companies that develop software to collect data should “contextualize, inter- pret and thenreport thedataso that it’snot
Madeline Meyer, as- sistant manager of a dairy in Wheatland, will represent California in the upcoming American Farm Bureau Federation Open Discussion Meet, after winning the statewide contest during the California Farm Bureau Annual Meeting.
farm,Meyer said technology andaccess to informationhavebecomemore common. “One of the beautiful things about agri- culture ishowwillingweare toshare infor- mation with one another,” she said. “This is easier today, with everyone holding a cellphone, RFID (radio-frequency iden- tification) reader or drone in their hands. Technology is here to stay, and it’s our job as young farmers and ranchers to make it work for us, not the other way around.” Meyer, anassistantmanager at Tollcrest Dairy inWheatland, addedthat inaddition tomakingdata collectedon the farmwork for those in agriculture, the information
could also bemonetized bymaking infor- mationavailable totheultimateconsumer. “Say a gallon of milk has a barcode and whenyouscanit,mydad’sfacepopsupand hesays, ‘Hi, I’mfarmerJamieandthisgallon of milkwas produced by sequestering this much carbonback into the ground.’ Those typesof thingscanreallyincreaseconsumer sentimentwiththeir food, andthat’swhere we can reallymonetize it,” she said. DuPont, of Atwater, who is enrolled at McGeorge School of Law with a goal to practice water and agricultural law in the Central Valley, stressed the need tomake data accessible to farmers and ranchers.
See DISCUSSION, Page 17
Agriculturalists win Young Farmer and Rancher awards
AFresnoCounty couplewhoexpanded their agritourismbusinessduring thepan- demic and a vintner who has worked to raise theprofileof SanDiegoCountywines have earned awards for achievement and excellence among young farmers and ranchers in California. The awards were announced during the 102nd California FarmBureau Annual Meeting. Nick andKimberly Rocca of Fresno re- ceived the Young Farmers and Ranchers Achievement Award, which recognizes accomplishments in production agricul- ture and leadership activity. Alysha Stehly of Valley Center received the Excellence inAgriculture Award, pre- sented to young agricultural profession-
als who contribute through involvement in agriculture, leadership activities and FarmBureau. A fourth-generation farmer, NickRocca works as operations manager at the fam- ily farm, Rocca Ranches, growing raisin grapesandalmonds, andasanequipment specialist for SunPacific Farming. He and Kimberly own and operate a pumpkin patch, Dakota Acres, which they decided to rebrand after the COVID-19 pandem- ic by delivering pumpkins and offering customized home-decoration packages featuring pumpkins. Nick Rocca serves as secretary on the Fresno County Farm Bureau Board of Directors and as co-chair of the Fresno-
Kimberly and Nick Rocca of Fresno, left, won the Young Farmers and Ranchers Achievement Award; Alysha Stehly of Valley Center, right, earned the Excellence in Agriculture Award.
Madera YF&R chapter, which this year has distributed more than half a million meals to families who have faced food shortages during the pandemic. Stehly co-owns Vesper Vineyards, which buys locally grown grapes to showcase the different microclimates of San Diego County, and works as winemaker for her parents’ winery, Stehleon Vineyards. Active in non- profit organizations that promote ag- ricultural education, school gardens and local farm product s, she al so serves on the San Diego County Farm Bureau Board of Directors, as chair of the county YF&R committee and rep- resents Imperial and San Diego coun- ties on the state YF&R committee. Asked todiscuss three important issues
facing agriculture, Stehly cited the needs to reduce burdensome government reg- ulation, to address ongoing employee shortages through reformof immigration policy, and to build consumer trust, urg- ing fellow farmers and ranchers to join her inbeing “an active player in the social mediaworld by sharing stories, the reali- ty and the ups and downs of agriculture.” As winners of their respective awards, the Roccas and Stehly each earned a $4,000 cash prize sponsored by Farm Credit. The Roccas also earned 250 hours’ use of a Kubota tractor, furnished by Kubota Tractor Corp. The winners will represent California in national competitions to be held next monthduring theAmericanFarmBureau Federation Annual Convention.
IRRIGATION SOLUTIONS • PIVOTS
PUMPS • PIPE • PARTS & SERVICE
Helping You Be Water Smart for Over 60 Years Bakersfield, CA • Imperial, CA • Salinas, CA • San Joaquin, CA Stockton, CA • Woodland, CA • Chandler, AZ • Yuma, AZ
Rain for Rent is a proud authorized Reinke Dealer
rainforrent.com/AG
6 Ag Alert December 16, 2020
Powered by FlippingBook