Olives Continued from Page 3
walls,” he said. “You’re crazy to keep growing olives. You’re going to have to plant high-value crops to stay in the busi- ness in California.” Meanwhile, Musco continues to pro- mote its “million trees” initiative with free nursery stock to encourage growers to remove their existing orchards and plant new trees that could be mechanically harvested. Most of the state’s table olives remain hand-picked. Dennis Burreson, Musco vice presi- dent of field operations and industry affairs, said the initiative has “far sur- passed expectations and is setting the
stage for the future.” Unlike Bell-Carter, which has now transitioned completely to Spanish own- ership and uses “only a small percent- age of California acreage,” he said Musco remains committed to the California grower and relies “first and foremost on California-grown olives” and turns to im- ports to supplement the state crop when there is a production shortfall. “We believe the future of the California table olive industry is extremely bright,” Burreson said. (Ching Lee is an assistant editor of Ag Alert. She may be contacted at clee@cfbf.com.)
pruning and harvesting costs. He noted growers have been transitioning away from table olives for at least two decades, and he expects the trend to continue. “Growers with land and water envision a higher per-acre return,” Lange said. Tulare County Musco grower Rod Burkett said the industry has known for 20 years that there would not be enough olive acreage in the state to support the two processors. With the high cost of wa- ter, he said he thinks more growers—him- self included—will pull their table-olive trees because the crop will not pencil out. “I can see the handwriting on the The California Department of Food and Agriculture is making $2 million in grants available to help farmers and ranchers install pollinator habitat on agricultural lands throughout California. The grant application period for the Pollinator Habitat Program began Aug. 31 and ends at 5 p.m. Nov. 23. The program is administered by the CDFA Office of Environmental Farming and Innovation. Information, including application de- tails, is available on the Pollinator Habitat Program page of the CDFA website.
Carter acknowledged he does not know what growers will do, but he said “we can remain committed, and we can continue investing in contracts, in the Corning plant and the stability for them as they consider the future of their olive groves.” He noted Bell-Carter this year changed most of its grower contracts from one-year evergreens to three- to five-year contracts. Ed Curiel, who grows olives in Tehama County, is one grower who signed a mul- tiyear contract with Bell-Carter. He said his family has been growing olives his whole life. Even though he has diversified into almonds and walnuts and has aban- doned some of his olive orchards due to lack of water, Curiel said he expects he will always maintain some olive acreage and will continue selling the crop to Bell- Carter for as long as he can. “There’s romanticism,” he said. “Olives have been good to my family for two or three generations now. It’s put food on the table. It’s putting my kids through school. We’re kind of loyal to the crop, to the company, to the town.” As a former Bell-Carter grower who now sells to Musco, Tulare County farm- er Chris Lange said he has continued to grow table olives because he has access to surface water and because the crop is “quite inexpensive to farm,” except for
State grants offered for pollinator habitat The Pollinator Habitat Program seeks to support pollinators by providing flo- ral resources, host plants and other ele- ments of suitable habitat. The program is designed to help strengthen pollina- tor populations and improve pollinator health. Projects funded through the pro- gram are expected to promote additional benefits to California’s biodiversity and agricultural production. throughout California. Eligible entities to apply for funding include resource conservation districts, nonprofits, tribes and California public higher-learning institutions. For more in- formation about eligibility and a full list of eligible applicants and funded pollina- tor practices, visit the program website at www.cdfa.ca.gov/oefi/php.
The program was established in the 2021 state budget. It allocated $15 mil- lion to CDFA for grants to establish pol- linator habitats on agricultural lands
People may sign up to receive email up- dates on the Pollinator Habitat Program at www.cdfa.ca.gov/subscriptions/ MailChimp-signup.html.
The Produce Safety Rule is Here; ARE YOU READY?
Farm Employers Labor Service (FELS), an a liated company of the California Farm Bureau (CAFB), has partnered with the Safe Food Alliance through a California Department of Food and Agriculture grant contract, as their designated training provider for Central and Southern California, to conduct the required Produce Safety training for growers. ALL TRAININGS BEGIN AT 8 AM September 7, 15 and 21:
California Farm Bureau Harvest Room 2600 River Plaza Drive, Sacramento October 5: Glenn County Farm Bureau 831 5th Street, Orland November 15: Yolo County Farm Bureau 69 West Kentucky Ave., Woodland
Most farms are required to have at least one designated supervisor who has been trained in accordance with the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) Produce Safety rule. Upon completion of the course, attendees will receive an o cial certi cate from the Association of Food & Drug O cials.
The Food Safety Training Partnership is offering these training courses throughout California. You can find more information and register at foodsafetytrainingpartnership.com, or call 916-561-5672. Supported by California Department of Food and Agriculture
September 14, 2022 Ag Alert 9
Powered by FlippingBook