Western Grower & Shipper 2018 11Nov-Dec

Western Grower & Shipper 2018 11Nov-Dec

WESTERN GROWER SHIPPER NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2018

Agricultural R&D is on the Move as Restaurant Menus Get Healthier

WGCIT SPONSOR: TAYLOR FARMS “Bruce Taylor Deserves All the Credit!” Move Over Siri and Alexa, AgVoice Offers Speech-to-Text Technology Tailored to Ag Plant-Forward Concept Drives Meal Kit Firm Ag Economy Faces Uncertainty Need Boosts H-2A Filings

WESTERN GROWER SHIPPER NOVEMBER /DECEMBER 2018 WGA.COM

8 WGCIT SPONSOR: TAYLOR FARMS

WESTERN GROWER & SHIPPER Published Since 1929

“Bruce Taylor Deserves All the Credit!” 10 Move Over Siri and Alexa, AgVoice Offers Speech-to-Text Technology Tailored to Ag 12 Agricultural R&D is on the Move as Restaurant Menus Get Healthier 16 Plant-Forward Concept Drives Meal Kit Firm 20 Ag Economy Faces Uncertainty 24 Need Boosts H-2A Filings

Volume LXXXIX Number 6

To enhance the competitiveness and profitability of Western Growers members

Thomas A. Nassif President Western Growers [email protected] Editor Tim Linden Champ Publishing 925.258.0892 [email protected] Contributors Cory Lunde 949.885.2264 [email protected]

Stephanie Metzinger 949.885.2256 [email protected] Production Diane Mendez 949.885.2372 [email protected] Circulation Marketing 949.885.2248 [email protected] Advertising Sales Dana Davis Champ Publishing 302.750.4662 [email protected]

DEPARTMENTS 4 President’s Notes 6 Member Profile 22 Insurance Corner 26 Government Affairs 28 Agriculture & the Law 30 Science & Technology 33 34 Financial Services 35

Western Growers Assurance Trust

Western Growers Connections

37 38

Contact Us

What’s Trending

Western Grower & Shipper ISSN 0043-3799, Copyright © 2018 by the Western Grower & Shipper is published bi-monthly by Western Grower & Shipper Publishing Company, a division of Western Growers Service Corp., 15525 Sand Canyon Avenue, Irvine California 92618. Business and Editorial Offices: 15525 Sand Canyon Avenue, Irvine California 92618.Accounting and Circulation Offices:Western Grower & Shipper, 15525 Sand Canyon Avenue, Irvine California 92618. Call (949) 863-1000 to subscribe. Subscription is $18 per year. Foreign subscription is $36 per year. Single copies of recent issues, $1.50. Single copies of issues more than three months old, $2. Single copies ofYearbook issue $4. Periodicals postage is paid in Irvine, California and at additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Western Grower & Shipper , PO Box 2130, Newport Beach, California 92658.

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TOM NASSIF | PRESIDENT AND CEO, WESTERN GROWERS PRESIDENT’S NOTES

The Voter’s Conundrum The upcoming midterm elections are significant. While President Trump is not on the November ballot, citizens across the country will be casting their votes for congressional representatives who will either aid or impede the administration’s agenda. In large part, the success of President Trump’s next two years will depend on the political makeup of the House and Senate in the 116 th United States Congress.

Conventional wisdom indicates that the Republican Party will falter come November 6. Historically, the president’s party loses congressional seats in the midterm election. Since 1938, the midpoint of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s unprecedented third term in office, the party of the president in power has lost seats in the Senate 75 percent of the time and the House 90 percent of the time [15 and 18 out of 20 midterm elections, respectively]. Sometimes, midterm elections are a repudiation of performance as congressional turnover tends to mirror the president’s job approval ratings; but, more often, they are simply a political manifestation of Newton’s Third Law of Motion: “For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” Nothing motivates people to go to the polls like an adversary in the White House. Will the trend continue this election cycle? Probably, but I think the magnitude of the “blue wave” will depend on the turnout in many rural districts. It is no secret that rural America helped propel Trump to the presidency in 2016. In counties smaller than 20,000 people, voters went for Trump over Clinton by a margin of more than two to one. In fact, counties all the way up to one million residents favored Trump over Clinton. However, while President Trump’s policies have largely favored the business communities, his position on several key agricultural issues, such as international trade and immigration, may be eroding his support in rural and farming communities, causing many Western Growers members to face what I call the “Voter’s Conundrum.” Regardless of which side of the aisle you find yourself, there may be moments where you find it difficult to support your party; or there may be particular races where you identify more closely with the candidate of the opposite party [or, as may be more often the case, the candidate of your own party is a verifiable fool]. The crux of the Voter’s Conundrum is this: In these situations, do you vote for your party or for the candidate, regardless of party? Many times in my life, I have heard the seemingly sage political advice: “Vote for the person, not the party.”With more than four in 10 voters identifying themselves as independents in the most recent Gallup Poll, it appears that many Americans

have bought into this nonpartisan ballot-casting philosophy. Without turning this column into a partisan voting guide, let’s examine the wisdom of this approach to executing our primary civic duty. For a moment, imagine a political system where there are no parties, only candidates, each with their own political philosophies and positions on the issues. How would your voting decisions be based in this alternate universe? Without the influence of party designations, your choice would more than likely be determined by individual merit; undoubtedly, you would be more like to consider a candidate who may not align with all of your core values, but in your estimation is intelligent, measured and capable. On the surface, this would appear to be the preferable method for choosing our local, state and national representatives. Imagine if these types of elected officials ran our country?! Now travel back to the reality you currently live in, the one with sharply-divided political parties and equally-divergent agendas. Let’s assume this otherwise qualified individual has been elected, with the help of your ballot, but they happen to represent the party opposite of your own. How might they cast their votes on monumental pieces of legislation, bills intended to chart the fiscal and social course of this country for decades to come? Consider this statistic: Party unity voting has increased from around 60 percent in the 1970s to 90 percent today. In other words, Republicans and Democrats in both the House and Senate nearly always vote along party lines. Case in point, zero Democrats in either chamber voted for last year’s landmark tax reform bill, with only a handful of Republicans breaking ranks [mainly due to concerns over the increase in the federal debt]. This fact underscores the significance of party majorities in Congress, and hints at the fate of President Trump’s agenda should the Democrats retake control of the House or Senate in 2019. With nearly six dozen highly competitive seats in the House and nine toss up elections in the Senate [as of the writing of this column], every vote will count, perhaps none more than those in rural America. So, as you cast your ballot, will you vote for the person or the party?

4   Western Grower & Shipper | www.wga.com   NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2018

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CALIFORNIA MEMBER PROFILE

Stenderup Ag Partners Arvin, CA

WG Member since 1978

Danish Roots Run Deep at Arvin Farm

By Tim Linden B ACKGROUND: It was in 1927 when twin brothers Viggo and Soren Stenderup emigrated from Denmark to the United States and found their way to the farming town of Arvin in the southern San Joaquin Valley. They got their chance to literally establish new roots after the Great Depression. “They were able to buy a farm from the Bank of Italy, which became Bank of America, in 1930 following what happened in 1929,” said Kent Stenderup, speaking of his grandfather and uncle and the financial crisis that put many farms in the hands of bankers. LINE OF SUCCESSION: The second generation of Stenderups also featured a pair of twins as Viggo and his wife, Frieda, produced Verner and Gunner Stenderup in 1935. Today the third generation is in place with Verner and Gunner’s sons, Andy and Kent Stenderup, involved in the operation. At 83, Verner is also still in the

CROP ROTATION: The two founding brothers started their U.S. farming career with grapes, cotton and alfalfa…crops that would form the backbone of Stenderup Farms through the first generation and well into the second. It wasn’t until Andy (Cal Poly San Luis Obispo) and Kent (Stanford) graduated from college and rejoined the family operation that the crop mix expanded. “When I came back from Stanford, it was the classic case of the smart college kid trying to re-invent how we farmed,” Kent said. “I talked the family into planting iceberg lettuce. We disked the field. My grandfather said it was the first time ever that he received zero money on a crop.” Today Stenderup Ag Partners, which became the official name of the company 30 years ago, grows a variety of permanent and row crops, split fairly evenly down the middle. On the permanent side of the ledger are juice grapes and almonds. The row crop side features carrots, fresh potatoes, sweet potatoes, processing tomatoes, garlic and onions. CO-OP FRIENDLY: “We’re big believers in the co-op business model,” says Kent. “We belong to Blue Diamond for our almonds and Delano Growers Grape Products for our wine grapes. We also belong to an ag equipment co-op and an almond haulers co-op. Even our bank—Farm Credit—is a co-op.” The business partners are also active in the farm community as the 40-year membership in Western Growers attests. And Kent is the current vice chairman of the Almond Board. “My father and uncle served on various board. We believe in it,” Kent said. THE 4 TH GENERATION: It is too early to know whether the next generation of Stenderups will come back and run the family farm as did Kent and his cousin Andy, but at least Kent’s son John is in the business as a sales representative for C.H. Robinson. And John is certainly akin to following his dad’s footsteps, literally. Over the last two years, John Stenderup has scaled the top two mountains in the world in Mount Everest and K2. Kent accompanied him to base camp on the Mount Everest climb

picture. “He is our special projects manager,” says Kent. On their 2,000 acres, Andy and Kent have a clear division of work with Andy handling all tractor work and equipment and Kent in charge of irrigation and the office.

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THE FUTURE: The Stenderups have been farming in Kern County for almost 90 years and Kent expects farming to take them quite a bit further down the road. At age 59, with a father still active at 83, Kent believes he has many years left helping to guide the operation. “I like our business model now, but it will change. It always does. Our family farming model works really well. We always confer with one another before making any major decisions. I can’t tell you what’s next, but I plan to be here. I’m still having lots of fun!”

and has been an emotional and financial supporter of the ambitious undertakings. After all, it was Kent who got John interested in serious hiking and climbing. “I enjoy the peace and serenity of hiking,” Kent said. “I introduced John to hiking and he took it and ran with it. You could tell early that he had the footing and was very comfortable climbing. One of the first hikes we did was Half Dome (in Yosemite).” Kent still enjoys hiking, including going from rim to rim through the Grand Canyon and hiking Mt. Whitney, California’s tallest peak.

WESTERN GROWERS OFFICERS – 2018

CRAIG A. READE, Chairman RON RATTO, Senior Vice Chair RYAN TALLEY, Vice Chair STEPHEN F. DANNA, Treasurer CAROL CHANDLER, Executive Secretary THOMAS A. NASSIF, President DIRECTORS – 2018 GEORGE J. ADAM Innovative Produce, Santa Maria, California JOSEPH E. AIELLO Uesugi Farms, Inc., Gilroy, California KEVIN S. ANDREW Vanguard International, Bakersfield, California MIKE ANTLE Tanimura and Antle, Salinas, California ROBERT K. BARKLEY Barkley Ag Enterprises LLP,Yuma, Arizona STEPHEN J. BARNARD Mission Produce, Inc., Oxnard, California BRIAN BERTELSEN Cove Ranch Management, Reedley, California GEORGE BOSKOVICH III Boskovich Farms, Oxnard, California DON CAMERON Terranova Ranch, Helm, California EDWIN A. CAMP D. M. Camp & Sons, Bakersfield, California CAROL CHANDLER Chandler Farms LP, Selma, California LAWRENCEW. COX Coastline Family Farms, Salinas, California STEPHEN F. DANNA Danna Farms, Inc.,Yuba City, California JOHN C. D’ARRIGO D’Arrigo Bros. Co. of California, Salinas, California THOMAS DEARDORFF II Deardorff Family Farms, Oxnard, California SAMUEL D. DUDA Duda Farm Fresh Foods, Inc., Salinas, California CATHERINE A. FANUCCHI Tri-Fanucchi Farms Inc., Bakersfield, California DAVID L. GILL Rio Farms, King City, California A. G. KAWAMURA Orange County Produce, LLC, Irvine, California ALBERT KECK Hadley Date Gardens,Thermal, California LORRI KOSTER Mann Packing Company, Inc., Salinas, California FRED P. LOBUE, JR. LoBue Bros., Inc., Lindsay, California FRANK MACONACHY Ramsay Highlander, Inc., Gonzales, California JOHN S. MANFRE Frank Capurro and Son, Moss Landing, California STEPHEN MARTORI III Martori Farms, Scottsdale, Arizona HAROLD MCCLARTY HMC Farms, Kingsburg, California JOHN MCPIKE California Giant, Inc., Santa Maria, California TOMMULHOLLAND Mulholland Citrus, Orange Cove, California KEVIN MURPHY Driscoll’s Inc.,Watsonville, California MARK NICKERSON PrimeTime International, Coachella, California THOMAS M. NUNES The Nunes Company, Inc., Salinas, California KEVIN E. PASCOE Grimmway Enterprises Inc., Bakersfield, California GARY J. PASQUINELLI Pasquinelli Produce Company,Yuma, Arizona STEPHEN F. PATRICIO Westside Produce, Firebaugh, California RON RATTO Ratto Bros. Inc., Modesto, California CRAIG A. READE Bonipak Produce, Inc., Santa Maria, California JOSEPH A. RODRIGUEZ The Growers Company, Inc., Somerton, Arizona WILL ROUSSEAU Rousseau Farming Company,Tolleson, Arizona VICTOR SMITH JV Smith Companies,Yuma, Arizona RYANTALLEY Talley Farms, Arroyo Grande, California BRUCE C.TAYLOR Taylor Farms California, Salinas, California STUARTWOOLF Woolf Farming & Processing, Fresno, California ROBYRACEBURU Wonderful Orchards, Shafter, California

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WGCIT SPONSOR: TAYLOR FARMS “Bruce Taylor Deserves All the Credit!”

By Tim Linden S o says Tom Nassif when speaking of the development of the Western Growers Center for Innovation & Technology. The technology incubator, aimed at bringing farmers and entrepreneurs together to develop solutions for challenges facing production agriculture, is housed on the first floor of the Taylor Farms complex in downtown Salinas. That alone is worthy of recognition but even more importantly it was Bruce Taylor’s vision that led to the idea in the first place. “He deserves all the credit in the world,” said Nassif, who is president and CEO of Western Growers. “At a board meeting when he was chairman (2014), Bruce invited John Hartnett of SVG Partners to make a presentation about what SVG was doing and what Western Growers could do to support the effort.” That began the negotiations and launched the idea of an ag technology incubator in Salinas. The Western Growers board did vote to support the effort but “we wanted to be the sponsor. We wanted it to be the Western Growers incubator,” Nassif said.

In praising Taylor’s vision, Nassif said that Bruce came up with the idea, provided the physical space and also donated money to get it off the ground. He was joined by Vic Smith of JV Smith Companies as an early funder, which Nassif said was as important as anything else in getting the idea off the ground. It is three years later and Nassif said reality has matched the vision. “It has been an unqualified success. We have far exceeded our expectations.” He noted that at the beginning, “we thought that maybe we could get as many as 30 tenants with some using it as a hot desk when they were in the area. Now we have in excess of 53 tenants. They have attracted a lot of venture capital money and they are working on industry issues.” He noted that Western Growers involvement has led to the AgSharks competition, which saw an unprecedented investment of more than $2 million in ag technology at WG’s 2017 Annual Meeting. “It was a resounding success. We are going to do it again this year. I don’t know how much investment it will attract but, at the minimum, the companies will be competing for $250,000 for the best ag innovation.” From Western Growers perspective, Nassif said the WGCIT concept has already reached fruition. “We were never in it to make money,” he said. “What we wanted to do was create an environment to help solve some of the industry’s most vexing problems, especially in the area of water and labor. And that is what’s happening.” He said entrepreneurs are working together and working with members on several different pilot projects addressing the industry’s problems. The effort has led to robust activity with regard to technology in the ag sector, including the excellent relationship Western Growers has forged with Forbes and its AgTech Summit held in Salinas for the past three years. He added that Dennis Donohue as the center’s lead and WG’s Hank Giclas, senior vice president of strategic planning, science & technology, have done yeoman’s work in advancing the effort and bringing parties together to work on the issues. He also said the industry at large has supported the concept and followed the lead of Western Growers in recognizing the value of technology and the important role it has to play in the survival and profitability of the fresh produce industry. He said investment is continuing and Western Growers is looking at many different opportunities in the ag technology space. But Nassif came back to Bruce Taylor and reiterated that he truly made it possible. “The Western Growers Center for Innovation & Technology has become exactly what we had hoped it would be…and Bruce was the visionary.”

The idea for theWestern Growers Center for Innovation & Technology was first hatched when Bruce Taylor was chairman of the board in 2014. Here he is pictured withWGA CEO Tom Nassif at the 2014 Annual Meeting.

8   Western Grower & Shipper | www.wga.com   NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2018

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Move Over Siri and Alexa, AgVoice Offers Speech-to-Text Technology Tailored to Ag

By Stephanie Metzinger T hink Siri, but for agriculture. When Bruce Rasa first conceptualized the idea of a speech-to-text >Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40

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