wg-n-s_2022_07_JulyAug_flip_prod

wg-n-s_2022_07_JulyAug_flip_prod

JULY | AUGUST 2022

THE PROMISE OF AGTECH

John D’Arrigo D’Arrigo California

®

Vernon E. Peterson Abundant Harvest Organics Kingsburg, Calif.

“It's rare to find an investment that pays for itself in one season or less.”

“In mature stone fruit orchards, we're saving 30 percent...

…which also means the operator covers 30 percent more per fill.”

“In younger orchards the savings are greater.”

Available Through John Deere Dealers Worldwide

SmartApply.com 317-222-4152

FEATURES 8

DEPARTMENTS 4 President’s Notes 6 Director Profile 18 Innovation 22 WG Member Welcome & Anniversaries 24 Update from the WGCIT 30 Agriculture & the Law 32 Federal Government Affairs 34 Arizona Government Affairs 36 California Government Affairs 38 Western Growers Assurance Trust 40 Connections 41 Contact Us 42 Inside Western Growers

WESTERN GROWER & SHIPPER Published Since 1929 Volume XCIII | Number 4

WG Women Reaches Membership Milestone 10 The Promise of Agtech 12 Agtech is Already Here 19 WGCIT SPONSOR

To enhance the competitiveness and profitability of Western Growers members

Dave Puglia President & CEO Western Growers [email protected]

Editor Tim Linden Champ Publishing 925.258.0892 | [email protected] Contributors Cory Lunde 949.885.2264 | [email protected] Ann Donahue 949.302.7600 | [email protected] Production Diane Mendez 949.885.2372 | [email protected] Circulation Marketing 949.885.2248 | [email protected] Advertising Sales Dana Davis 302.750.4662 | [email protected]

For Farm Credit, Supporting Agtech Means Supporting Family Legacies 20 WGCIT RESIDENT Biodegradable Plastics Within Reach 26 AgTech Updates 28 Farming for Food Banks: A Novel Concept for an Ageless Issue

TOGETHER.

WGA.COM

Western Grower & Shipper ISSN 0043-3799, Copyright © 2022 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. 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.

JULY | AUGUST 2022

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Western Grower & Shipper | www.wga.com

A Sharper Focus on American Food and Farm Policy By Dave Puglia, President and CEO, Western Growers Among the more irritating adages used in political discourse is: “Never let a good crisis go to waste.” It is often applied inappropriately, kind of like: “Whiskey is for drinking, water is for fighting over,” which is both painfully overused and mistakenly attributed to Mark Twain. And yet, most of these well-worn phrases reach peak utilization precisely because they are valid in so many situations.

nutrition priorities and block grants to states make up the bulk of our funding. As a new Farm Bill process gears up, the specialty crop industry is preparing to defend our position, since there is always an interest group that would like to poach our funding. Interests representing products that are clearly not specialty crops are seeking to be defined as such. Among them: Hemp, shellfish, wild rice and other niche grains…and even decorative stone. Beyond protecting what we have, we need a unified effort to expand federal support for our industry. We face domestic and international crises and the status quo won’t cut it. We are well organized in the form of the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance, a coalition of more than 120 organizations. I am privileged to serve as one of three national co-chairs, following the footsteps of Tom Nassif (whose leadership in the early 2000s led to the first-ever investment of federal Farm Bill funds for specialty crop priorities). Our first action for the 2023 Farm Bill is to strongly oppose adding hemp and other non-produce crops to our sections (or “titles”) of the Farm Bill. The larger question is whether we should be content protecting what we have? I have been warned not to ask for new funding, because “there just isn’t any new money for the Farm Bill.” Didn’t Congress just finish finding, or rather printing, $5 trillion in “new funding” for COVID relief, much of it highly questionable in its connection to the impacts of the pandemic? Immense amounts remain unspent, but we’re supposed to accept that there isn’t any new money available for food production? No way. The needs are clear: Step up research into pests, diseases and the strategies needed to protect our food production. Fund harvest automation, which would put the federal government into a true partnership with private sector innovators. Fund improved >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 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44

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