…do for our families.” Fixing California’s Water Problem Water, Duarte argued, is not a natural crisis but a man-made one. Originally from Australia, she contrasted California’s resources with her homeland’s…
Alexandra Duarte Pledges to Fight for California Farmers in State Senate Run
The October 3 edition of the AgNet News Hour featured a passionate interview with Alexandra Duarte, a farmer, mother of four, and candidate for California’s Fourth State Senate District. Hosts…
Grand Island: From Settlers’ Trail to Husker Harvest Days
…The river served as a natural guide for pioneers traveling trails such as the Oregon, California, and Mormon Trails. For many, it was the lifeline that directed them toward new…
California Raisin Leaders on Trade, Water & Future
…operate without such support. This imbalance, combined with higher land values for competing crops like pistachios and almonds, has caused significant acreage loss in California’s raisin vineyards. He also highlighted…
Raisin Industry Legends Warn of Challenges and Chart a Path Forward
…gave a sweeping history lesson, recalling how raisins were once California’s pride crop, producing more than 400,000 tons a year. But today, production has slipped under 200,000 tons annually, dropping…
Plymouth Colony Crops: Corn, Tobacco, and Early Trade
…a more commercialized agricultural economy, where crops were grown not only for survival but also for trade and profit. From Subsistence to Trade Early settlers consumed most of what they…
Kevin Kester on Ranching, Trade, and Ag’s Next Generation
Life in Parkfield, California Kevin Kester is a fifth-generation rancher from Parkfield, California, a small ranching community northeast of Paso Robles in southeast Monterey County. Known as the “earthquake capital…
Kevin Kester on Cattle, Wolves, and the Fight to Keep Family Ranches Alive
…underscoring the importance of cattle to California’s ag economy. The conversation turned to the alarming wolf problem in the Sierra Nevada, where ranchers reported 77 documented wolf kills in just…
Pistachios, Water & Trade: Kreps on Farming’s Future
…soil on the west side of California’s Central Valley, water scarcity continues to hinder farming. Kreps criticized state leadership for failing to expand storage, noting that California hasn’t built a…
Pistachio Harvest Update and Fair Season Fun on AgNet News Hour
The September 30 edition of the AgNet News Hour mixed lighthearted fair talk with serious updates on California’s pistachio industry. Hosts Nick Papagni and Josh McGill opened the show with…
John Duarte on Central Valley Agriculture: Water, Prop 50, and the Future of Avocados
…of the best almond-growing soils in the world are located on the west side of the Valley—land that unfortunately suffers from chronic water shortages. John emphasized the tragedy of California’s…
John Duarte Shares Bold Nursery Innovations and Warns of Prop 50 Threat
…loses its voice in Washington,” he said, urging farmers and listeners to mobilize against it. Duarte also tied California’s farm challenges to the larger issue of food security. With a…
Shannon Douglas: Leading California Agriculture Through Opportunity and Challenge
…is on issues with direct impact: labor, trade, and the Farm Bill. California’s dependence on seasonal and immigrant labor makes workforce policy a constant priority. Trade agreements influence everything from…
California Farm Bureau’s Shannon Douglas Tackles Prop 50, Farm Bill, and the Future of Farming
…Douglas, president of the California Farm Bureau, for a wide-ranging conversation on water, regulation, trade, and the survival of California’s family farms. Douglas, a former FFA member and now a…