PRESS RELEASE: Western Growers’ Nassif Statement on Assembly’s Approval of AB 1066

August 29th, 2016

Statement of Western Growers President and CEO Tom Nassif following today’s passage of AB 1066 in the California State Assembly:

“We are extremely disappointed in the decision of the California State Assembly to pass AB 1066 by Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez. If signed by Governor Brown, the increased overtime costs imposed on California family farmers will compound newly enacted minimum wage increases set to reach $15 per hour by 2022. A recent economic analysis concludes that the combination of these two measures will significantly reduce both farmworker income and agricultural production in the state.

The members who voted for this bill have placed California farms at an even further competitive disadvantage internationally and with other states. California is one of only five states that provide overtime to farmworkers, and the only state that requires daily overtime after 10 hours. Furthermore, there are numerous other California industries that have exceptions and complete exemptions from the eight-hour overtime requirement. These are facts that supporters of the bill conveniently chose to overlook.

Employers in all industries intentionally manage overtime costs, which are generally reserved for anomalies in the work day or work week. Agriculture is a seasonal industry with limited opportunities for farmworkers to earn full paychecks during peak harvest. While AB 1066 claims to protect agricultural employees, this short-sighted policy will have the opposite effect, reducing the number of hours available to (and earnings potential of) farmworkers.

For these reasons, AB 1066 has faced broad opposition from both California family farmers and their employees and must be vetoed by the Governor.”

Tags: , , ,
Posted in Press Releases | No Comments »

Sustainable Employment Practices in an Era of Government Micro-Management

August 4th, 2016

By Michael Saqui of The Saqui Law Firm

The Obama Administration, through its alphabet soup of government agencies, has been dramatically overreaching into all areas of employers’ businesses. This markedly anti-employer trend has largely withstood legal challenge, despite vehement opposition. Many employers are reeling from the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) new aggressive stance on arbitration agreements and workplace policies, micro-unit recognition, and the Agricultural Labor Relation Board’s (ALRB) proposed access rule. The new rules are forcing businesses to completely reevaluate their operations in order to avoid violations and reinvigorated unions. While the immediate instinct is to knee-jerk a quick compliance response, many employers are successfully weathering this storm through sustainable human resources practices.

For example, on the labor front, NLRB is looking to expand its definition of what constitutes a joint employer. Under the Browning-Ferris decision, a company that has merely the capacity to indirectly control one or more terms or conditions of employment could be considered a joint employer for the purposes of union recognition and collective bargaining. This strikes at the heart of labor contractor arrangements and franchises. The NLRB is also trying to stack the deck in favor of unions by recognizing micro-units. This essentially gives unions free reign to custom-design a bargaining unit of employees that they know be union supporters. An employer can only overwrite the union’s proposed unit by showing that there is an overwhelming community of interest between the union’s proposed unit and the employees whom the employer contends should be included.

Additional deck-stacking by the NLRB comes in the form of the ambush election rules which dramatically shorten the timeline between when employees request representation and the election. This limits the time the employer has to mount an effective campaign to get its message out. The rules also set a number of technical traps which give big election advantages to the union if an employer fails to supply certain information to the union in a timely and technically correct manner. Elections are now happening in an average of 24 days, down from the previous average of 38.

The NLRB is also going after any and every workplace policy that could possibly be read as prohibiting concerted activity or prohibiting discourse about the employer’s practices. Many facially neutral policies like “No fighting in the workplace” or “Don’t disparage the employer in social media” are being subjected to challenge. Arbitration agreements containing class action waivers are also being thrown out as violating employee’s rights to organize. The Seventh Circuit recently endorsed this position despite other circuit courts rejecting such reasoning.

The ALRB is also moving forward with its proposed rule allowing staff from the agency to take access to employer’s property for the purpose of educating workers about their rights to organize. Not to be left out, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is also chiming in by implementing new rules on employee wellness plans to ensure that the plans do not create certain kinds of discrimination based on employee health.

With all of this micro-management by government agencies and path-clearing for unions, employers are spending large sums of money attempting to catch up to compliance. But this is not the only area where employers should be concentrating resources in order to regain control of their own operations. Employees turn to unions in the first place because the unions are successfully selling themselves as the solution to employees’ grievances with their employer. Employees would not do so if their employer was successfully addressing their concerns. A second and connected front to employers’ battle to maintain control lies in sustainable human resources practices.

By implementing best practices, a company can opt to become an “employer of choice” and stay ahead of regulation. The first step in this process is to step away from the business and look at the company’s true stakeholders. This analysis should use the framework of the “Triple Bottom Line”: that is, employers should be looking for their social, environmental, and financial stakeholders. In the agricultural world, these stakeholders can consist of retailers, food service operators, franchises, consumers, farmworkers, community groups, neighboring people and businesses. By engaging all of these stakeholders, remarkable synergies can be harnessed.

By focusing on the social stakeholders—employees—and by implementing human resources best practices, employers can meet these codes of conduct and commitments and achieve marked growths in productivity. A 2014 Gallup survey found that up to 70 percent of U.S. employees were not engaged in the workplace, costing employers between $450 to $550 billion each year in lost productivity. Worker engagement means employees will turn to unions less often, stay with the company longer, be more productive, and tell others about the positive policies and practices of the company. By offering bounties on methods for improving efficiency and using employee recognition programs, employees buy into improving the business. In order to actively engage with farm workers and their needs, employers need to know and provide solutions to issues most prominently affecting their lives. These HR Practices can include providing day care solutions, leadership development programs, implementing a social services liaison who can connect employees with health and wellness services, housing, domestic violence counseling, nutrition assistance (to help curb a massive diabetes trend in the farmworker community), and English as a second language education.

Many companies are also organizing and engaging with quality committees dedicated toward improving the company’s practices in health, safety, wages, benefits, working conditions, and dispute resolution. While there are some special legal concerns over the makeup and powers of such committees, if implemented correctly, they can be an additional tool in creating value.  By incorporating these practices into the company’s brand, the company can set itself apart as a socially conscious business and a responsible employer whose products consumers are willing to put a premium on.

Engaging environmental stakeholders means staying abreast of the interests of the community and environment as a whole. This includes tracking and being responsive to the needs of farmworker organizations, ministries, public interest groups, action networks, environmental organizations. Whether the communities concerns are about food safety, pesticides, land use, soil use, small business growth, water use, non-GMO seeds, neighboring animals, or other environmental concerns, knowing and incorporating these interests into the company’s brand can be a key tool for setting the company apart in a positive way that appeals to end-consumers. Campbell’s Healthy Community Programs, for example, provide in-classroom nutrition education, cooking classes for youth, and works to expand availability at corner stores rather than supermarkets. Similarly, TOMS Roasting Co. provides 140 liters of clean water for a person in need in the same region where their coffee beans are sourced for every bag of coffee purchased.

These investments in stakeholders, when taken together with sustainable employment practices, create and maintain the feedback loop of sustainability. Making good investments in HR improves efficiency, reduces cost, which allows for reduction of price, which drives demand, which drives profit and ultimately allows the business to continue taking care of its employees and community. By staying attuned to the company’s stakeholders via the Triple Bottom Line, companies can avoid union entanglements and stay ahead of the wave of regulation. Making smart investments in human resources and staying attuned to employee needs can help employers stay in control of their business.

Tags: , , , ,
Posted in WG&S Magazine, August 2016 Issue | No Comments »

The Business of Environmentalism

August 4th, 2016

In truth, we should be allies. The environmental and agricultural communities share more in common than conventional wisdom might suggest. Both desire to preserve our planet and its resources for future generations. I am not shy about saying farmers are the original environmentalists.

To a person, every farmer I have ever met is driven by an ethical obligation to protect the environment. They view themselves as stewards of the land. Nearly all want their children and grandchildren to continue the tradition. These multi-generational farms, the heart and soul of agriculture in the West, are the very definition of sustainability. We should be so lucky to entrust our limited natural resources to their collective care.

If you can’t bring yourself to buy the moral argument, at least consider renting the financial one. Farmers are business owners. They are motivated by sustainable profit. Their businesses are dependent on healthy soil and clean water, both of which lead to stronger yields and higher quality products. The math is quite simple: An environmentally-healthy farm can deliver sustainable profits, while land that has been abused will soon cease to produce anything. Furthermore, inputs like fertilizer and pesticides are expensive; a business that doesn’t minimize operating costs won’t stay viable for very long.

Regardless of motive, clean air, soil and water are all outcomes supported by environmentalists. So why do so many continue to paint farmers as the enemy?

In his farewell address, President Eisenhower warned the nation: “In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence… by the military-industrial complex.” During the early years of the Cold War, he feared that American democracy was being threatened by the burgeoning interdependency between arms manufacturers, the military and government. Eisenhower urged the citizenry to remain “alert and knowledgeable” to avoid the “disastrous rise of misplaced power.”

In a similar sense, today we see the maturation of an environmental-industrial complex, defined by multi-million dollar global enterprises closely integrated with academia and government regulators implementing environmental programs.

Like a storyline out of Mad Men, environmental activists have channeled their inner Don Draper, fomenting fear of the impacts of business and industry, and of human activity generally, in order to build a database of committed donors. It is an ingenious business model, used by corporate America since the early 1920s when Gerard Lambert stigmatized halitosis to sell Listerine. Marketers have long understood that fear is a powerful motivating tool.

Every cause needs a bad guy, a threat that must be put down. For Listerine, it was bad breath. For some environmental organizations, farmers—cast as the pillagers of Mother Earth—have emerged as a compelling bogeyman (typically referred to as “corporate agriculture,” “industrial agriculture,” or the like) to alarm the 98 percent of Americans who aren’t farmers.

We are all motivated by our own self-interest. Farmers are motivated by the love of farming and social good that comes from providing healthy food, and they are also motivated by the desire to succeed financially. Environmental activists working in big organizations aren’t all that different. There is no doubt that most choose a career in environmental activism based on personal commitment to environmental values and an altruistic desire to do good, and there is also no doubt that for most, an equal motivation, and one that is entirely defensible, is the financial reward and career security that these organizations can provide.

Unfortunately, in the public debate, it is perfectly acceptable to point to farmers’ financial motivations and equally unacceptable to acknowledge the financial motivations of environmental advocates. Those in private enterprise who are targeted by the policy and political initiatives of the environmental lobby ought to be more vocal about that.

If one can acknowledge the reality that the environmental lobby is motivated not only by the values of environmentalism, but also by the financial rewards of growing a motivated donor base, one might ask whether it would really benefit these organizations to ever declare a problem solved. After all, while committed donors might feel good upon hearing such an announcement, they would also have one less reason to contribute money.

Nowhere was this more evident than during the opposition waged against Senator Feinstein’s compromise California drought legislation in 2014, which culminated in a 13-organization joint-letter slamming her bill, S. 2198.

Not one to seek the ire of environmentalists, the senator candidly responded—as quoted in the San Francisco Chronicle—that they “have never been helpful to me in producing good water policy.” She went on to lament, “I have not had a single constructive view from environmentalists of how to provide water when there is no snowpack.”

The practice of environmental protection and the business of environmentalism are two sides of a scale. Our nation’s natural resources have benefitted from much that has come from the former, but today the scale is weighted too much to the latter. It is from that side of the scale—the business of environmentalism—that produces the political targeting of agriculture.

It should stop. We share a common aim: To safeguard the planet for its people, animals and plants. Imagine how much good could be accomplished if all farmers, regardless of size, whether conventional or organic, were accepted and embraced as partners for environmental protection? Now that is a narrative I know Don Draper could sell.

Tags: ,
Posted in WG&S Magazine, August 2016 Issue | No Comments »

A Family Tradition: Reiter Brothers Build a Berry Legacy

August 4th, 2016

On a late summer afternoon more than 50 years ago, Miles and Garland Reiter had just finished up a hard day’s work on the farm and jumped into their Jeep to head to the barn. Garland dared his older brother Miles to hop onto the back of the car and when he did, Garland hit reverse in full speed.

“I just wanted to scare my older brother and planned to stop right in front of the barn,” Garland reminisced. “Instead of hitting the brake, I hit the clutch and the Jeep went right through the barn. Thank goodness Miles jumped off before. We had a good laugh about it afterward.”

This small moment long ago, which took place on a strawberry farm off the central coast of California, exemplifies the relationship that has helped build Driscoll’s and Reiter Affiliated Companies into the dynamic organizations they are today.

 

THE BEGINNING

The Reiter family started farming on the San Francisco Bay Peninsula. In the 1900s, they migrated south into Watsonville and the Santa Clara Valley. There, Miles and Garland’s grandfather, Joseph “Ed” Reiter, and first cousin, R.O. “Dick” Driscoll, began growing their own Sweet Briar strawberry varieties. After World War II, they farmed under their respective companies of Reiter and Driscoll’s and began marketing strawberries under the Driscoll Strawberry Associates label with other family and associated suppliers.

Their father, Joseph Reiter, continued to carry on the family legacy by charting new agricultural territories and grooming Miles and Garland to become the next generation of berry leaders.

“I started working on the farm when I was 12 years old,” said Miles. “I would work summers and help out whenever I had free time. It was just a part of life.”

When Miles graduated from Princeton University, he immediately went into the business. Miles started building his reputation as a strawberry farmer in 1970, but things took a turn seven years later when the brothers lost both of their parents in a plane crash.

Miles and Garland, who had just graduated from the University of Santa Clara, were faced with one of the biggest decisions of their lives: what to do with the family business. And, for them, the answer was simple. They would build a company that would help revolutionize agriculture.

Miles took over leadership of the family’s existing operations on the Central Coast, while Garland moved south to found the Reiter’s Southern California business. In 1980, the brothers reestablished a raspberry breeding program that had been abandoned by their father 25 years earlier. In 1988, Miles stepped into the role of chairman of Driscoll Strawberry Associates. Shortly thereafter, he led a transformation of the business that included the goal of creating a year-round supply of differentiated and branded strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries, with a focus on the North American market. Simultaneously, the company decided to move away from the existing packaging systems and created the berry clamshells that are now ubiquitous throughout the global industry. Under Miles’ leadership over the past two decades, Driscoll’s vision has moved to embrace a global footprint with an additional focus on the European and Asian markets and with berry production on six continents.

In the year 2000, Miles took on the additional role of CEO of Driscoll’s. At the same time, Garland took over the leadership of all the family farming activities at Reiter Affiliated Companies (RAC) as their president and CEO. Since that time, the brothers expanded the berry’s popularity worldwide and made it the year-round commodity that we all enjoy today.

“Our father and grandfather, working with their cousins and colleagues, did a tremendous amount to create the foundation of the strawberry industry we know today,” said Miles. “They also explored the potential of raspberries, but with limited success. Garland and I picked up their lead and turned the raspberry dream into a reality. That has been a really satisfying joint effort.”

 

MAKING A GLOBAL IMPACT

Today, RAC grows Driscoll’s proprietary varieties of strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries in the United States, Baja California, Central Mexico, Portugal and Morocco. RAC is Driscoll’s largest supplier of fresh berries and is contracted to grow and harvest their plants, allowing Driscoll’s to research new plant varieties, market and supply consumers globally with the very best and highest quality berries. But their reach wasn’t always international.

“In Mexico, we started from nothing. We built a business that was based on trust and honesty and that’s something that was missing in Mexico back in 1991,” said Garland.

Prior to Miles and Garland’s expansion to Mexico, investment in farming in the country was minimal. According to the brothers, there was a desire for crops to be grown in Mexico and sold in the United States, but there was no solid foundation. They were the first ever to truly engage with small farmers in Mexico and brought them the resources needed to produce thriving crops while facilitating market access.

“The resources we provided went beyond capital. They were insight and sound processes,” said Garland. The brothers established a RAC headquarters in Jocotepec, a small village just south of Guadalajara and developed relationships with more than 100 different growers and partners. This small village has since grown and now has one of the highest per capita incomes in the region.

“We created a business venture that is both rewarding and prosperous to the population there. It’s really been quite successful. We are now using this model to bring berries to other areas,” said Garland.

In addition to building a brand in Mexico, RAC extended its farming operations through partnerships in Zambujeira do Mar, Portugal and Agadir, Morocco to offer new commodities to the European market. RAC and Driscoll’s are currently working to expand berry cultivation in these regions.

“We went from a small operation in coastal California that only grew one commodity to a global company that produces all types of berries. No longer is Driscoll’s known for ‘strawberries.’ We are known as a leader in supplying berries year-round,” stated Miles.

 

Impacting the Future

Miles and Garland attribute their success to three factors: 1) Commitment to your mission and values; 2) Commitment to your consumers; and 3) Commitment to your employees.

“The big take home is how important it is to have a mission that you are really committed to and a vision of where you want to go,” commented Miles. Breeding new berry varieties and being consumer focused were at the top of the Reiter vision list.

Always prioritizing the consumer, both brothers have implemented programs and developed innovations to bolster food safety efforts. In 2008, Driscoll’s launched a Clamshell Traceability Program where Driscoll’s customers can learn about the “life stories” of the berries they purchase. Consumers can connect with the HarvestMark food traceability App and learn about the farm where their berries were grown, and find nutrition information, recipe ideas, and other helpful tips by looking up the code on the clamshell online.  Additionally, RAC and Driscoll’s are working with Agrobot to test robotic-assisted harvesting practices that will help bring more berries to consumers’ tables.

“The consumer comes first and we need to figure out how to increase output to meet their demand, with limited resources,” said Garland. As the availability of labor becomes a global issue, the Reiters are developing solutions to assist with the harvest and enhance the quality of life for their employees.

Over the years, RAC has invested in developing aids to reduce the physical requirements needed to grow and cultivate their crops and to assist the employees in the field. RAC’s Mercado Harvester Machine, developed by and named after a current RAC partner and former harvester, Manuel Mercado, is a remote controlled machine that can follow a harvester and carry boxes of picked produce through a berry field—saving up to 40 percent of their man hours during harvest.

RAC was also the first agricultural firm in the nation to provide private, primary and preventative health clinics for their farm workers. They opened La Clinica FreSalud, a primary healthcare clinic in Santa Maria, Oxnard, Watsonville and Salinas where employees do not pay for co-pays and have access to pharmaceuticals for both prescription and over-the-counter medications. “I think our industry can and will make adjustments to increase efficiencies around resource limitations, but it will require investment and a different outlook,” said Garland.

 

EXPANDING THE FAMILY LEGACY

Family farms represent 98 percent of all U.S. farms and are responsible for 85 percent of U.S. farm production—and the Reiters are one of those proud families.

Miles and Garland are fourth generation in the family business (third in berries), and the berry legacy lives on with the next generation of the Reiter clan. “We are committed to seeing the value of legacy and knowledge engrained in the family business. From a multigenerational aspect—the compassion for people and the passion for berries exist in our children,” said Garland.

Garland and his wife Brenda’s three sons—Eric, Garland Jr. and Austin—look to carry on the family business. Eric is gaining management experience in Oxnard as their district operations lead after farming several years in Santa Maria and Central Mexico. Garland Jr. farmed several years in Baja California and returned to work outside the family business in the Los Angeles Wholesale Produce Market to understand the wholesale marketplace. He plans to move to Holland later this year and work in Driscoll’s of Europe in the sales and operations area. Austin, a recent graduate at NYU, is headed to New Zealand and looks to bring his knowledge of environment studies to the family business.

Among Miles and Rosanne’s four children (Brie, Allison, Trip and Sydney), Brie and her husband, Brian, moved to Chile to become blueberry growers in 2011. Since then they have brought two existing, money-losing farms to profitability and Brie has moved into the leadership of Driscoll’s South American operations. Allison has worked in several roles in both Driscoll’s and RAC and has recently established her own interior design business. Trip farmed strawberries, on his own, after graduating from high school. He has just completed an undergraduate degree in Spanish Language and Culture, while working on farms throughout his college years. He plans to spend some time as a hunting and fishing guide before returning to the family business. Sydney has just graduated from college and is exploring the future with lots of energy and excitement.

 

HONORING TWO LEGENDS

Expanding the market for berries, developing new geographies, and offering new commodities to consumers are only a handful of the achievements the Reiter brothers have accomplished. Together, they have not only preserved the legacy that preceded them, but grown their companies to be among the leaders in the agricultural industry.

Western Growers is honoring Miles and Garland Reiter as the recipients of the 2016 Award of Honor during WG’s 91st Annual Meeting in Hawaii. This is the first time in Western Growers’ history that the Board of Directors has chosen two individuals to receive the award together. And there is no better pair worthy of this honor than the extraordinary brother duo who have established themselves as pioneers in the berry industry.

Tags: , ,
Posted in WG&S Magazine, August 2016 Issue | No Comments »

Forbes AgTech Summit Learning to Do More with Less through Innovation

August 4th, 2016

Old town Salinas was transformed into an agtech hub on July 13-14 when the most ambitious and auspicious of innovations were showcased during the 2016 Forbes AgTech Summit. This exciting event brought together more than 600 fresh produce leaders, Silicon Valley’s technology industry, entrepreneurs and venture capitalists to network and discuss solutions to the most critical issues affecting food production globally.

“California talks a big game about being behind ag but doesn’t support ag as much as it can,” said Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom during the opening reception as the last of the attendees were filing in after tours of several groundbreaking facilities, including the Mann Packing and Taylor Farms processing plants, Tanimura & Antle’s Spreckels Crossing employee housing complex and the Western Growers Center for Innovation and Technology (WGCIT).

“We are in a hinge moment in history between the old and the new. Right now is the opportune time to use technology to connect the dots to solve the problems that are being created in the industry by regulatory issues. We need to come together to help build these platforms,” said Newsom.

Labor was highlighted as one challenge—heightened by changing demographics and exacerbated by regulatory barriers—that is pushing agriculture to mechanize and bringing agtech to the forefront. WG President & CEO Tom Nassif moderated a keynote panel discussion—Labor’s Next Frontier—on how the decline of farm labor is driving agriculture toward more automation.

“We are facing more regulations and less labor…how do we compete with that?” asked Nassif.  Investment in technology is a solution. It’s up to us to make our labor force more efficient and take advantage of what tech has to offer.”

During the panel, Nassif, Sammy Duda, WG board senior vice chair and vice president of Duda Farm Fresh Foods, and Harold McClarty, president of HMC Farms, discussed the labor challenges faced by the industry and what type of labor-saving technologies need to be developed to assist with production.

“There is a diminishing number of people who want to do the labor. Wages can rise, but the supply of labor will still remain low,” said Duda.

The passionate discussion among these three industry leaders set the tone for the conference and put into perspective why the need for technology is so critical. “I don’t want my commodity to be a luxury item that only people in this room can eat, and that is where we are going. I can’t keep raising my prices, it won’t work in the marketplace,” said McClarty.

The development of tools and technologies, such as mechanical harvesters and automatic thinners, have already helped the industry reduce reliance on labor. Appropriately, WG Board Chairman Larry Cox of Lawrence Cox Ranches presented Frank Maconachy of Ramsay Highlander the Forbes Impact Award for his company’s dedication to mechanizing specialty crop agriculture.

Ramsay Highlander has built machines that can harvest 15,000 pounds of spinach in an hour (replacing about 100 workers) and lettuce thinners that require only one farmworker as opposed to the crew of 30 typically needed. Maconachy is also working on a tomato de-viner that will reduce a crew of 40 to just 10.

Platforms, sensors, farm management software and satellite imagery are also playing a large role in the quest to help farmers produce more with less. At the Innovation Showcase, participants had the opportunity to network with more than 40 different start-up companies and learn about their innovative solutions. The two rooms that comprised the Innovation Showcase were buzzing with talks of potential partnership between fellow startups, discussions about possible financial support between startups and venture capitalists and conversations between startups and new and prospective customers.

Eleven of the 20 WGCIT residents participated in the showcase, including Food-Origins, GeoVisual Analytics, Inteligistics, Trace Genomics, Specright, HeavyConnect, TerrAvion, California Safe Soil, HarvestPort, iFood Decision Sciences and Lotpath. Among the residents, GeoVisual Analytics and Trace Genomics were announced as two of the three winners of THRIVE’s Operational Excellence, Sustainability, and Innovation awards during summit.

As part of the benefits they enjoy as residents of the Center, all 20 startups were invited to an exclusive luncheon with venture capitalists, angel investors, WGCIT sponsors and key growers. Held in the Taylor Farms courtyard outside the Center, residents enjoyed one-on-one interaction with potential financial backers and clients.

Five additional start-up companies put in applications to join the WGCIT during the summit—bringing the total number of startups working out of the Center to 25 in just eight months. The Center plans to expand even more thanks to a generous $30,000 donation from Wells Fargo presented to WG during the summit’s opening ceremony. The funds, which will be distributed through the WG Foundation, will be used to create scholarships for entrepreneurs who are looking to advance their innovations by joining the Center. The scholarships will allow 10 additional technology companies to receive a coveted spot in the incubator for one year.

Throughout the event, attendees participated in a series of seminars and “fireside chats” on topics such as food security, water issues, biological revolutions and agtech investment, among others. One of the most popular discussions was a candid conversation between Bruce Taylor, the founder and CEO of Taylor Farms, and Dan Harburg, the director of business development for Soft Robotics. Soft Robotics is working with Taylor Farms, providing an automated “arm” that helps with the sorting and packing of fruits and vegetables. The arm uses a gripper made of a soft material that mimics the way an octopus grips so produce will remain unharmed.

A resounding theme among all of the discussions at the second annual Forbes AgTech Summit was how to do more with less. With a global population expected to reach 9.3 billion within the next 30 years, food production will need to increase by as much as 70 percent. Combined with the fact that we are entering an era of diminishing natural resources, agtech will necessarily be a major part of the solution.

Tags: ,
Posted in WG&S Magazine, August 2016 Issue | No Comments »

SUPPLY ISSUES: Future Growth of Organics Could Be Limited by Geography

August 4th, 2016

At the very first Organic Produce Summit—held in Monterey in July—the future of fresh produce in this category was celebrated as demand exceeds supply and premium pricing is very much alive and well.  Yet an underlying concern was expressed as producers are not quite sure if supply can keep up with that demand.

That was one of the major themes discussed during a breakout session devoted to the supply side of the equation.  Three panelists—Driscoll’s Executive Vice President Soren Bjorn, Taylor Farm’s Vice President of Operations Jerrett Stoffel and Purity Organic Fruits and Juices Founder Greg Holzman—discussed the challenges in finding suitable organic land with the audience and Moderator Nate Lewis of the Organic Trade Association.  Lewis led off the discussion bluntly asking the group what the biggest challenge is with organic produce.  Not surprisingly, they each responded with a version of lack of land is what is keeping them up at night.

“Available ground is the biggest challenge,” said Stoffel, noting that all the low hanging fruit, which translates to conventional ground that is relatively easy to transition to organic production, has already been picked.  He said Taylor Farms continue to look for new ground but it is difficult to find, and much more expensive to convert.  He said there is a cost equation where it just doesn’t pencil out to convert some ground.

Holzman said he travels extensively and continually tries to convince growers all over the world to switch to organic production.  Upon further questioning, he revealed that because his firm only has an organic option that it offers to its customers, it really can’t help growers market their transitional product.

Bjorn said that is not the case with Driscoll’s.  Because of some very conservative residue standards by some export buyers, he said transitional fruit is a good match for Driscoll’s export sales, which does help the company “sell” the concept of organic production to its growers.  However, the Driscoll’s executive did remind the crowd that the leading berry marketer grows none of its own fruit.  It relies on growers all over the world for its output and each of those growers must make their own business decision about the efficacy of organic production.

Lewis of OTA noted that the trade association is working with the federal government on standards that will allow for the marketing of transitional fruit as growers move their production from conventional to organic.  However, he indicated that this is an idea with its own challenges as the organization does not want to cannibalize organic sales nor create an “organic light” category.

In tackling supply issues down the road, Bjorn believes genetics, technology and geography must play vital roles in that equation for berries.  He said genetic research resulting in new varieties could allow production on marginal land.  He added that genetics can also help increase yields.  He noted that when a grower does not fumigate the ground on which he plants strawberries, there is basically an automatic reduction in yields. Of course, organic production precludes the ability to fumigate.  Knowing that fumigation is not a sustainable technology, Bjorn said all of Driscoll’s varietal trialing—organic and conventional—has been conducted on non-fumigated ground for many years.  Moving forward, he expects varieties to be developed that mitigate this automatic yield reduction.  He also noted that advancements in the use of bio-pesticides will help organic berries deal with pest pressures.

Advancements in technology could help the grower community move the crop out of the soil and into potted production, which may allow a version of factory farming and greatly increase the supply of available land.  The company is also continually exploring new regions of the world where strawberry production, including organic production, may take root.

Stoffel agreed saying that Taylor Farms is making advancements in both automated harvesting and irrigation technology to help the company expand on the supply side.  The firm has been successful in automating the harvesting of romaine and is currently working on a long term project with cabbage and celery.

Stoffel, however, did report that some crops, most notably organic spinach, are having a very difficult time because of disease problems for which there is no solution for organic production.  At this point in time, he said “organic spinach is probably not a sustainable crop.”

The suppliers also talked about climate change and discussed its impact on both conventional and organic production.  Lewis said warming temperatures have allowed the state of Washington to have a crop landscape that rivals California.  While a warming trend in more northern locations may open up land for fruit and vegetable production of all kinds, other areas are getting too warm to grow some traditional crops.  Even in Oxnard, Bjorn said there are fields that no longer get much ocean cooling and so they are no longer suitable for strawberry production.  He repeated that it appears that in the future more and more strawberry production will have to move indoors to keep up with demand.  Of course, that creates a whole new set of issues.  Instead of a farmer needing a six-month loan for about $25,000 to grow an acre of berries, he needs a $300,000 to $400,000 15-year mortgage to construct an indoor growing facility.

Stoffel said moving to areas that are now warmer may offer some opportunities, but generally those crop windows are shorter and require a lot more planning.

The three panelists took a much different view of the direction each of their individual companies will be taking in the near and distant future.  Bjorn said Driscoll’s is concentrating on its four berry crops—strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and blackberries—with no plans to diversify.  Holzman said Purity Organic is always looking to add to its stable of operations and added that the firm’s papaya production is on the rise.  Stoffel indicated that Taylor Farms will basically grow anything it can sell.  “We are driven by consumer tastes,” he said, in response to a question about what is the next hot trend.  The questioner mentioned kohlrabi and Stoffel said Taylor Farms will grow it if the demand is there.

One final area that was discussed is just where the next generation of farmers will come from.  Bjorn said Driscoll’s is very proactive in developing the next generation of growers especially in Mexico.  He said there is no shortage of individuals wanting to enter the business, the problem is lack of capital.  Driscoll’s has a program to help these young farmers get started.  “We can help.  We consider it our job to develop the next generation of farmers.”

Stoffel said that younger people might be interested in farming but they are not interested in the long hours and hard work that their parents endured.  He noted that technology, such as drones, might entice some of these potential farmers to join the profession.  “Toys help,” he said, referring to what might motivate a millennial to farm.

The Organic Produce Summit drew 800 attendees to listen to several different seminars and walk a trade show populated by 75 produce companies with organic produce offerings.  More than 100 buying operations, representing 50,000 grocery stores in the United States and Canada, were in attendance.

Tags:
Posted in WG&S Magazine, August 2016 Issue | No Comments »

Students Learn It’s Not All “Cows and Plows” During Newly Launched Careers in Ag Program

August 4th, 2016

16 students. 2 universities. 10 ag companies. 1 unifying program. Last month, Western Growers officially kicked off its Careers in Ag Program where young scholars from UC Davis and Cal Poly Pomona toured farming operations throughout Monterey County to learn about the various career opportunities agriculture has to offer.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently reported that while there are 60,000 agriculture job openings expected annually in the nation, there are only 35,000 graduates available to fill them. In an effort to fill this workforce gap, Western Growers developed the Careers in Ag Program to encourage college students to pursue science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) careers within the agricultural industry.

“We are helping to lead the effort in building a highly-skilled agricultural workforce and shaping the next generation of ag pioneers,” said Tom Nassif, president & CEO of Western Growers.

Nine students from Cal Poly Pomona and seven from UC Davis formed the first cohort of this new initiative, participating in the program on June 13-15, 2016. Throughout the tour, students were introduced to the educational pathways—courses, majors, internships—that lead to STEM careers in agriculture and related industries.

“With the global population reaching 9.3 billion within the next 30 years, the agriculture industry will be growing at an even faster pace. We are going to need a skilled, knowledgeable and innovative future workforce to help feed the world,” Nassif said.

On the first day of the tour, students hopped on a bus and headed to Monsanto in Woodland. Monsanto representatives gave students an in-depth tutorial on crop science, breeding and genetics with two lab tours and a panel discussion on the different careers available in agriculture. During the panel, students got their first glimpse of professionals in agriculture who were not farmers; the five panelists ranged from experts in vegetable breeding and R&D to supply chain management and plant growth technology.

“It’s not all cows and plows anymore. There are so many career opportunities within agriculture that you could pursue,” said George Gough, director of government affairs of Monsanto Company, to the students while moderating the panel discussion. “You don’t have to come from an ag background—we’ll teach you everything you need to know.”

After shaking hands with the professionals and grabbing business cards at Monsanto, students went to California Giant Berry Farms for a sweet treat. Students received a “Strawberries 101” where they learned how strawberries were grown, irrigated and picked, as well as the different jobs available in the sales and field offices. The favorite part of the afternoon was when the students went into the strawberry field and picked their own strawberries to eat.

Students wrapped up day one with a lively conversation about conservation, the environment and agriculture during dinner with Beau Schoch, an agricultural engineer at the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. Students were able to connect one-on-one with Schoch to learn about his career path and tips about breaking into the industry without an agriculture degree.

The second day was chock-filled with unique experiences both in and out of the field. At Ocean Mist, soil science, nutrient management and food safety were the themes woven in throughout the stop. Students toured the Ocean Mist facility and cooler, where they learned how vegetables are cooled, the importance of keeping produce at specific temperatures and how food safety is a high priority for growers. Next, the students gained hands-on experience when they visited the artichoke and Brussels sprouts fields. Here, they saw first-hand the how these commodities are harvested, gaining a better understanding of the labor challenges facing agriculture. To bring this point home, some of the students wore the artichoke-filled canastas just to see how heavy they were!

The food safety theme continued as representatives of SmartWash Solutions spoke to students about how their chlorine-based wash systems removed pathogens and eliminated cross-contamination of E. coli and salmonella. SmartWash Solutions President Jim Brennan showed students how chemistry and science can be used in agriculture, piquing the interest of many of the students studying nutrition science.

“SmartWash Solutions was most relevant to me because it involved being inventive and coming up with new ideas to keep chemicals at certain levels,” said Leticia Romero, a Cal Poly Pomona sophomore who is majoring in nutrition science.

Ramsay Highlander was the next stop on the tour and Frank Maconachy, the president and CEO, demonstrated how engineering and robotics play a role in agriculture. As one of the largest manufacturers of harvesting aids, students learned how these machines help reduce the need for labor in the field. Students toured the shop, spoke to one of the lead engineers about his projects and heard about machines still in development, including a tomato de-viner.

After visiting Ramsay Highlander, Jaime Luo, a sophomore at UC Davis who is currently undeclared, indicated that she may have found her major. “I’m now considering a major in engineering because I think it would be really cool to design products/systems that others will use.”

GreenGate Fresh rounded out the second day as the last tour, teaching students about how innovation and technology is used to produce quality iceberg, romaine, cabbage blends and spring mixes. One topic that piqued students’ interest was learning the steps it takes to produce value-added items, such as bagged salads.

Students spent the evening chatting about vegetable crops and weed science with Richard Smith from the UC Cooperative Extension Monterey County. Smith gave students a broad understanding about nitrogen in soils and management techniques currently being researched at the UC. Several of the students took the opportunity to ask Smith specific questions about how to get more involved in ag research as an undergraduate.

The students’ three-day, comprehensive lesson in agriculture came full circle at Tanimura & Antle. Brian Antle brought the young scholars out to the lettuce fields, showing them how technology is helping solve the industry’s pressing labor challenges.

During the Plant Tape demonstration, Antle observed that the automated transplanting system “will reduce labor by at least 80 percent. With how difficult it is right now to get workers, this machine will revolutionize ag.”

From the field, students headed to the newly constructed Spreckels Crossing—Tanimura & Antle’s groundbreaking farmworker housing complex.

The experiences at Tanimura & Antle resonated with Charmiza Mendoza, a current AgriBusiness and Food Industry Management major at Cal Poly Pomona. “Seeing firsthand how labor-intensive agriculture is, and the difficulties that some companies face when trying to better the living conditions for their employees, it has inspired me to focus my attention on the political aspects of agriculture,” she said.

The trip concluded with a visit to the Western Growers Center for Innovation & Technology, where students delved into different careers available in agtech. Patrick Zelaya, CEO and founder of HeavyConnect, told students about his path to technology, entrepreneurship and agriculture and students were able to connect one-on-one with HeavyConnect’s team of engineers.

In addition to encouraging students to pursue and apply their STEM-related degrees toward a career in agriculture, another goal of the program is to facilitate career placement between students and agricultural organizations. Western Growers plans to keep in touch with these bright young minds and connect them to internship and job opportunities at WG member companies.

In the future, Western Growers hopes to offer the program multiple times a year in diverse regions across California and Arizona. If any member companies are interested in hosting a tour or have internship/career opportunities for STEM students, please contact Stephanie Thara at (949) 885-2256.

Tags: ,
Posted in WG&S Magazine, August 2016 Issue | No Comments »

LEGAL AG TRENDS: Pay, Water & Labor Issues Still Top the Charts But Cannabis Work Gaining Momentum

August 4th, 2016

Interviews with a handful of attorneys specializing in agricultural work revealed that there is a new area of law gaining momentum in that sector: cannabis law.

While the old standbys—labor issues, water law, wage and hour violations, PACA work—still garner much of the attention, more and more ag attorneys are dealing with issues surrounding the legal cultivation of marijuana.  And if California voters approve a ballot measure in November legalizing personal marijuana use, and the polls indicate they will, legal work on this agricultural crop will surely rise to new highs.

“We have two attorneys dealing specifically with cannabis regulations,” said Jeffrey Gilles, managing partner of L+G, LLP Attorneys at Law, Salinas, Calif.

“Right now we are doing some work for a company installing a hydroponic system for a cannabis operation,” said Riley Walter of Walter Wilhem Bauer, Fresno, Calif.

“That’s funny you should ask,” said David LaRiviere of LaRiviere, Grubman PC, Monterey, CA.  “We have one intellectual property rights cannabis case in-house right now and another one came in just today.”

LaRiviere admits that when the first case crossed his desk he questioned whether the firm wanted to go down that path.  But on reflection, why not?

Aaron Colby, who is a partner at Davis Wright Tremaine LLP, Los Angeles, CA, said it makes perfect sense for agricultural attorneys to get involved in the cannabis arena.  It is a crop and its cultivation, packaging and sales do and will have many of the same issues as any other crop, especially as more farmers embrace that opportunity.  In addition, there are specific laws related to cannabis production that are a legal minefield that growers need to be aware of.

Gilles made the same point, noting that the two attorneys in his firm specializing in cannabis law have become experts in the laws regulating its production.  “Since we do so much ag work, it makes perfect sense for us.”

Walter noted that some traditional old-line farmers might hesitate before adding cannabis to the firm’s crop rotation.  “But the farmer’s 26-year old son, with a degree from UC Santa Cruz, probably looks at it a little differently,” he quipped.

As always, legal issues in the ag community are as diverse as the crops in the industry, but many issues seem to rise to the top year after year.

Colby noted several areas—all related to employee issues—where he has seen an uptick in action this past year.  He said California employment law is often the source of issues for agricultural employees because “agriculture requires the use of so many non-exempt employees” governed by many different laws.  He said sick leave has created many recent issues as local jurisdictions enact their own regulations and rarely include a carve-out for agricultural work.  Specifically in agriculture, he said sick leave creates a huge operational headache for employers because there is no way to plan for it.  Vacations can be scheduled; time off for sick leave cannot.  Yet it is the law and employers must make sure their policies are consistent with federal, state and local laws.

Disability leave regulations have also created some issues for ag employers, according to Colby.  He said the law requires “reasonable accommodations” on disability leave.  That subjective term is up for interpretation, but he said an employer should not automatically terminate an employee that has used up his disability leave time without being able to return to work.  “Maybe he can come back within two weeks and a ‘reasonable accommodation’ would be unpaid leave for those two weeks.  Don’t run the red light and automatically fire them!”

Colby said the federal government has issued a guidance document on this concept which signals that “they are going to enforce this provision.”

He said another area of employment law deserving attention is the joint employment concept if you use farm labor contractors.  For liability purposes, firms are being held accountable for violations by FLCs that they contract with.  Due diligence is key and one cannot assume that the FLC is following the letter of the law.

He also advised employers to eliminate the idea of “rounding” up and down when determining hours worked.  “Employees must be paid for every minute that they work.  Round at your own risk,” he said.

And he added, that “working” has a broad definition.  If an employee is required to call a number every day to determine the work schedule for the following day, the time it takes to make a phone call needs to be compensated.  That minute might seem inconsequential.  But, he said if you have 300 workers calling every day for an extended time period, that’s 300 minutes of time not being compensated on a daily basis.  Multiply that by the number of work days in a year and you have the potential for a class action.

Gilles of L+G said water and labor always seem to be the main issues in agriculture in one way or another.  “They are both a constant challenge.  Right now I’d say the scarcity of labor supply is right in the middle of the challenges facing growers.”

He said growers are scrambling for workers and they do have to pay particular attention to the myriad of California employment laws that are germane.  One area of increased work for L+G has to do with growers attempting to utilize the federal H-2A program.  The firm is not working on the actual H-2A applications but it is working with applicants as they try to comply with some of the provisions of that law dealing with worker housing.  “We are helping employers find and develop (housing) locations and helping them work through the permit process” with various local agencies regulating zoning laws, and making sure the housing complies with federal regulations.  This work has led Gilles to adopt the general industry viewpoint that the H-2A program needs to be streamlined.  It is just very cumbersome to work with, he said.

Walter said there has been a “proliferation of attacks on wage and hour violations.  Plaintiff attorneys are trolling various industries—dairy, oil and gas, and now processing facilities—looking for violations that can turn into ‘class actions’.”

He said another area of the firm’s legal work involves working with ag businesses to secure loans.  Banks, he said, are asking their borrowers to have ironclad agreements in place assuring the grower of sufficient water to irrigate his crops.  “You have to have a water management plan with contracts.”

Walter said another issue that has recently surfaced because of the drop in almond prices is buy/sell agreements between almond growers and their processors.  He noted that there were some “gaping holes” in these contracts that have now just begun to surface because of the less than stellar farm gate price for almonds.  When the industry was flying high some of those problems and issues were glossed over.  But with lower returns, contracts are being scrutinized more carefully.

Walter has also seen some new issues surrounding the interaction between bankruptcy and water law as the value of water rights are being factored into some of these cases.

LaRiviere said if you look at the major issues impacting agriculture—water management, immigration, shortage of labor and taxes—those are the issues involved in the work his firm does for its clients in the industry.  For example, his firm is heavily involved in patent work.  He said they have seen many new patent applications for technologies that will reduce labor.  Along this line, LaRiviere warned firms with new technology that U.S. patent law is all about who gets there first.  “It has created a race.  Anyone can patent anything, whether they invented it or not.  It is all about the priority date.”

He cautioned firms against sharing ideas before they have started the patent process.  “The danger of not moving quickly is the issue.  It doesn’t have to be expensive but you have to start the (patent) process very early.”

He said a common practice has been to invent something and tinker with it before patenting it.  That is not the path he recommends.  “You have to have it patented before you improve the technology.”

Tags: ,
Posted in WG&S Magazine, August 2016 Issue | No Comments »

Rynn and Janowsky Turn 30

August 4th, 2016

It was in 1986, with the PACA Trust Law newly enacted and ag labor cases at the forefront that Western Growers attorneys Patricia Rynn and Lew Janowsky started their private law practice with one secretary between them.

Thirty years later, PACA cases are still a mainstay for the firm though the volume of labor cases have waned.  “I can’t believe it has been 30 years,” said Rynn recently.  “When Lew (Janowsky) and I founded the firm a lot of the focus was on the UFW (United Farm Work) and cases before the ALRB (Agricultural Labor Relations Board).  We were doing a lot of ALRB work involving strike violence and UFW activities and negotiations.”

She also remembers that the firm was involved in the beginning of the work surrounding the PACA Trust provision.  “We had several seminal, first-impression cases with the Trust that created a body of case law that helped interpret it.”

Rynn said the decision to launch the firm was a good one and it has clearly withstood the test of time.  “I wish Lew was still here,” she said, lamenting the passing of her business partner about a year ago.  “This is such a nice industry.  It is such a colorful and great group of people to work with who are so concerned with increasing yield and producing a better crop.  They are scientists and environmentalists with such a wealth of knowledge and so dedicated to what they do.  It is amazing how much they know just through osmosis.  I think about it every time I am just trying to prevent the leaves on my roses from turning brown.”

From that three person office, Rynn and Janowsky has grown to a firm of four partners, three associates, two paralegals, several administrative assistants and a summer clerk.  It still does a lot of PACA work as well as handling quite a few cases in the employment law arena.  Rynn said the myriad of California statutes that a grower must contend with boggles the mind.  “It makes it very hard to be in the (ag) industry.”

Discussing the issue of the day, which is the rise in legal work surrounding the production of cannabis, the firm has yet to handle its first client.  But Rynn made a case for marijuana being covered by PACA law once that first cannabis grower doesn’t get paid and files a case.  “The PACA covers fruits and vegetables, fresh or frozen.  Other kinds of herbs have been covered and we have had issues surrounding edible flowers that have been covered.  Flowering kale is used in salads and it is covered.  So why not?  Some people use cannabis in brownies so that might make it an edible vegetable.”

Even when and if California passes the marijuana legalization proposition, sales will be limited to California.  In that event it might not pass the interstate commerce provision in the PACA and, for that matter, many other federal laws.  But Rynn said that provision tends to be liberally interpreted.  “Courts have been known to say federal law applies even if the product only travels on an interstate highway.”

In any event, Rynn seems willing to test the limits when the time comes.

On another grower issue, she would like to see a liberalization of the PACA Trust notice filing provision with regard to unlicensed growers.  Licensees can protect their trust rights simply by putting the right language on their invoices.  Unlicensed growers must make sure they protect their rights by filing a notice against the buyer or even their marketing agent before payment is delayed beyond the rules in the Trust.  Rynn said some growers aren’t even aware of how to do this.  Falling short of new regulations, she suggested PACA officials might hold seminars or in some other way educate growers who might not know their rights in this regard.

Tags:
Posted in WG&S Magazine, August 2016 Issue | No Comments »

Mobile Devices in the Workplace: Increased Productivity Presents Risks for Unprepared Employer

August 4th, 2016

By Terrence O’Connor

Smartphones, laptops, and other portable devices are ubiquitous among today’s workforce.  The use of such devices for work-related tasks presents potential issues for employers, including wage and hour problems, compensation problems, confidentiality and possible trade secret issues.  Employers clearly benefit from employee use of mobile devices.  Employees can be contacted at any time and have access to the “office” through their computers.

However, the use of mobile devices raises a variety of issues for the employer.

Employers need to develop policies to protect their data and ensure that employees are compensated for all hours worked and even the expense of the mobile device itself.

 

Compensation Issues

An employer must reimburse employees for the reasonable expense of a personal cell phone when the use of a phone is required by the job.  In agriculture, construction and trucking, employees are only reachable by cell phones since the demise of radio systems.  Many supervisors and crew forepersons use cell phones exclusively to contact their subordinates.  If the employer does not provide a cell phone for work purposes, it should reimburse the supervisory employees for the use of these personal phones.

Like many other compensation issues, the failure to reimburse employees for the use of personal phones has been the subject of class action litigation.  In a recent case, the employer fought class certification by arguing that in order to assert that the cell phone use was for a business expense would require individual inquiry into each putative class member’s cell plan.  The need for such individual examination of class members is usually fatal to class treatment of a claim.  The court disagreed, holding that under Labor Code § 2802 the employer must pay each employee who used personal phones for business purposes a reasonable percentage of the cost.

Employers should also develop policies to avoid off-the-clock work on mobile devices or personal computers.  Hourly non-exempt employees must be compensated for all hours worked.  If supervisors routinely call such employees at home, during meal breaks, or rest periods, they create liability for missed meal or rest periods and uncompensated off-the-clock work.

Companies should devise rules that prohibit after-hours use of phones and computers for business purposes, as well as require employees to report all time worked including such after-hours business communications.

 

Confidentiality

The advent of personal devices with the confluence of social media sites has greatly increased the potential for the improper disclosure of confidential business information.  What was once a whispered comment at the watercooler, now can be tweeted and retweeted to hundreds of employees’ social media “friends.”

Such information can be useful to a competitor as he might learn that a key employee is disaffected and thus available to be lured away.

Polices which prohibit the disclosure of confidential information are crucial as well as management monitoring of social media postings.  Restrictions on social media use and content must take into account the National Labor Relations Act protections as well as other laws which protect the off-duty conduct of employee.

Employers’ social media policies, even policies which seek to prevent abusive and discriminatory posts, have been consistently rejected by the NLRB.  Citing employees’ right to participate in concerted activities, the board has consistently struck down policies and discipline for violation of policies to the extent that they prohibit “disparaging” comments about the company, disclose payroll information, or reveal sensitive internal information which may be remotely connected to “concerted activities.”

The chances of the average employer’s confidentiality and mutual respect policies coming to the attention of the NLRB are somewhat remote.  However, the Agricultural Labor Relations Board, which covers agricultural employers, has begun to issue complaints regarding such policies.  Recently, a handbook provision that encouraged employees to bring problems to management for resolution and discouraged employees from discussing work problems “with a customer, guest, visitor, vendor or non-employee” resulted in an ALRB Unfair Labor Practice complaint requiring the employer to revise its handbook and allowing the ALRB to read a notice to all employees at the company’s expense.

Labor board scrutiny of confidentiality provisions is not limited to situations where an employee is disciplined or terminated for disclosing confidential information.  These boards sanction handbook language if it can be construed to discourage discourse because it will have a “chilling effect” on employees’ rights.

 

Trade Secrets

Information which an employer would like to keep confidential because its disclosure may be damaging to its public image is considered a trade secret whose protection is vital to the economic success of the business.  Mobile devices which allow remote access to computer systems make such vital trade secrets vulnerable to intentional as well as inadvertent disclosures.

To protect trade secrets from disclosure or use by rival businesses, an employer must have a policy that clearly defines trade secrets.  As important are procedures to protect the information.  If such information is not protected from disclosure by rules and procedures, it may lose its status as a trade secret.

In order to protect customer lists or employee lists, companies must limit access to the information.  When a company sues a rival for unlawful use of its trade secrets, the court may not grant protected trade secret status to information unless the holder has made reasonable efforts to protect the information.

When portable devices have access to such secrets, employers should consider encrypting the information.  To protect in the situation where a device is lost or stolen, companies should have software which allows the remote wipe of data.

In addition to procedures which restrict or at least monitor access to important data, employers should constantly train employees in the importance of guarding trade secrets, using strong passwords and other device safeguards.

Smartphones, laptops and tablets have revolutionized the way employees and employers communicate and provide instant access to information in remote locations.  However, use of such devices presents a number of issues for protecting trade secrets, compensating employees correctly, and for creating confidentiality and harassment policies which are effective but do not “chill” employee protected speech.  With up-to-date procedures and policies employers should be able to reap the benefits of mobile devices both in efficiency and communication and avoid the legal issues they present.

Tags:
Posted in WG&S Magazine, August 2016 Issue | No Comments »

2016 CPS Symposium Highlights

August 4th, 2016

Scientific findings can provide practical solutions to solve many of the food safety challenges the produce sector is facing. Last month, the Center for Produce Safety (CPS) hosted their seventh annual Research Symposium in Seattle. This event covered subjects such as: 1) Listeria, 2) surrogates and indicators, 3) irrigation water management, 4) process validation and verification; and, 5) animal intrusion and on-farm pathogen detection. Many of the key research findings and potential food safety solutions are very relevant to ag operation.

What is coming down the pike?

 

Listeria monocytogenes (L. mono) outbreak and caramel apples

The review of the L. mono outbreak in caramel apples was probably one of the best discussions of the symposium. Ian Williams with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) explained how intergovernmental collaboration and the use of PulseNet (a network of public health and food regulatory agency laboratories in the United States) played a key role in identifying the source of the L. mono outbreak last year. Once “caramel apples” were identified as the culprit, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) conducted an outbreak investigation. As a result, the operation implicated in this event was closed until corrective actions were implemented and verified.

Even though this recall was only linked to one operation in Bakersfield, Calif., it impacted several states and even international trade. Misinformation shared via social media resulted in many countries ceasing imports of apples from the United States. The situation was further affected by a lack of communication and coordinated target messaging between the FDA and the USDA Foreign Service. All told, the commercial ramifications for the U.S. apple export market totaled a loss of $15 million, reported Mark Powers with the Northwest Horticultural Council. These unfortunate circumstances demonstrated the importance of intergovernmental communication and targeted messaging.

It was remarkable to have the apple industry, government and academia talking about this outbreak, and sharing mistakes and lessons learned. It was also stunning to hear from an industry that had never before experienced such an outbreak and the broad impacts beyond the implicated company. While GAPs training has been widely accepted among fresh apple producers, the focus has now shifted to Listeria control, training, cleaning and sanitation in packinghouses as well as the use of guidance documents for tree fruit operations. In addition, industry has been working with academia to determine preventive measures and potential food safety risks. The University of Wisconsin, UC Davis, Cornell University and the Washington Tree Fruit Research Commission shared the results of research conducted in apple operations to understand how the outbreak occurred, how a facility can be vulnerable to contamination, and the need to implement practices that address situations where Listeria is widely distributed in an operation.

 

Surrogates and Indicators (organisms used to study the fate of pathogens)

The search for surrogates continues with the goal of improving pathogen testing in commercial agricultural settings without introducing them into the environment. Dr. Kelly Bright with the University of Arizona shared preliminary findings about the potential of viruses to be a new indicator of fecal contamination in irrigation waters. Dr. Sam Nugen with the University of Massachusetts shared ongoing work toward the development of a rapid bacterial testing device using bacteriophages (viruses that attack specific bacteria) in the form of a dipstick rapid test that can be used for on-farm detection of Salmonella ssp.

In addition to rapid detection, the use of tools such as Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS) is facilitating pathogen detections and expediting outbreak investigations. Dr. Martin Wiedmann from Cornell University mentioned that it is highly likely to see 10, 20 or 30 times the outbreaks in a couple of years. While some see WGS as a threat, this technology provides a valuable diagnostic tool and may have useful applications at the farm/facility level.

 

Irrigation Water Management

Research confirms that canal systems are dynamic. Dr. Marc Verhougstraete with the University of Arizona has made available guidelines to monitor irrigation water from canals, which consider best time for sampling, number of samples and specific sampling locations. Research on better predictive tools that provide greater flexibility in sampling is also underway to address: 1) the need for rapid, predictive and comparatively cost-neutral indicators of the potential for chronic or acute fecal contamination in irrigation water, and 2) the need to establish a microbial water quality profile under FDA’s Produce Safety Rule. Dr. Trevor Suslow with UC Davis stated that while generic E.coli remains a questionable indicator of fecal loading in irrigation sources, it is still useful. He also suggested that total bacteroidales (environmental bacteria used as indicator of water contamination) threshold values may be a better predictive tool providing more flexibility for sample collection. Dr. John Buchanan from the University of Tennessee shared the results of research on multiple disinfection methods including UV light and found that specific concentrations can disinfect surface water with suspended and dissolved solids.

 

Process Validation and Verification

Validation and verification are often incorrectly used interchangeably, when validation is actually one way to verify practices and processes. Validation evaluates information to determine whether a preventive control is in fact controlling an identified hazard. Validation of wash water programs is key, without a validated program in place; operations may be at a higher food safety risk. On this topic, Dr. Mary Anne Amalaradjou with the University of Connecticut shared that wash water has been implicated in all seven mango-implicated Listeria outbreaks reported in the United States. She made a point about the value of commodity-specific validation and verification studies, which is in line with ongoing research presented by Dr. Bradley Marks with Michigan State University who noted that the validation process for the pasteurization methods used for almonds or other nuts do not work for pistachios. Finally, another key point was made by researches of the University of Connecticut about the value of automated sanitizer feeding systems with continuous monitoring for maintaining wash water quality.

Dr. Mary Lou Tortello with the FDA presented probably the most complete work on validation of wash water resulting from a working group established a few years ago. This paper, soon to be published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Food Protection, is specific to fresh-cut leafy vegetables, but provides a template for other commodities. The lack of published studies, technological advances, and understanding about what affects antimicrobial effectiveness were identified as factors that delayed the completion of this study for nearly three years. Nevertheless, members of the working group believe the 3-year effort paid off by providing this paper as an important tool for assisting fresh-cut facilities to comply with validation requirements in the Preventive Controls Rule.

 

Animal Intrusion and on-farm pathogen detection

Some interesting projects investigating animal-related contamination risk were discussed. The use of video monitoring to manage/control animal intrusion is currently being tested. While it may not be cost-effective, it is providing some interesting information about animal behavior in production areas and has the potential to be used as a monitoring tool to gather site-specific information. Dr. Martin Wiedmann explained a geospatial model to develop predictive maps for identifying environmental reservoirs of L. mono on produce farms. Though this model was developed for a particular region on the East Coast, it could be used to develop state- or region-specific models for predicting risk areas and conducting hazard assessments. A user-friendly tool is currently under development.

Closing remarks by Drew MacDonald, vice president of quality and food safety at Church Brothers, LLC, and the newly appointed chair of CPS’ Technical Committee, highlighted that applied research is key to improving produce safety and that perfection should not be the enemy of good research. The best research, he said, comes from collaboration and practical work.

Western Growers was a proud Platinum Sponsor of the CPS Research Symposium 2016.

Tags: , , , ,
Posted in WG&S Magazine, August 2016 Issue | No Comments »

PLANT NUTRITION: Formula for Farming in Space Offered to Earthly Growers

August 4th, 2016

If you watched the 2015 movie “The Martian” with Matt Damon stranded on Mars and having to figure out a way to grow food, you have the necessary information to understand the background story for BAM Agricultural Solutions.

Glenn Stinebaugh, chief executive officer of the Boca Raton, FL, based firm and a veteran in the plant nutrition business, cannot contain his excitement when discussing BAM-FX, the flagship product for the firm.  He notes, as does the firm’s website, that BAM-FX “represents a disruptive technology that no other company can offer and has shown the ability to increase growth, yield, food quality and the efficiencies of fertilizer use.”  He says the BAM-FX technology enables the efficient uptake of its perfectly paired 7 percent zinc and 2 percent copper minerals directly into the cells of plants.

Stinebaugh credits John Wayne Kennedy for the invention of the formulation, which he did under a contract with NASA, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.  He explained that for deep space exploration—like the real Mars trip that is planned for several years down the road—NASA needs to develop a way to feed its astronauts.  There just isn’t sufficient room to bring on board the amount of food that would be necessary for a mission that lasts several years.  And even if that was possible, it would be extremely difficult to bring aboard the right type of food.  Instead, there needs to be methods to grow that food in an accelerated manner.

Hence, NASA began working with Kennedy and in fact, BAM Agricultural Solutions, as a Space Act agreement contractor according to Stinebaugh.  BAM stands for “bio available materials” and the CEO says Kennedy has perfected a formulation that works.  It produces healthy plants that grow faster and produce higher yields.

Stinebaugh waxes poetic about the formulation and talks non-stop about “the new science” and the “new molecules” that it contains.  He speaks of the “highly charged” zinc and notes that it is the positive charge of the molecule that makes the difference.  Stinebaugh says plants naturally have a negative charge and BAM-FX utilizes its positive charge in an “opposites attract” kind of way to maximize plant utilization.  The product, he says is attracted to every part of the plant and leaf stimulating growth.  For the science-challenged, the important facts are that the firm has been testing it coast to coast on a myriad of agricultural products and has mountains of data and “white papers” attesting to its efficacy.  He said it acts as a “soil stimulant” and that the key factor is that the formulation is very efficiently taken in by the plant creating a great environment for increased growth.  “No other product out there does what this product can do,” he repeats often throughout the interview. “It is the positive charge that makes the difference.”

And then again, he touts the advantages of BAM-FX: faster growth, improved tolerances, greater yield, more nutrients in the fruit or vegetable that results.  Specifically, he said great results have been documented on avocados, many different row crops, and strawberries.  For strawberries specifically, Stinebaugh said increased yields, an uptick in brix numbers and the ability to produce greater yields with less water were the results of trialing.  In citrus, it has shown efficacy in dealing with citrus greening, and has improved the performance of many different crops when dealing with environmental stresses such as drought.

The BAM executive said that after several years of trials, the firm is in hard sales mode.  “We will still work with growers on trials but this product is ready to sell.”

He said in presenting to growers, “I like to understand what problems they are having and what issues they are trying to solve.”

He said in Ohio, for example, many issues surrounding nitrogen are top of mind for growers, while in California soil degradation, lack of water and a decrease in nutrient content are often mentioned by the firm’s customers.  He said trials in California have shown that use of BAM-FX can potentially reduce water use by 25 percent because the product promotes root growth which better utilizes the water available.

“We have demonstrated the value of this product in many different places and on many different crops,” Stinebaugh said.  “Now is the time to work with growers and move forward on sales.”

Again, he said BAM is not opposed to trialing in some circumstances but it also has customers moving forward with commercial applications.  For example, he said a trial on a rice crop last year had very favorable results and there is no need to continue the trial this year.

Tags:
Posted in WG&S Magazine, August 2016 Issue | No Comments »

HARVESTING INFORMATION New Blue Book Service to Offer New AR Reports Feature

August 4th, 2016

Soon, produce industry credit decision makers will have another tool at their disposal when analyzing the ability of their customers to pay their bills.

Blue Book Services is expected to launch a new on-line feature this month that will allow participating companies access to aggregated Account Receivables (AR) data confidentially contributed by other sellers on buyer firms.  Bill Zentner, director of rating services at Blue Book Services Inc., recently explained to WG&S how the program will work.  He said companies that contribute their AR reports to the Blue Book electronically will have access to an aggregated report on pay performance trends on buyers where data is prevalent.  Instead of just being privy to your own receivables position and how fast a company is paying its bills to you, a contributing shipper will now be able to view other aging receivables from other confidentially contributing sellers, thus providing a look at a much larger sample size.

Zentner emphasized that the new service is not meant to replace The Blue Book’s time-honored ratings or predictive scoring of buyers, but rather can supplement those offerings to provide an enhanced metric in evaluating a current or prospective buyer.  In fact, The Blue Book has been using electronic AR reports it has been receiving for the better part of the past decade to help supplement its long standing ratings process.

The Blue Book Services executive explained that for the past 115 years, since The Blue Book began offering credit information to the produce industry, the fundamental process has remained somewhat unchanged, though the method of gathering and access to information with the advent of technology tools has certainly allowed the process to evolve.  The company establishes ratings and pay practice designations by collecting financial information on each firm and combining that with trade experience reports from the customers of that particular buyer.  The Blue Book is continuously sending out reports to its thousands of members asking them to basically rate the firms they do business with.  Plugging that data into its own system, the Blue Book’s ratings department then analyzes a produce company on several fronts, including its credit worth in dollars, its trade practices ranging from excellent (XXXX) to poor (X), and its pay description ranging from within 14 days (AA) to 60+ days (F).

For the past decade, Zentner said The Blue Book staff has used AR reports to supplement that information.  While the aggregate nature of the trade experience model works well, Zentner said that model does rely on customers to submit those reports completely and accurately.  By using AR reports internally, The Blue Book has been able to validate its ratings.

As more and more firms have seen the value in providing electronic AR reports, Blue Book Services recognized the value of developing this new feature as a way to share the information and provide a value proposition to the trade.  Over the past 15 months, Zentner said The Blue Book has been in a testing and refinement phase, as well as gauging the interest of the industry.  “We are now at the point where we are about to introduce this service as an on-line feature,” he said, noting that it is being added with the basic justification that “more is better.”

Blue Book Services ratings are basically a measure of how a customer has operated in the past, and Blue book Scores predict the likelihood of default, though, through regular updates, the new ratings feature will help identify emerging trends.  He explained that with a real time AR report, credit decision makers will be able to look at the numbers and make their own informed determination when extending credit.

Zentner expects that as the service is used by more and more produce industry firms, the data points will increase and the information will logically present a very accurate picture of how a company is paying its bills right now.  Unlike a trade experience report, the electronic AR is going from a shipper’s computer directly to the Blue Book data base and will contain information on all of its customers.

Besides showing early trends of slower pay, Zentner said it may also enhance a credit profile of a company’s improved pay performance.  He noted that sellers typically are quick to report slow pay, but for well paying customers, it’s important to recognize their efforts.  An electronic AR file will reflect this information as well.

Matt McInerney, senior executive vice president of Western Growers, said he sees the value of this new feature to the association membership.  Western Growers has long worked with its members in many different ways helping them judge the credit worthiness of their customers.  After all, getting paid for their production is as important as any other aspect associated with producing that crop.  “We view this as another spoke in the wheel that will allow shippers to actively manage their receivables,” he said.

The WG executive especially likes the feature that this service will only be available to those who are participating by submitting their own AR reports.  He believes that will build participation to a point where the information being reported will be extremely relevant and allow a credit manager a “great opportunity to analyze the pay practices of their customers and any emerging trends.”

McInerney said past experience has revealed that an aggregated AR report is most useful when participation is widespread.  If there are only a few people reporting, the information just might not truly reflect the pay practices of the buyer in question.

Research has long shown that there are almost always warning signs before a company officially runs into financial trouble.  This new Blue Book service should make those warning signs more visible, as well as giving an electronic shout out to the many companies who diligently pay their bills on time.

Zentner said that once the service is launched, customers who use the electronic version of the Blue Book will be invited to participate.  He indicated that the new offering will also be marketed to customers through other channels.

Tags:
Posted in WG&S Magazine, August 2016 Issue | No Comments »

Safety Culture in the Food Industry

August 4th, 2016

Wikipedia: Safety culture refers to the ways that safety issues are addressed in a workplace. It often reflects “the attitudes, beliefs, perceptions and values that employees share in relation to safety.” In other words, “the way we do safety around here.”

 

Workforce Dynamics

As the workforce grows larger, it is increasingly difficult to have a family relationship with employees. As a result, each work group develops its own family type of relationship. This means that not all agree, but there is usually a leader who can influence most of those in that work group. This “cultural” leader can have great influence on the behavior of each person in that group. So much so, that this person becomes the unidentified supervisor of the group.

If management can identify the cultural leader, it can go a long way toward improving the safety culture of that work group and, in turn, all the other workgroups.

 

The Role of the Supervisor

How do we gain the support of the cultural leaders? As the saying goes, safety starts at the top. This is as true today as ever. If the company talks safety and behaves as if production is number one, the safety culture will suffer.

As far as the workforce is concerned, the representatives of the company are the immediate supervisors. Therefore, the relationship of the immediate supervisor to the workforce is a key to their behavior. Many companies do not spend the resources needed to properly train their supervisors—many of which may have come up through the ranks. Without formal training, supervisors may feel as though they have total authority to handle the workers as they see fit.

If upper management is serious about improving the safety culture, they need to recognize how important it is to train supervisors to be “effective” supervisors.

 

Communication with Supervisors

An effective supervisor not only achieves production objectives, but does it in a safe manner. So, how do we get employees to want to work safely? It helps if the supervisor behaves in a safe manner at all times. Supervisors that do not follow safety rules are telling the workforce that it is acceptable to do what they do. Supervisors must “walk the walk and talk the talk”.

One of the best ways to get the attention of supervisors is to set safety objectives and then hold them accountable. A higher percentage of a supervisor’s performance review should be based on achieving safety objectives. If the criteria for your success are production driven, where would you spend the most time?

 

Workforce Communications

If the company wants to set safety objectives, it would be a good idea to involve the supervisors. The supervisors should first involve the cultural leaders (if they can be identified). Together, they should be able to set achievable goals. Too many companies do not give the workforce a good reason to behave in a safe manner. There is not only a financial incentive but there should be a moral incentive for employees to look out for their “family” members. A high “modification factor” in your workers compensation premium calculation means you are paying more than you should, which erodes margins that are already thin.

Once objectives have been established, it is important to provide frequent updates. Even daily updates would be good to show progress. Human nature thrives on achieving success. It does not take a large safety budget to drive a safety program. In fact, a safety program that consistently demonstrates that top management is committed is more effective that an expensive prize driven program. Taking a photo of a worker or workgroup that has achieved a milestone goes a long way in showing management’s support for the program. A personal thank you note for a safety suggestion from the owner of the company would be huge in advancing the safety culture.

If the person voicing a concern does not want to be named, supervisors can still acknowledge that someone brought up a safety concern and state how management appreciates the information. Even if the suggestion is not acted on, or may take some time to implement, follow-up is important. Some form of recognition should be provided.

 

Summary

•   The safety culture of an organization is a reflection of its leadership.

•   Management must demonstrate its desire for a safe workplace by behaving accordingly and providing the proper materials and resources.

•   Provide safety and leadership skills training for supervisors.

•   Set achievable safety goals that have been collectively agreed upon.

•   Provide constant updates as to how the company is doing toward meeting the goal.

•   Recognize achievements often and in a timely manner.

•   Refresh programs and implement ideas with a safety program kick-off meetings (that includes upper management) to avoid a decline in employee interest.

Tags: ,
Posted in WG&S Magazine, August 2016 Issue | No Comments »

PRESS RELEASE: Western Growers Revamps Produce Price Index Website to Offer Produce Pricing Comparisons

August 1st, 2016

Improved website highlights how much farmers receive for their products

IRVINE, Calif. (August 1, 2016) – Western Growers has revamped its “Produce Price Index” (PPI) website to allow consumers to easily identify the price difference between what customers pay at grocery stores for fresh produce and what farmers actually receive for their products. In an effort to educate consumers and stakeholders on how much farmers receive for the fruits and vegetables they grow, the PPI details the selling price at the farm, the average price charged at major retail stores and the percentage spread between the two.

“The escalating input costs farmers have to pay in order to sustain a nutritious and reliable global food supply is often overlooked,” said Tom Oliveri, director of trade practices & commodity services at Western Growers. “With this improved Produce Price Index, we’ll continue to educate the public on the gap between farm and retail prices, as well as help consumers understand the pricing structure in the agriculture industry.”

Western Growers has been providing pricing data on fresh produce items since 1996. The index, which is now outfitted with an improved interface and easier navigation, highlights how farmers continue to remain price takers rather than price makers. Many consumers do not realize that on average farmers receive less than 16 cents of every $1 spent on food. Due to rising input costs for farmers—including labor, water, land and other resources—and the continuous implementation of costly buyer and regulatory demands, the historically-lean profit margins for fresh produce farmers continue to tighten, requiring continuous innovation by farmers in order to maintain the long-term economic viability of many family farming businesses.

The PPI is updated weekly and lists prices from U.S. cities including Los Angeles, Atlanta, Chicago and New York. Users now have the ability to search the database by commodity, date range and location. Visit the PPI website at http://www.producepriceindex.com/. For more information, contact Tom Oliveri at (949) 885-2269. 

About Western Growers:
Founded in 1926, Western Growers represents local and regional family farmers growing fresh produce in Arizona, California and Colorado. Our members and their workers provide half the nation’s fresh fruits, vegetables and tree nuts, including half of America’s fresh organic produce. For generations we have provided variety and healthy choices to consumers. Connect with and learn more about Western Growers on our Twitter and Facebook. 

###

 

Posted in Press Releases | No Comments »

Open Letter to President Barack Obama and Governor Jerry Brown: Wasted Water, Wasted Opportunity

August 15th, 2016

President Obama and Governor Brown,

Thousands of California farmers today feel like the mythological Cassandra, daughter of the King of Troy. Her beauty caught the eye of Apollo, who felt compelled to give the princess a gift – the ability to see the future. However, when Apollo’s love for her was unrequited, the Greek god cursed Cassandra so that no one would believe her prophecies. Thus, she was forced to live the rest of her days knowing the tragedies to come, yet powerless to change the course of events.

Earlier this year, Western Growers released a video urgently calling on the agencies you direct to capture and store as much of the El Niño storm runoff as possible. We predicted that continued insistence on diversion of excess runoff to the sea would lead to a missed opportunity for California to at least partially recover from the ongoing drought. We also sent letters to Congress and you, Governor Brown, urging the establishment of legislative and regulatory protocols to maximize the delivery of storm runoff to storage facilities south of the Delta.

Despite our pleas and the cries of many others in Central and Southern California, your agencies refused to listen. Like Cassandra, this must be our curse.

As a consequence, San Luis Reservoir – the critical water storage site for San Joaquin Valley farms and cities, and more than 60 percent of the nation’s fresh fruits and tree nuts – now holds just 10 percent of its 2 million acre-feet capacity, lower than at any point in the last 25 years. In water parlance, it is at “dead pool,” unable to deliver any water at all.

This is in spite of a wet winter that filled many Northern California reservoirs to the point that managers had to spill large amounts of water to make room for late spring runoff.  

Instead of smartly directing excess water during storm flows from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta into San Luis Reservoir, your agencies insisted on the same scientifically-unjustified and morally-indefensible path. How is it that some California homeowners can be fined for watering their yards on Tuesday instead of Wednesday, yet the government faces no judgment or penalty for intentionally flushing billions of gallons of flood runoff out to the ocean?

Since the beginning of the year, more than one million acre-feet (340 billion gallons) of water has been lost, purposely allowed to flow past the pumps that could have redirected it to San Luis Reservoir and, from there, the many other reservoirs in Southern California that were not filled the way northern reservoirs were. Keep in mind, this was not water needed to satisfy the shaky scientific logic of the smelt and salmon biological opinions. This was water that was lost due to the refusal of your agencies to operate the Delta pumps at the upper ranges of the environmental limits.

Yet the madness continues. Your agencies are proposing to dump another 200,000 acre-feet of water into the sea before the end of this summer, with another 250,000 acre-feet scheduled for next summer. At the risk of sharing Cassandra’s plight again, let me make another prophecy: These proposed releases will do nothing to save the smelt – which many fish biologists believe will be extinct soon regardless – but will further punish Central Valley family farms and rural communities.

The continued regulatory mismanagement of California’s water threatens to drive out farmers – and hundreds of thousands of employees whose livelihood depends on those farmers – from the most productive agricultural region in the world. Not only would the fallout be damaging to the regional and state economy, it could have serious national security implications, as well. The gap in food production would likely be made up by foreign producers. Is it strategically wise to cede control of our food supply to other countries?

As I conclude my letter, I call your attention once again to the story of Cassandra. The Trojans failed to heed her now infamous words prior to the fall of Troy: “Beware of Greeks bearing gifts.” Do not subject agriculture in California to a similar fate.

 

Sincerely,

Tom Nassif
President & CEO
Western Growers

Posted in News | No Comments »

Economic Study Details Harmful Impacts of CA Overtime Bill

August 15th, 2016

An economic analysis conducted by the reputable Highland Economics firm corroborates what farmers already know: The California overtime bill will reduce farmworkers’ incomes, reduce farm production and harm the state’s economy (especially when coupled with the minimum wage increase).

Commissioned by a coalition of agricultural organizations opposing AB 1066 (Gonzalez), the Highland report assessed the potential impact of the proposed overtime changes on farm labor jobs and earnings, as well as other economic consequences.

The study outlines three possible scenarios under which farm employers might respond should the bill become law: reducing agricultural production, expanding the labor force, and paying the overtime wages. It is likely many farmers will choose a mix of these scenarios.

Combined with the minimum wage increase, the results indicate the following significant negative effects:

  • Labor costs as a percentage of operating costs will see a dramatic increase
    • Labor costs for vegetables will increase from 46% to 55%
    • Labor costs for fruits will increase from 58% to 73%
    • Labor costs for tree nuts will increase from 47% to 52%
  • Farmworker income will decline by 16%, or $1.5 billion overall
  • Up to 78,000 jobs and $5.4 billion in crop production will be lost
  • Statewide income will be reduced by as much as $7.8 billion

Read the full Economic Analysis of California Proposed Agricultural Overtime Wages executive summary.

Help spread this information by downloading and sharing the infographics below on Facebook and Twitter:

Posted in News | No Comments »

Educational, Interactive Workshops Featured During 91st Annual Meeting

August 18th, 2016

Western Growers has finalized our educational workshops that will be presented during the 91st Annual Meeting at the Grand Hyatt in Kauai from November 6-9, 2016. Based on the results from our Annual Meeting Survey, the workshop topics include: Foodborne Illness – Criminal and Civil Liability, Top Chef and Innovation Arena II. In addition, the ever-popular Hawaiian Style Family Games will round out the program.

Top Chef Demonstration

November 7, 2016 at 10:15am to 11:45am

Perfect your culinary skills as Top Chef Adam Tabura demonstrates nutritious cooking techniques using fresh produce. Chef Adam will be turning a selection of everyday ingredients into extraordinary meals and will be providing attendees with tips for creating healthy, delicious meals.

With more than 20 years of experience in cooking, Chef Adam is armed with a wealth of culinary education and expertise. He has worked in various restaurants in Portland, Oregon and brought his talents back to Hawaii to serve as head chef at top dining locations throughout the Island. This chef has been recognized globally on Food Network shows such as “The Great Food Truck Race” and “Cutthroat Kitchen,” and has even worked for Steve Jobs, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Steven Tyler.

Foodborne Illness: Criminal & Civil Liability Workshop

November 7, 2016 at 2:30pm to 3:45pm

Three of the nation’s top experts in the field will discuss the risks and defenses associated with food safety processes and foodborne illness events, in addition to exploring legal concepts such as “strict liability” in criminal and civil cases. Panelists will also discuss indemnity agreements and the federal government’s criminal prosecution philosophy, among other topics.

Innovation Arena II

November 8, 2016 at 9:15am to 11:15am

The Innovation Arena II workshop will introduce attendees to cutting-edge technological innovations and specialized services designed to help you manage scarce resources, overcome intense regulatory and marketplace pressure and deliver higher quality produce.

Select tech companies and entrepreneurs will showcase new offerings in agricultural technology before a panel of Western Growers judges. This interactive workshop encourages audience participation, as attendees of the Innovation Arena will help determine the winners. A call for interested parties to submit applications to compete in the Innovation Arena will be announced later this month.

Hawaiian Style Family Games

November 8, 2016 at 2:00pm to 4:00pm

Compete in a series of “Island Challenges” and “Island Games” during this Olympic-themed event. Participants will enjoy the Hawaii sand and surf as they work in teams to complete various challenges. Upon completion of the island challenges and games, judges will tally all of the day’s activity scores and present the three highest scoring teams with personalized company logo award medals.

Rooms are quickly filling up and are almost sold out! If you haven’t already done so, don’t forget to:

For more information on the Annual Meeting or for sponsorship questions, contact Randy Hause at (949) 885-2263.

Posted in News | No Comments »

Retired Navy Flag Officer to Address Security & Bio-Terrorism during Annual Meeting Major Lunch

August 23rd, 2016

Retired Navy Flag Officer Garry E. Hall will headline the Major Lunch at the 91st Annual Meeting this November in Hawaii. Admiral Hall’s military and private sector experience will allow him to touch on broad themes such as global security, bio-terrorism and food security. His background in naval aviation, surface warfare and Navy and Marine Corps expeditionary warfare, combined with 20 years of senior management as a civilian, will make for an intriguing keynote address.

Rear Admiral Hall had a distinguished naval career, serving 35 years on active duty after graduating from the United States Naval Academy. As a naval aviator, he flew anti-submarine warfare helicopters and commanded two squadrons before he took over command of the amphibious assault ship, USS Tarawa (LHA 1). As commanding officer, Admiral Hall led a compliment of 1,000 sailors, 2,000 Marines and controlled operations of 32 aircraft and three landing craft when he oversaw the rescue of the USS Cole after a terrorist attack in Yemen.  

As a Flag Officer, he served as General Tommy Franks’ Information Operations Officer at the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom, served with NATO in the United Kingdom, commanded an Expeditionary Strike Group deployed to the Middle East and led a Senior Service College at National Defense University.

Additionally, Admiral Hall serves as an appointee to the National Review Board of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). He has a B.S. in Marine Engineering from the U.S. Naval Academy and an MBA from Southern Illinois University.     

He currently serves as President and CEO of the Association of the United States Navy, a non-profit association that is the voice for America’s Sailors on Capitol Hill.

For more information, please contact Randy Hause at (949) 885-2265.

Posted in News | No Comments »

I-8 Westbound Exit Ramp at 4th Ave/Winterhaven Closed Outside of Yuma

August 30th, 2016

The Interstate-8 westbound off-ramp at 4th Ave/Winterhaven is closed until at least December due to a CalTrans road construction project. 

The unannounced closure reduces traffic flow to one lane on the westbound portion of I-8. The last exit for oversized farm equipment to avoid the narrowed area is Giss Parkway. Tractors that don’t exit prior to the closure will find themselves held up in heavy traffic for several miles having to cross a 12’ one-lane bridge after Giss Parkway. 

Please help us spread the word, and share this information with your industry contacts.

For more information, contact AnnaMarie Knorr at (602) 451-0658. 

Posted in News | No Comments »

Newer Entries »