Ann Donahue
Western Growers, Director, Marketing and Communications
Ann Donahue serves as Director, Marketing and Communications for Western Growers, where she is responsible for external communication efforts and publicizing the Association’s executives, initiatives, and members across all media platforms. Ann spent more than 20 years as an editor and reporter covering entertainment journalism, with bylines at publications including Variety, the L.A. Times, Billboard, […]
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VofV: Jack Vessey on the Pressing Need to Implement Technology in Desert Agriculture
For Jack Vessey, President of Imperial Valley-based Vessey & Co., one fact of desert agriculture never changes: You have to do more with less. “We have to be proactive with trying things,” he said in this week’s episode of the Voices of the Valley podcast, noting that the pressures of labor, irrigation and crop protection ...
WGCIT Hosts Virtual Session on the Challenges and Rewards of Growing in the Central Valley
The Western Growers Center for Innovation and Technology hosted Turlock Fruit Company General Manager Neill Callis and HMC Farms Vice President Drew Ketelsen to speak about their experience as growers in the Central Valley. Almost 30 startups attended the event, where the duo shared insights into their growing region and talked about the importance of ...
Early Registration Rate for FREP/WPH Nutrient Management Conference Ends Tomorrow
October 14 is the last day to receive the early registration rate for the 30th FREP/WPH Annual Nutrient Management Conference, which will be held on Oct. 26-27, 2022 in Visalia, Calif. Students, researchers, and industry members can present their ongoing research, outreach, or demonstration projects in California related to irrigation and nutrient management during the ...
Solicitation Now Open for SGMA Implementation Round 2 Grants
The Department of Water Resources announced that the Sustainable Groundwater Management (SGM) Grant Program’s SGMA Implementation Round 2 grant solicitation has officially opened. Round 2 will provide approximately $230 million for planning and implementation projects to help comply with the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act. Round 2 is open to applicants located within medium- and…
Judges Selected for AgSharks Pitch Competition
IRVINE, CALIF. (Oct. 14, 2022) – Western Growers and S2G Ventures have announced the judges for the 2022 AgSharks Competition, a unique event where startup companies pitch their innovations in front of a live audience of the world’s largest specialty crop producers to win a $250,000 minimum investment. Three startups will be selected to pitch ...
Last Chance to Register for the WG Annual Meeting!
It’s the final few days to sign up for the Western Growers 2022 Annual Meeting, which will be held Nov. 2-5 at The Venetian Resort in Las Vegas. Don’t miss out on these top-of-the-line educational opportunities, social events and entertainment: *Keynote speakers including Admiral William McRaven; Karl Rove; and Jennifer Sey. *Two informational panels will be ...
Western Growers’ Hank Giclas to be Honored at 2022 Food Safety Conference
The University of Arizona Food Safety Consortium’s annual 2022 Food Safety Conference will honor and dedicate this year’s conference to the late Hank Giclas, former Senior Vice President, Strategic Planning, Science & Technology at Western Growers, who passed away earlier this year. Hank served the Western fresh produce industry in various capacities with Western Growers for ...
Western Growers Premieres Video Series Featuring Next-Generation Agtech Robots
IRVINE, CALIF. (Oct. 18, 2022) – To celebrate the start of the first American edition of FIRA, the international agricultural robotics conference, WG debuts an inside look at cutting-edge technologies on the farm that will help ease the industry’s ongoing labor shortage. The three short videos feature 2-D orchards of trees harvested via a self-propelled ...
VofV: Global Competition Requires Urgent Supply Chain Tech Innovation
On this week’s Voices of the Valley podcast, Dennis Donohue and Candace Wilson interview Gary Loh, the CEO of DiMuto and the Executive Chairman of First Alverstone Group, and Claire Pribula, the Managing Director and Co-Founder of Yield Lab Asia Pacific. Gary and Claire discuss the changes in the marketplace that have resulted in an ...
2022 Global Harvest Automation Report Survey Now Open to Growers, Start-Ups
The second year of data collection for Western Growers’ Global Harvest Automation Report is underway, and we need growers and start-ups to fill out surveys to help the industry confront the ongoing threat from chronic labor shortages. Western Growers’ Global Harvest Automation Initiative (GHAI) aims to automate 50 percent of the fresh produce harvest within ...
WGCIT Hosts Workshop on Hygienic Design for Automated Harvesters
The Western Growers Center for Innovation and Technology is hosting an in-person workshop on hygienic and sanitary design for automation harvesters presented by WG’s Science Programs Director Afreen Malik and Justin Kerr, Founder of Factor IV Solutions. The workshop will take place at the CIT in Salinas, Calif. on Oct. 31, 2022 from 8 a.m. ...
Finalists Announced for AgSharks Pitch Competition
IRVINE, CALIF. (Oct. 21, 2022) – Western Growers and S2G Ventures have announced the three finalists that will compete in the 2022 AgSharks Competition, a unique event where startup companies pitch their innovations in front of a live audience of the world’s largest specialty crop producers to win a $250,000 minimum investment. The finalists are: En ...
Western Growers Selects Future Volunteer Leaders Class VII
IRVINE, CALIF. (Oct. 24, 2022) – Western Growers is welcoming the seventh class of Future Volunteer Leaders, a group who will be embedded in specialized networking and agricultural leadership development events with the organization for the next two years. Class VII includes: Celeste Alonzo, Junior Enterprises Jose Covarrubias, Wholesum Farms Krystal Del Bosque, Del Bosque ...
2023 Nonpoint Source Grant Program – Clean Water Act is Now Open for Proposals
The Nonpoint Source Grant Program – Clean Water Act is now open for proposals; the deadline to submit is Dec. 19, 2022. The Nonpoint Source Grant Program seeks proposals for projects that reduce runoff of pollution to waters of the state of California, such as agricultural projects that reduce pesticide and nutrient runoff, improvement or ...
First Edition of FIRA USA Attracts More Than 900 Attendees
The first edition of FIRA USA, the agtech robotics conference, attracted more than 900 attendees to Fresno from Oct. 18-20, 2022. Over the three days of the event, co-organized by Western Growers, GOFAR, UC ANR, UC Merced, Fresno State and Fresno-Merced Future of Food Innovation, those in the attendance had the opportunity to attend panels about ...
Voices of the Valley: Stout CEO Brent Shedd Explores Artificial Intelligence in Ag
Brent Shedd, CEO of Stout Industrial Techology, Inc., joins Voices of the Valley to examine Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the agriculture industry. Brent joined Stout with a background in technology and tends to approach farming issues through this lens. The decision for Stout to build its own hardware and software was based around Brent’s…
The Produce Moms’ Lori Taylor on Educating Consumers About Food and Farming
Lori Taylor, Founder and CEO of The Produce Moms, joins Voices of the Valley this week to talk about how she uses her multimedia platform to pull back the veil for the general public about the process of produce farming. “Our mission is to simple: To get more fruits and vegetables on every table,” she ...
Western Growers Announces Results of Board of Directors Election
LAS VEGAS (Nov. 3, 2022) – Western Growers is pleased to announce the results of the 2023-2024 Western Growers Board of Directors elections. The following members have been elected by the membership to serve a two-year term starting in November 2022 at the 96th Western Growers Annual Meeting: D-1 All Arizona except Yuma County Steve ...
Standardization in Agtech Automation: Good News for Growers
By Walt Duflock, Vice President, Innovation The cost for an agtech startup to build its initial product and get it into market are among the highest for any tech segment. It frequently runs $50-100 million to get a version 1.0 product into market with partners or direct sales teams that can sell and support it. ...
Grimmway’s Jeff Huckaby Named Grower of the Year at the Organic Grower Summit
This year, OGS provided growers with firsthand knowledge and information in areas ranging from agtech to food safety to sustainability, and the events at the Hyatt Regency Monterey Hotel & Spa gave attendees the opportunity to watch cutting-edge panels, listen to keynotes from industry leaders and attend vital networking opportunities. This year, the Grower of the Year…