Western Growers will honor Western Growers President and CEO Tom Nassif, whose passion for agriculture and remarkable leadership has elevated WG exponentially, with the 2019 Award of Honor during Western Growers 94th Annual Meeting in Maui, Hawaii. Nassif’s impact and commitment to the Western Growers community will be recognized at the Award of Honor Dinner ...
IRVINE, Calif. (March 22, 2019) – Western Growers is pleased to announce the recent hire of Darcie Floyd, who has joined the Insurance Services team as the Director of Employee Benefits. As Director, Floyd will be responsible for supporting the production employee benefits to new and existing customers. In addition, she will oversee all employee benefit ...
ZAG Technical Services, Inc.—a leading IT consulting and services company—joined the Western Growers (WG) family a few years ago as a Partner Sponsor for its Center for Innovation & Technology (WGCIT) in Salinas, CA. In addition to assisting agtech start-up companies in bringing their inventions from development to market, ZAG is dedicated to helping its ...
After stumbling upon an edible mushroom farm in Maui in 1995, two great friends, Bryan Hiromoto and Wesley Chun, embarked on a journey that would result in the development of a compound that would significantly stimulate plant growth. Hiromoto and Chun identified several species of mushrooms that produced nematicidal compounds. One mushroom was found to ...
Unlike many others working in the agriculture industry, Matt Jones was not born into a family of farmers. Though born and raised in Salinas, known as the “salad bowl of the world,” Jones was not raised in the fields. However, he vividly remembers his father working for various ag-related businesses, including Western Growers in the ...
By Chardae Heim Diversity in leadership is often a key asset to any company or industry, and while agriculture may lag others in diversity at the top, the industry is poised to make great strides and more closely reflect the demographics of the world it feeds. Just as a farmer understands the value of diversifying ...
Congressman TJ Cox represents California’s 21st Congressional District. The District includes all of Kings County and portions of Fresno, Kern, and Tulare Counties. He ran unsuccessfully for the 19th District seat in 2006, but won during his second try for Congress in 2018. Rep. Cox was sworn into the 116th Congress on January 3, 2019. ...
U.S. Representative Harder represents California’s 10th Congressional District, located in California’s Central Valley covering Stanislaus County and parts of San Joaquin County As a freshman Democratic congressman, Rep. Josh Harder came into office with a big job to do. Harder’s district is one of seven in California that Democrats successfully flipped during the 2018 elections. ...
U.S. Representative Doug LaMalfa represents California’s 1st Congressional District, located north of Sacramento in California’s Central Valley. Known as a champion for agriculture, LaMalfa is dedicated to addressing agriculture’s most pressing issues. Meet Doug LaMalfa, a Congressman representing California’s first congressional district who also doubles as a rice farmer. Interestingly,…
In the fresh produce industry, reliable energy is essential to running an operation and maintaining the integrity of the product. With storm-related power outages and public safety power shut-offs plaguing California and contributing to significant damages among agricultural businesses, the industry is beginning to explore alternative energy options. In the traditional utility structure, the…
Editor’s note: Congressman Salud Carbajal represents the 24th Congressional District of California. The 24th Congressional District includes the entirety of San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties, and a portion of Ventura County. Congressman Salud Carbajal’s father was a part of the Bracero Program, which brought millions of Mexican guest workers to the United States, ...
By Chardae Heim Jimmy Panetta, who proudly serves California’s 20th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives, has continually demonstrated a steadfast commitment to ensuring the sustainability and success of the nation’s food supply. Since being sworn into office in 2017, Rep. Panetta has fought for everything from immigration reform and accessible healthcare to ...
To many, Melissa Hurtado is an energetic American politician serving in the California State Senate. While this is true, Senator Hurtado’s background and upbringing reveal how she came to be the determined, persevering female legislator representing California’s 14th Senate district. Melissa Hurtado knows firsthand what it means to achieve the American dream. She was born ...
The last time Western Growers (WG) spoke with Rep. Tim Dunn, he was completing his first full year as a member of Arizona’s House of Representatives and just beginning to tackle some of his constituents’ most pressing issues. Recently, WG had the opportunity to reconnect with Dunn to speak about the outcome of his efforts ...
By Chardae Heim, Communications Coordinator (Editor’s Note: David Valadao is a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives, representing California’s 21st Congressional District. He is a lifelong resident of California’s Central Valley and an active member in agriculture and dairy industry groups. He initially won three consecutive terms serving from 2013-2019, before losing the…
The Western Growers Center for Innovation and Technology (WGCIT) was established to identify industry concerns and accelerate the production of technology to address these concerns. The Bosch Group designs smart agriculture products to help growers lower their costs and increase productivity. The Bosch Group is a leading global supplier of technology and services. It employs ...
By Chardae Heim Communications Coordinator, Western Growers (Editor’s Note: Senator David Gowan spent the first eight years of his political career in the Arizona House of Representatives fighting for the families and businesses of Southern Arizona. He now serves as Arizona’s 14th Senate District Senator.) David Gowan, a conservative Republican, was first elected to the ...
George Pappas, Principal & President Pappas Family Farm Mendota, CA Farm Established 1933 by George Pappas, uncle of Current Principal George Pappas • • • Has your produce diversified since the start of your operation in 1933? Yes, we’ve diversified our crops over the years. Now we grow cantaloupe, watermelons, honeydew and sweet corn. We ...
2020 will be remembered as a year of constant challenges and transportation was no exception. The Western Growers Transportation Program Team and experts from C. H. Robinson answer the most common member questions regarding the 2020 transportation market and what we can expect in 2021: Q. Transportation rates have been extremely high in recent months. ...
Join the Western Growers Center of Innovation and Technology and the California Israel Chamber of Commerce for an open discussion on channel distribution in the U.S. agriculture market. On December 9, 2020, WG’s Walt Duflock and Dennis Donohue will join agtech subject matter experts for a Q&A session designed to provide insight on developing technologies ...