Posts By: Jeff Janas
- All
- December, 2022
- December, 2017
- November, 2017
- October, 2017
- September, 2017
- August, 2017
- July, 2017
- June, 2017
- May, 2017
- April, 2017
- March, 2017
- February, 2017
- January, 2017
- December, 2016
- November, 2016
- October, 2016
- September, 2016
- August, 2016
- July, 2016
- June, 2016
- May, 2016
- April, 2016
- March, 2016
- February, 2016
- January, 2016
- December, 2015
- November, 2015
- October, 2015
- September, 2015
- August, 2015
- July, 2015
- June, 2015
- May, 2015
- March, 2015
- February, 2015
- January, 2015
Tanimura Family Patriarch, George Tanimura, Passes Away at 100
George Minoru Tanimura, farming giant and family patriarch of the Tanimura family, passed away on April 15, 2016, at the age of 100. The eldest of twelve siblings, George was forced to shepherd his family through such events as the Great Depression and World War II following the death of his mother, and some years ...
Message from the Chairman on H-2A Processing Delays
In a recent survey of our members who use the H-2A program, more than half experienced delays in getting their workers last year. This year, with the influx of H-2B visa applications at the Department of Labor (DOL), and the greater overall demand for the H-2A program, there is a real concern that H-2A visa ...
Former WG Chairman and Industry Visionary, John R. Norton III, Passes Away
John R. Norton III, who served as Western Growers’ Chairman in 1980 and was an Association Award of Honor recipient in 1985, has died. He was 87. Norton passed away on Sunday April 17, 2016, in Arizona, surrounded by family. His contributions as an industry pioneer and visionary are impossible to overlook and profoundly contributed ...
State Water Project Allocation Increased to 60 Percent
Today, after steadily increasing the State Water Project (SWP) allocation from 10% in December to 45% in March, the Department of Water Resources (DWR) again increased its water delivery for most recipients to 60% of requests for 2016. The extra allocation is primarily due to March storms that provided substantial precipitation to Northern California, filling ...
U.S. Exporters Not in Compliance with Taiwanese Pesticide Residue Limits and Cadmium Standard
Due to recent Maximum Residue Limits (MRL) and cadmium standard violations on shipments to Taiwan, Western Growers reminds members that while the U.S. may have established tolerances on a particular pesticide/fungicide, other countries’ threshold limits may be lower or non-established. Such violations will not only place the individual shipper on enhanced surveillance, but in many ...
Industry Legend and Former WG Chairman, Ralph Bodine, Dies at 73
Ralph Bodine, former Chairman of Western Growers and an Award of Honor Recipient, passed away on March 7, 2016, at age 73. Bodine was born on October 1, 1942, and was married to his wife Linda for 35 years. Together they had six children. A graduate of Princeton University, Bodine was a great leader, man ...
Water Board Issues Draft Order on Waste Discharge for Irrigated Land
The State Water Resources Control Board (the “Board”) issued a Draft Order revising the Eastern San Joaquin Agricultural Coalition’s General Waste Discharge Requirements (WDR). The WDR is part of the Boards’ Irrigated Lands Regulatory Program to address discharges of waste from irrigated agriculture. These revisions are in response to three petitions the State Water Board ...
Western Growers Sets the Record Straight on Federal Drought Legislation
In a Los Angeles Times op-ed, Peter Gleick derides efforts by Sen. Feinstein and Rep. Valadao to pass legislation that would alleviate some of the damage done to farms and farmworkers in the San Joaquin Valley who have watched El Niño water flow past their farms and out to sea. The crux of Gleick’s ...
Citrus Greening and Date Palm Seminars Being Held in Arizona and California
Upcoming events in both Arizona and California will focus on Asian Citrus Psyllid (ACP) status updates, quarantines and citrus greening. Additionally, a Date Palm seminar focusing on invasive pests, disease and pesticides is being held in Arizona. The University of Arizona, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, is sponsoring two citrus seminars in Arizona in ...
Inspection Fees for Terminal Market Inspections to See First Rate Increase in 10 Years
The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced an increase for fees in 2016 for the Terminal Market Inspection Program. The increase follows the agency’s publication of a final rule in the Federal Register in 2014 for calculating fees charged by AMS for user-funded programs. The Program has not ...
Brown Takes Executive Action to Make Conservation a “Way of Life” in California
Yesterday, Governor Jerry Brown issued an Executive Order to establish long-tern conservation measures for the state in anticipation of enduring drought conditions. The Governor built on the temporary statewide emergency water restrictions previously established by requiring “permanent monthly water use reporting, new permanent water use standards in California communities and bans on clearly…
Agencies Announce WG Backed Streamlining Measures to Improve H-2A Processing Issues
Yesterday, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and the U.S. Department of State (DOS) announced the launch of two Western Growers’ promoted initiatives designed to streamline and bring bureaucratic efficiencies to the H-2A application process. The processing changes come after continued engagement by WG staff and less than a month after WG Chairman Larry ...
Appeals Court Reverses & Remands Gerawan Public Access Case Back to Fresno Superior Court
A “Public Access” case filed in Fresno Superior Court filed by Gerawan Farming, Inc. has been ruled on by the 5th District Court of Appeal in favor of Gerawan. The case stems from a farm worker, Lupe Garcia — a Gerawan employee — being denied access to a mediation hearing between his employer and the ...
Senate Committee Holds Hearing on Western Drought Legislation
Today the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee held a hearing on a package of Western water bills, demonstrating that Chairwoman Lisa Murkowski [R-AK] is still dedicated to identifying potential solutions to the ongoing drought crisis. The group of bills heard by the Water and Power Subcommittee includes the revised California water legislation introduced by ...
WG Hits Back at LA Times’ Skelton Piece Attacking Ag
The LA Times’ George Skelton recently wrote a tired column deriding corporate agriculture’s use of water and parroting the talking points of environmental activist groups like the Natural Resources Defense Council. Skelton’s attack on nut and fruit tree growers prompted a swift and blistering attack from Western Growers. The rebuttal, written by WGs’ Director of ...
DOL Announces Final Rule on FLSA White Collar Exemptions
On May 18, 2016, President Obama and Labor Secretary Perez announced the publication of the Department of Labor’s final rule updating the overtime regulations under the Fair Labor Standards Act. The Final Rule focuses primarily on updating the salary and compensation levels needed for Executive, Administrative and Professional workers to be considered exempt from overtime ...
Approved Emergency Groundwater Regulations Go into Effect in June
Yesterday, the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) sent out a notification to stakeholders announcing the California Water Commission approved emergency groundwater regulations outlined in the historic Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA). The regulations will be filed with the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) by June 1, 2016. OAL then has 10 days in which ...
WG Reiterates Support of TPP Following Trade Commission’s Positive Impact Analysis
Yesterday, the International Trade Commission (ITC) released an analysis of the likely impact of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement on the U.S. economy. The release prompted Western Growers’ President and CEO Tom Nassif to issue a statement reiterating our support for the trade deal which would achieve a higher level of fairness between American farmers ...
WSJ Publishes Nassif Op-Ed on New Immigration Reform Approach
Western Growers President & CEO Tom Nassif was published in this morning’s edition of the Wall Street Journal. In his op-ed titled, “Why Governors Need an Immigration Plan,” Nassif introduces a novel plan for achieving real movement on immigration reform: “Who can break the gridlock and establish genuine bipartisan consensus? Who can get Congress to ...
More Progress Made on Efficiency Requests for H-2A Applications
On May 20, 2016, the Employment and Training Administration (ETA) of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued a notice announcing it had revised the H-2A Appendix A form which eliminates the requirement for the employer and agent to obtain the “wet signature” on their special blue paper. Since this requirement was imposed several years ...