Posts By: Tim Linden
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EL NIÑO: WATER YEAR 2016 Will it Live Up to the Hype?
By Tim Linden You can hardly pick up a newspaper or check out the internet without someone mentioning the Great El Niño lurking in the Pacific Ocean that will soon be peppering California with a series of strong storms. “El Niño is on track to become one of the most powerful on record, strongly ...
2015 WG ANNUAL MEETING: Set Sail for San Diego
The Grand Del Mar in San Diego will serve as the elegant backdrop for the 90th Annual Meeting of the Western Growers Association. Geographically, the association has not moved that far since its first meeting back in 1926, which was held about 100 miles east as the crow flies in Brawley, Calif., at the Planters ...
WATER RIGHTS Discussion About Overhaul Moving into Public Arena
The granting of water rights in California is a very complex system that has remained largely out of the public eye for a century. The first laws codifying those rights were enacted in 1914 creating that year as an important one in the discussion. With the current four year drought creating headaches for water districts, ...
Legislator Profile: Frank Pratt represents Arizona’s 8th Legislative District including parts of Pinal and Gila counties
(Editor’s Note: The questions and answers have been paraphrased for brevity and clarity.) I know your roots run deep in Arizona, give us your family background. My grandfather on my mother’s side came to territorial Arizona during the 1880s Silver Rush. He settled in Florence where he was a grocer and a baker. My father ...
Growing the Perfect Citrus Variety
CA Member Tom Mulholland Mulholland Citrus Member Since 2001 Family Background: Many books have been written about William Mulholland, who is largely responsible for bringing water to parched Los Angeles County more than a century ago. He was the head of a predecessor to the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power and responsible for ...
PRESIDENTIAL POLITICS: A Year Out: Immigration Issues Leading the Debate
By Tim Linden Largely because of Donald Trump’s surprising lead in the polls and his brash comments about Mexicans, the issue of immigration has been front and center in the early debates for the 2016 presidential election. Though the agricultural community—Western Growers in particular—has been fighting for immigration reform to be dealt with for ...
BEYOND PACKAGING: Suite of Services Drives Sambrailo’s Growth
Sambrailo Packaging Company has an impressive history in the produce industry dating back almost a full century. But when Tom Byrne joined the third-generation, family-owned firm a couple of years ago as its vice president and general manager, he was equally impressed with the array of services provided by the packaging company. He noted that ...
LEGISLATOR PROFILE: Jacqui Irwin represents California’s 44th Assembly District including Oxnard, Camarillo and Thousand Oaks
(Editor’s Note: The questions and answers have been paraphrased for brevity and clarity) Jacqui Irwin was first elected to the Assembly in 2014 after serving 10 years on the Thousand Oaks City Council, including two stints as mayor. She was the first Democrat elected in Thousand Oaks in many years, and replaced Republican Jeff ...
WG ANNUAL MEETING 2015 Vic Smith Sees Labor Shortage as Top Issue
Sure, the drought is a huge issue. But even if we get enough water to grow all the acres we want, we still won’t have the labor to harvest all those crops. That’s the view of Vic Smith of JV Smith Companies, who completed his one-year term as chairman of the board of Western Growers ...
Keynote Speakers Give Much Food for Thought
The future was on the minds of two keynote speakers who presented some sobering and fantastic predictions about the future during the Western Growers Annual Meeting in San Diego in November. Provocatively, former chief futurist for the technology firm Cisco, Dave Evans, current founder and CEO of Stringify, said many people think that the first ...
‘SHARK TANK’ SESSION Two Tech Firms Stand Out at Workshop
Two firms, both advancing crop information garnered from eye-in-the-sky technology, were the winners during the Western Growers Innovation Arena Workshop held during the Annual Meeting in San Diego in November. The workshop session featured seven companies, most of which were start-ups, making a pitch to a panel of judges and the audience about what each ...
A Look Back…and Ahead Lack of Immigration Reform and Federal Water Legislation Mar Another Year
As Western Growers convened its 90th Annual Meeting in San Diego in November, it once again lamented the lack of progress on immigration reform that has occurred since its previous meeting a year earlier. And no optimism could be found that the picture will be any different one year hence. On the other hand, the ...
HIGH-TECH ANALYSIS: Using Imagery to Build a Better Crop
(Editor’s Note: As one of the two winners of the “Shark Tank” session at the 2015 Western Growers Annual Meeting, GeoVisual Analytics won the right to have a feature article in WG&S. The second winner will be featured in a future issue of this magazine.) In several ways, Jeffrey Orrey, chief executive officer of ...
Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon, who represents parts of Southern Los Angeles County, including Lakewood, Paramount, Lynwood and South Gate
Editor’s Note: The questions and answers have been paraphrased for brevity and clarity.) Anthony Rendon was elected in his first try for public office in 2012. He served as chair of the Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee, which crafted the $7.5 billion state water bond that was passed by the electorate in November 2014. ...
GUEST WORKERS: Existing Program Cumbersome, But Some are Utilizing It
Though several Western Growers members are using the U.S. Department of Labor’s H-2A Program, which is the only agricultural worker visa program, they seem to be doing it reluctantly and even after years of use, still call it “cumbersome” and “very difficult to use.” “We use it because it is our only option,” said Carmen ...
Foodservice Focus Drives Sales
Tim York President Markon Salinas, CA BETTER THAN MILITARY SERVICE: As Tim York was graduating from San Diego State University in 1977 with a liberal arts degree, he was considering a career in the military. “My paternal grandfather was career cavalry, my maternal grandfather was a lieutenant colonel in artillery and my father was also ...
AERIAL IMAGERY Using ‘Old’ Technology for New Analytics
Editor’s Note: TerrAvion was one of the companies that took part in the technology Innovation Arena session held during Western Growers Annual Meeting in San Diego in November. The firm received the audience award for best idea and as such is rewarded with this feature story.) Robert Morris admits it would be “cooler” and easier ...
Steve Montenegro, Speaker Pro Tempore of Arizona House of Representatives
(Editor’s Note: The questions and answers have been paraphrased for brevity and clarity.) Steve Montenegro, a Republican, was first elected to the Arizona House of Representatives in 2008 to represent District 12. Redistricting has changed his districts to now be number 13. He is currently serving his fourth term. He was chosen by his colleagues ...
Arizona Governor Ducey Starts Administration with Kept Promises
Doug Ducey has not wasted any time accomplishing the goals he set forth when he was elected as Arizona’s 23rd governor in the fall of 2014. Priorities such as reducing government regulations, enhancing the economy and lowering taxes dominated the platform during his inaugural speech in January of 2015. With the help of leadership in ...
TRANSPORTATION OUTLOOK Soft Market Could Mark Much of 2016
Clarity has come to a number of transportation uncertainties leading to a situation where currently there is a very good balance between supply and demand, which could mean a relatively soft market throughout 2016. At least that is a potential scenario according to John Stenderup, manager of grower-shipper supply chain services for C.H. Robinson’s Monterey, ...