Western Growers and Silicon Valley Global Partners (SVG Partners) are entering into an exclusive strategic alliance agreement to find, accelerate, advance and invest in innovative solutions intended to solve critical challenges to production agriculture through technology, and produce more with less water, labor and inputs. The two companies will collaborate on Innovation Centers in Salinas…
If you like a good salad – you know, the kind with lettuce – then be prepared to face the scorn of the enviro-foodie elitists. Tamar Haspel, a self-described “ex-urban journalist now farming oysters” on that vast farm belt known as Cape Cod, writes in the Washington Post that salad, and especially its main ingredient, ...
The farmers who make up the heart of Western Growers’ membership are astute businesspeople. They understand the old adage, “Don’t throw good money after bad.” Our members understand that in business, sometimes problems are so intractable, endeavors so futile, that no matter how much more money you sink into a project, the original investment will ...
I have some good news to share with you that does not involve politics, legislation, immigration reform, labor unions or government overregulation, but does support this organization’s mission — to increase the profitability of our members. Western Growers is taking initiative to shape the future of our industry by exploring partnership opportunities in the high ...
Do you have days when you feel you are damned if you do and damned if you don’t? I read news reports all the time about our industry, as you probably do. It’s the criticism in the media that stings when judgments are made that farmers do not use natural resources well, in particular, water. ...
(Excerpted and adapted from a keynote speech given by Mr. Nassif to the National Council of Agricultural Employers at its annual meeting on February 4, 2015.) Agriculture faces great obstacles today, especially for those engaged in labor-intensive agriculture where certain challenges feel particularly acute. Over the course of my career, I have participated in some ...
For several decades, conservative political scholars have warned of the dangers of the federal government’s increasing reach into the affairs of the states. Along the way, some of this political discourse has suggested that the ability of the states to chart their own unique policies—to be the “laboratories of democracy”—has been lost. I share this ...
California governors seem predestined to be beset by crises. There is something about this place that seems to foster them. Pete Wilson’s tenure will be remembered as much for his management of multiple crises—major earthquakes, fiscal meltdowns, urban riots—as for his policy achievements. Gov. Jerry Brown’s second stint as California’s chief executive has been hampered…
“Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.” Steve Jobs How will you be farming and running your business 10 years from now? Will you be paperless and using drones and sensors to monitor soil moisture and robots to harvest more of your crops? What will other operations be doing and how will they be ...
Throughout the pages of this magazine, you will see articles and ads featuring many of the very best attorneys in the country specializing in areas of the law that affect farmers and related ag businesses. This annual edition of our magazine—the Ag Legal issue—always takes me back to my own days as a labor lawyer ...
It’s music to many desperate ears: El Niño is coming! Meteorologists are almost uniformly predicting a major El Niño event this coming winter. El Niño refers to a weather phenomenon that features warming waters in the tropical Pacific combined with a shift in prevailing winds that can send a steady stream of warm and wet ...
The law of unintended consequences has been used by philosophers, economists and sociologists to describe unforeseen outcomes of well-meant action—generally referring to public policy enacted by the government. A famous example of this “law” is the 18th Amendment, ratified in 1919, prohibiting the manufacturing or sale of alcohol in the United States. One unintended consequence…
Although I am an ordained deacon in the Antiochian Orthodox Church, I am observant of the wisdom offered by religious leaders of many other denominations. Oftentimes, the spiritual guidance provided by leaders of different faiths tenders valuable insight into our own personal conduct, as well as the character of our social institutions. This was most ...
In 2011, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ordered all employers (both union and non-union) to post notices informing employees of their rights under federal labor law. The NLRB claimed the “Poster Rule” was necessary to help employees understand their rights. Business groups brought legal challenges, arguing the NLRB had exceeded its statutory authority and ...
I have said many times that the politics of immigration reform can be summed up by the following maxim: “Democrats want immigrants to vote and not work, Republicans want immigrants to work and not vote.” While this adage may be an oversimplification, it characterizes the ideological divide that has prevented any type of meaningful immigration ...
It is often said that the first step in recovery is to acknowledge the problem with honesty and candor. We usually think of this in the context of someone battling alcohol or drug addiction. But the usefulness and necessity of this first step can be applied well beyond that aspect of our society. I have ...
Last month, I began a series on the need for federal Endangered Species Act (ESA) reform. I used the analogy of addiction recovery, in which the first step is to acknowledge the problem. Extending this metaphor to politics, I noted that few members of Congress are willing to publicly admit that the ESA is fundamentally ...
This column marks the final installment of my three-month series on the need to reform the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The last two articles discussed the specific problems that need to be addressed and the reasons why real reform has been difficult to achieve. In a way, I have attempted to provide a diagnosis of ...
(Editor’s Note: Western Growers President and CEO has started a blog on the Western Growers website called Nassif’s Notes to opine on various topics and initiate discussions among policy makers, journalists and WG members. This was his first blog entry published on April 11. See the web address in the box below to access this ...
No one disputes that the United States’ immigration system is broken. Ideas for reform—ranging from ideological to bipartisan—have been endlessly debated in Congress for over a decade now. In a glimmer of hope, the Senate did pass a bipartisan compromise bill in 2013, but the House failed to act. Maybe the November elections will bring ...