From ProPublica...
A California Ranch Gets Nearly as Much Water as the Arizona City of Scottsdale
11/09/2023The Elmore Desert Ranch gets 22.5 billion gallons of water from the Colorado River, almost as much as is cleared for Scottsdale, Ariz. And that’s just a fraction of the 386.5 billion gallons from the river going to 19 other families in Imperial Valley.
From YubaNet...
UC Irvine-Led Science Team Shows How to Eat Our Way Out of the Climate Crisis
11/06/2023In a study published in Nature Sustainability, scientists assessed the potential for wide-scale synthetic production of dietary fats. The raw materials are the same as those used by plants: hydrogen in water and carbon dioxide in the air.
From San Joaquin Valley Sun...
Australian Wine Conglomerate Spends $900 Million for Daou Vineyards
11/01/2023The acquisition includes the Daou brand, Daou Mountain Estate, four luxury wineries, and around 400 acres of vineyards in Adelaida District of Paso Robles in San Luis Obispo County.
From Edible Monterey Bay...
Gali Debuts First Wines Made by Former Ridge Winemaker
11/01/2023Janice and Joseph Gali of Gali Vineyards in Watsonville still have fruit hanging. There’s good news and bad news, as with anyone trying to ripen coastal syrah this season.
From Santa Cruz Sentinel...
Saratoga Restaurateurs Causing a Stir in Santa Cruz Mountains
10/31/2023Angelo Heropoulos, owner of Hero Ranch Kitchen and Flowers Restaurant in Saratoga, has taken over the storefront most recently occupied by Pasta Armellino, which shuttered in October.
From CalMatters...
San Joaquin Valley Groundwater Pumpers Need to Slow Down or Face Fines, State Says
10/12/2023Hundreds of wells in Tulare Lake aquifer are at risk of going dry. Today's recommendation is the first time that state officials have moved to crack down on local plans that fail to stop excessive groundwater pumping.
From CalMatters...
To Make Water Conservation a ‘California Way of Life,’ the Price Tag is $13 Billion
10/04/2023Water providers say rebates for residential areas are costly and residents may refuse to remove their lawns. The rules aim to save enough water for more than a million households a year.
From CalMatters...
California May Ban Additives in Some Candies—But Not Skittles
10/02/2023The European Union has banned certain additives that are used in American candies and baked goods. California is on the cusp of prohibiting their sale by 2027.
From Milpitas Beat...
Milpitas Community Garden Program Still Accepting Applications
09/23/2023Milpitas has announced a new location where city residents can grow organic vegetables while making new friends.
From Monterey Herald...
NASA Technology Can Spot Wine Grape Disease From the Sky
09/12/2023Using intricate infrared images captured by airplane over California's Central Valley, researchers were able to distinguish Cabernet Sauvignon grape vines that were infected but not showing symptoms.
From Mountain View Voice...
Parts of Santa Clara County Under Quarantine
09/07/2023Parts of Santa Clara County have been placed under quarantine after invasive oriental fruit flies were detected in cities such as Santa Clara and Sunnyvale, county officials said.
From San Jose Spotlight...
Santa Clara County Official Presses for More Farmworker Housing
09/04/2023Inadequate housing and resources have plagued local farmworkers for decades. That might take a favorable turn if Santa Clara County officials prioritize their needs.
From Benito Link...
Canty’s Kitchen Brings Alabama Flavor to Hollister
09/03/2023With all his varied interests, it is surprising that Toney Canty is able to contain himself within the confines of his food truck. But the Hollister-based chef is content to serve up his fare at events all over San Benito and Santa Clara counties.
From Mountain View Voice...
City-Run Orchards Serve as Relics of a Bygone Era
08/30/2023From the 1850s to the 1970s, Santa Clara Valley was the center of apricot production. Today, city-owned heritage apricot orchards are remnants of a history that has been preserved.
From CalMatters...
08/29/2023Many farmworkers in Coachella Valley lack legal status as citizens and don't qualify for most federal and state disaster aid. Even a new $95 million storm assistance program for immigrants that Governor Gavin Newsom recently touted is out of reach because it pertains to the winter and spring storms and floods.
From Daily Post...
XtremeLUX: A Brighter Future for Indoor Growers
08/23/2023As growers and consumers look to sustainability, indoor agriculture is expected to revolutionize farming over the coming decades—and Silicon Valley’s XtremeLUX makes the most advanced and efficient LED lighting system for industrial indoor growing.
From Monterey Herald...
California Considers Permanent Ban on Watering Grass at Businesses, Even in Non-Drought Years
08/23/2023Office parks, corporate campuses, strip malls would have to remove grass, or face fines of up to $500 a day.
From Silicon Valley Voice...
SCUSD Farm to Table Camp a Summer Success
08/06/2023One of the hidden gems of the summer curriculum in the Santa Clara Unified School District is the Farm to Table Camp, a program on the district’s farm behind Peterson Middle School.
From Benito Link...
Thomas Bray Stays Busy With His Bees
07/17/2023Twelve years ago, Thomas Bray inherited San Benito Gold Honey, the business his father Leon Bray founded 40 years before. These days, he sells his honey and pollen from a little trailer on Hwy 25.
From San Jose Spotlight...
Urban Farming Development Sprouts in Santa Clara
07/14/2023An affordable housing development where residents can grow their own food is slated to begin welcoming tenants. The development, Agrihood, will include 160 mixed-income apartments, 165 homes for low-income seniors and veterans, and 36 townhomes on 5.8 acres.
From San Jose Spotlight...
San Jose Collects Fees But Is Slow to Replace Trees
05/24/2023Roughly $1.1 million will be paid by two developers to replace several hundred trees that will be ripped up to make way for their industrial developments. But critics worry the city can’t replace its lost trees fast enough.
From San Jose Spotlight...
Santa Clara County Fairgrounds Plans Plod Ahead
05/14/2023Plans to revamp the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds into a sports and recreation facility have been progressing for more than a year, but it's unclear when shovels will hit the ground.
From Silicon Valley Voice...
Celebrating Spring in the Eddie Souza Community Garden
05/10/2023In April, Santa Clara City Council Member (District 5) Suds Jain took swapped out his City Hall responsibilities for his role as a certified UC Master Gardener at the Santa Clara County Master Gardeners’ Spring Fair. “We sold about 20,000 plants and about 3,000 people come to the event,” said Jain.
From San Jose Spotlight...
SJSU Students Want Recognition for Filipino Farmworkers
04/26/2023Filipino students at San Jose State University said honoring a key leader in the farmworkers rights movement is long overdue—and they staged a rally to make their intentions known.
From Monterey Herald...
California Offers Proposal on Colorado River Crisis
02/01/2023California has given the federal government its own counterproposal for apportioning reductions of Colorado River water, saying a plan offered by six other states would disproportionately burden farms and cities in Southern California.
From Palo Alto Online...
Coastal Farmworkers Eke Out a Living
01/24/2023Shootings, wildfires, the pandemic and other challenges have tested these communities, but many of its farmers aren't going anywhere.
From Mountain View Voice...
Experts Share Tips on How to Protect Trees
01/13/2023As winter storms rage across California, water-saturated ground and high winds are putting vulnerable trees at risk.
From Santa Cruz Sentinel...
Can We Hack DNA to Grow Food in a Hotter Planet?
12/11/2022Stanford scientists have genetically re-programmed plants to grow roots that change how they gather nutrients or water.
From Santa Cruz Sentinel...
Drought Dramatically Shrinking California Farmland
11/24/2022In the fall, rice fields in the Sacramento Valley usually shine golden brown as they await harvesting. This year, however, many fields were left covered with bare dirt.
From Santa Cruz Sentinel...
Ecosystems and Rural Communities Will Bear the Brunt of Intensifying Drought
11/24/2022Drought, human-caused climate change, invasive species and a “legacy” of environmental issues are permanently altering California’s landscape and placing some communities and ecosystems at increasing risk.
From The Sacramento Bee...
Controversial Fiji Water, Nut Tycoons Donate $50 Million to UC Davis
11/01/2022Linda and Stewart Resnick have donated $50 million to UC Davis for an agricultural research center—the largest donation in the campus’s history—but the couple’s Wonderful Company is the state’s single biggest water user.
From The Grapevine Independent...
Farm Bureau Conference to Host First-Ever ‘California Marketplace’
09/21/2022For the first time, members at the California Farm Bureau Annual Meeting will be able to sell goods from their farms and ranches. Called the California Marketplace, this interactive event will be held Dec. 4—one of several new features of the meeting, taking place Dec. 2-7 in Monterey.