Thread: CA. farmers idle crops, prices may rise (Illegals go home ?)

Calif. farmers idle crops, prices may rise

"Taking water from a farmer is like taking a pipe from a plumber," said one California farmer about the state's water situation.

MENDOTA, Calif. (AP) — Consumers may pay more for spring lettuce and summer melons in grocery stores across the country now that California farmers have started abandoning their fields in response to a crippling drought.

California's sweeping Central Valley grows most of the country's fruits and vegetables in normal years, but this winter thousands of acres are turning to dust as the state hurtles into the worst drought in nearly two decades.

Federal officials' recent announcement that the water supply they pump through the nation's largest farm state would drop further was enough to move John Giacone to forego growing vegetables so he can save his share to drip-irrigate 1,000 acres of almond trees.

"Taking water from a farmer is like taking a pipe from a plumber," said Giacone, a fourth-generation farmer in the tiny community of Mendota. "How do you conduct business?"

The giants of California agribusiness are the biggest economic engine in the valley, which produces every cantaloupe on store shelves in summer months, and the bulk of the nation's lettuce crop each spring and fall.

This year, officials in Fresno County predict farmers will only grow about 6,000 acres of lettuce, roughly half the acreage devoted to greens in 2005.

That alone could cause a slight bump in consumer prices, unless lettuce companies can make up for the shortage by growing in areas with an abundant water supply, or the cost of cooling, packaging and shipping the crop suddenly goes down, experts say.

"Lettuce comes off the field and goes straight into the market, and if there's nothing coming off the field then the marketing chain goes dry, and prices go up," said Gary Lucier, an agricultural economist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Economic Research Service.

While the dry weather has exacerbated the problem, farmers' water woes are not all drought-related.

Supplies for crops and cities also have been restricted by several court decisions cutting back allocations that flow through a freshwater estuary called the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, the main conduit that sends water to nearly two-thirds of Californians. Environmental groups and federal scientists say the delta's massive pumps are one of the factors pushing a native fish to the brink of extinction.

Last year, federal water deliveries were just 40% of the normal allocations, fallowing hundreds of thousands of acres and causing nearly $309 million in crop losses statewide. That prompted Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to issue a disaster declaration, ordering state water managers to expedite any requests to move water around the state, in part so high-value crops like wine grapes, almonds and pistachio trees would stand a chance of surviving.

Federal reservoirs are now at their lowest level since 1992.

With such a grim outlook, many California farmers including Giacone are investing millions to drill down hundreds of feet in search of new water sources.

Depending on how much it rains this winter, federal water supplies could be slashed down to nothing this year, forcing farmers to rely solely on brackish well water. But the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation won't make an official decision until late February, said Ron Milligan, the agency's Central Valley operations manager.

The state Department of Water Resources, which also ships farmers water, has promised to deliver 15% of the normal allocations in October, but conditions are so dire that that's now in doubt, too.

"The consequences are expected to be pretty horrible in terms of farmers' revenue, but what's really disconcerting are the possible job losses," said Wendy Martin, who leads the agency's drought division. "Those communities that can least weather an economic downturn are going to be some of the places that are hit the hardest."

Richard Howitt, a professor of agriculture economics at the University of California, Davis, estimates that $1.6 billion in agriculture-related wages, and as many as 60,000 jobs across the valley will be lost in the coming months due to dwindling water.

Analysts haven't yet provided any estimates of crop losses this year. But Bill Diedrich, an almond grower on the valley's parched western edge, said he's already worried he may lose some of his nut trees in the drought.

"The real story here is food security," Diedrich told Milligan and other officials speaking at a conference in Reno. "It's an absolute emergency and anything to get water flowing quickly is needed."

In the meantime, the forecast appears to be worsening: Meteorologists are predicting a dry spring, and a new state survey shows the population of threatened fish is at its lowest point in 42 years, more imperiled than previously believed.

"This has devastating effects not only for the guys out there in the fields with the weed whackers, but it affects the whole farming industry," said Thomas Nyberg, Fresno County's deputy agricultural commissioner. "I'm just praying for rain."
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This will put a lot of farm workers, legal and illegal, out of work and drive up the prices for food.

There's no need for any "temp guest workers" if there's no product, send them home NOW! E-verify EVERYONE, deport the illegals NOW!

Time to plan a Garden because with the explosion in population draining our natural resources it will only get worse.

We might actually save money because of this.
If the illegal aliens lose their jobs they might return home and take their kids with them and we won't have to pay to educate the kids.
It's a WIN WIN.

Calif. should not make the rest of the nation pay for their ineptitude of kowtowing to hoards of illegals that flush toilets, hopefully take showers and washing their hands, and consuming those crops.
And I doubt that any of the illegals (or guest workers) consider going home with their little American citizens as they are all going to sit and wait for amnesty, while flushing their toilets and washing their children and doing laundry. If you have a finite supply, you cannot handle infinite demand.

It's not Calforia's fault that there is a drought.
It's not California's fault that the FEDERAL courts won't let more of the northern California water be moved to farms and southern California where it is need because some little fish might die.
It's not California's fault that the rest of the nation depends on California to provide food for the people of other states.
If California stopped sending food to other states there would be plenty of food and plenty of water for the people in California.
No one has to buy any food that is produced in CA. if they don't want too.

California Food Facts - Production & Crops California
In additional to California ranking as the top destination in the United States, it also ranks as the top food production state for a number of crops. ...

www.beachcalifornia.com/california-food-facts.html - 25k - Cached - Similar pages

1/3rd of California ag products are shipped out of the USA! Don't worry we won't starve, and food prices will still be a bargain compared to most other countries.

California ranks as the top food production state for a number of crops.

Though tourists hardly consider the agricultural significance of California as a food growing region, the temperate year-round climate and expanses of land provide foods the nation and world have grown to enjoy and count on. Below are some of the top crops and percentage of the nation's supply produced in California.

California Food Facts

California has been the number one food and agricultural producer in the United States for more than 50 consecutive years.

More than half the nation's fruit, nuts, and vegetables come from here.

California is the nation's number one dairy state.

California's leading commodity is milk and cream. Grapes are second.

California's leading export crop is almonds.

Nationally, products exclusively grown (99% or more) in California include almonds, artichokes, dates, figs, kiwifruit, olives, persimmons, pistachios, prunes, raisins, clovers, and walnuts.

From 70 to 80% of all ripe olives are grown in California.

California is the nation's leading producer of strawberries, averaging 1.4 billion pounds of strawberries or 83% of the country's total fresh and frozen strawberry production. Approximately 12% of the crop is exported to Canada, Mexico, United Kingdom, Hong Kong and Japan primarily. The value of the California strawberry crop is approximately $700 million with related employment of more than 48,000 people.

California produces 25% of the nation's onions and 43% of the nation's green onions.

Gilroy, California, "Garlic Capitol of the World," has hosted 2 million at the annual Gilroy Garlic Festival.

http://www.beachcalifornia.com/californ ... facts.html

California Crops

California Agricultural Commodities:

Items below produced or grown in California rank #1 in the US.

California % of US production is shown.


California Crops

Artichokes - 19%
Asparagus-55%
Broccoli-93%
Cabbage-22%
Carrots-89%
Celery-94%
Garlic-86%
Lettuce-78%
Cantaloupe-54%
Honeydew-73%
Onions-27%
Bell Peppers-47%
Spinach-18%
Tomatoes -94%
Almond-99%
Apricots-95%
Avocados-84%
Strawberries-90%
Dates-82%
Figs-98%
Grapes-88%
Kiwi-97%
Lemons-89%
Nectarines-93%
Olives-100%
Peaches-76%
Pistachios-96%
Plums-93%
Walnuts-99%
Honey-18%
Milk & Cream-21%

http://www.beachcalifornia.com/calif...ood-facts.html