Food & Farm News
Real Audio» March 2, 2006 «
Snowpack still average, but dwindling
Snow surveyors say they came away a bit disappointed, from their March survey of the Sierra snowpack yesterday (Wednesday). Snow levels at Echo Summit had dropped since the previous survey a month ago. At that time, statewide snow levels stood about 20 percent above average. Now, the snowpack stands only at average levels for this time of year. Additional storms forecast for later this week should add to the snow. The surveys help planners gauge water supplies for the coming summer.
Busy bees boost honey production
More honey flowed from California farms to consumers last year. A new federal report says honey production from California jumped 70 percent, to 30 million pounds. A University of California bee expert says production rose, in part, because favorable weather led to more flowers from which bees could gather pollen to make honey. The increase elevated California to the No. 2 spot among honey-producing states.
Apple crop may be smaller this year
While it reported a slight decrease in the state's apple production, the California Apple Commission predicted another decline in the coming season. The commission says about a thousand acres of apple trees have been removed this winter, largely on land to be developed for housing. California apple farmers sold almost 152 million pounds of fruit in the year just concluded. The commission said yesterday an extended heat wave last summer reduced the state's apple crop.
Grant boosts biomass energy project
Creating energy from biomass, such as orchard prunings and other farm leftovers, will receive a boost from grants announced yesterday. A specialist at the University of California, Davis, studies how to use green waste and leftovers collected from restaurants and other institutions, to produce gases that power turbines to produce electricity. The project was awarded a grant of nearly $500,000 dollars from a federal program to conduct air quality research.
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