Food & Farm News
Real Audio» November 17, 2006 «
Produce supplies will be plentiful for Thanksgiving
With the biggest food holiday of the year coming next week, produce brokers report plentiful supplies of most California-grown produce. A produce buyer in Sacramento says green beans and sweet potatoes from the Golden State are abundant and of exceptional quality. Celery appears to be in somewhat-shorter supply, in part because farmers along the coast planted fewer acres this fall. People eat more celery on Thanksgiving than on any other day of the year.
Spinach leads the menu at Capitol Hill luncheon
They called it the World's Largest Spinach Salad Bar, and more than 300 people lined up to eat fresh spinach on Capitol Hill yesterday (Thursday). U.S. Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns and several members of Congress participated in the luncheon. As they built their salads, guests moved past a sign reading, "Spinach Is Back." Salinas Valley Congressman Sam Farr said the lunch was designed to call attention to the availability and safety of fresh spinach.
Court cases affect Klamath Basin outlook
More than five years after having their water supply temporarily cut off, Klamath Basin farmers continue to wrestle with related legal cases. A water users' organization filed an appeal this week in a court case involving water flows needed to benefit salmon. A separate case, involving hydroelectric dams on the Klamath River, could lead to sharp increases in electric rates. Farmers say the cases could determine the future of the region's family farms.
Rice farmers finish their harvest
The last of this year's California rice crop is being gathered. Observers say only a few fields remain to be harvested in the Sacramento Valley. Wet weather delayed rice planting this spring, and it's some of those late-planted fields that are the last to be harvested. Most rice farmers have already added water to their fields to provide winter homes for migrating waterfowl.
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