Food & Farm News
Real Audio» May 16, 2007 «
Farmers, senators renew call for AgJOBS
As the US Senate prepares to take action on immigration reform, family farmers joined key lawmakers in calling for an improved guestworker program. At a Washington, DC, news conference yesterday (Tuesday), senators and farmers urged passage of a program known as AgJOBS. The proposal would allow people to enter the country legally to perform farm work. California farmers in Washington to advocate for the bill say they're cautiously optimistic about its chances.
Scientists to advise about apple-moth fight
They're coming from various parts of the world to California this week, to guide officials here in how to fight the light brown apple moth. Scientists known as a "technical working group" will begin three days of discussions with a tour of infested sites today (Wednesday). A plant quarantine governs eight Bay Area and coastal counties where moths have been found. The pest threatens many California-grown crops.
Cotton finds a foothold in Sacramento Valley
Revived during the mid-1990s, cotton farming in the Sacramento Valley has proven to be a profitable crop for those farmers who produce it. Most California-grown cotton comes from the San Joaquin Valley, but a few Northern California farmers have found success growing it. Crop advisors say the northern cotton fields produce strong yields of high-quality cotton. Farmers often rotate cotton with other crops, such as tomatoes and wheat.
New lettuce seed resists plant disease
Decades of research produced good news for America's most popular lettuce variety. Researchers have developed a first-ever "parent" seed stock for iceberg lettuce that resists a plant disease called verticillium wilt. The fungus discolors lettuce leaves and causes the lettuce heads to wilt and lose their crunch. The wilt-resistant lettuce gives farmers an environmentally friendly and economical option to fight the fungus.
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