Food And Farm News
2-4-26
Citrus growers assess risk of new virus
A new citrus disease that so far remains confined to residential trees has industry leaders taking what they describe as a measured approach because of the unknown risks it poses. Caused by the citrus yellow vein clearing virus, the disease was confirmed in residential citrus trees during multipest citrus surveys in Tulare County in 2022 and in residential trees in Hacienda Heights near Los Angeles in 2023. The discoveries marked the first time CYVCV had been confirmed in the Americas. "It's something that's still relatively new," said Casey Creamer, president and CEO of California Citrus Mutual. "I think the way we try to approach things is to put the appropriate amount of concern around it based on the level of risk it poses."
4-H'er turns a handful of chicks into a thriving business
When Nathan Hutchison was 9 years old, starting a business was the last thing on his mind. The young bird enthusiast just wanted to raise a few backyard chickens. But what began as a childhood hobby grew into Nate's Chicks-a thriving, solar-powered poultry operation in Madera County with more than 600 chickens and customers statewide. Now 19, Hutchison raises heritage turkeys for the Thanksgiving season and more than 50 breeds of chickens, selling day-old chicks, chicken and turkey meat and anywhere from 2,500 to 5,000 eggs a month. He also brokers chickens from other farms and leads workshops on food sustainability, raising poultry and hands-on processing.
Researchers make breakthroughs in preventing pistachio hull split
When pistachio hulls split open before harvest, the nuts can be exposed to fungal or insect damage, which reduces profits for farmers. About 4% of California's pistachio crop experiences hull split, but the figure can rise to as much as 40% for some cultivars in certain conditions. New research at the University of California, Davis, revealed how the hull is built and how cell walls in certain layers break down, along with the genes and corresponding mechanisms that spark and control those changes. "This is the first time anyone has studied the pistachio hull at the anatomical and cellular level while also looking at gene expression and physiological data," said Georgia Drakakaki, a professor at the UC Davis Department of Plant Sciences. The research will help breeders select for traits that will make the hulls less vulnerable to tearing and cracking. s
Milk replacement heifers at lowest level in nearly 50 years
Record-high beef prices are impacting how dairy farmers manage their herds, leading many to breed more of their herd with beef genetics instead of breeding replacement heifers that will become milking cows. Those decisions, incentivized by short-term profits from the beef market, have caused the replacement heifer population to fall to its lowest point since 1978. Meanwhile, dairy farmers are culling fewer milking cows, causing milk output to reach its highest levels since 1993. "U.S. milk production is setting records, but those volumes are sending increasingly misleading signals about the health of the dairy sector," American Farm Bureau Federation economist Daniel Munch said last month in a market report. He added that the trend has "inflated milk supply and dampened farm-level milk prices, worsening returns on the milk side of the business even as total farm revenue appears more resilient."
For more information about any story in Food and Farm News, contact the California Farm Bureau Marketing/Communications Division at 916-561-5550 or email news@cfbf.com. Connect with us on Facebook, X, or Instagram: @CAFarmBureau.
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