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DavidE
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 3814
Registered: 12-1-2003
Location: Baja California México
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Mood: 'At home we demand facts and get them. In Mexico one subsists on rumor and never demands anything.' Charles Flandrau,
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California! Prepare Yourself For $6 Tomatoes and $4 Lettuce
A Cut and Paste================================
Central Valley farmers took a crippling blow Friday when U.S. officials made the unprecedented announcement that they would get no irrigation water
from the federal government this year because of the drought.
But growers in a region with the country's most productive soil said the loss of one of their chief water supplies won't be their problem alone:
Consumers will be hit hard in the form of higher prices at the produce market.
California's unusually dry weather is forcing producers of fruits, vegetables, nuts and grains to make tough decisions about which crops to plant, and
which ones not to plant due to a lack of water, leaving harvests that are likely to fall short of demand.
A recent estimate by an industry group, the California Farm Water Coalition, suggested that as much as 600,000 acres of land, or about 8 percent of
the state's total, could be left fallow in the coming year.
"Before, when people asked me whether prices would rise, I'd say no," said Paul Wenger, president of the California Farm Bureau Federation. "But over
the last two to three weeks, things have gotten so severe that it's got to affect the market."
U.S. Bureau of Reclamation officials said Friday that meager snow and rain in the Sierra Nevada means they won't be able to provide farmers any of the
water they normally receive from the federally run system of reservoirs and canals fed by mountain runoff. The system supplies water for about a third
of the state's agricultural land.
Snowpack 29% of average
If weather conditions change, the plans may change, federal officials said. But with Sierra snowpack at just 29 percent of average for this time of
year, they expect runoff to remain scant and supplies in the Central Valley Water Project to remain insufficient.
"This low allocation is yet another indicator of the impacts the severe drought is having on California communities, agriculture, businesses, power,
and the environment," said the reclamation bureau's commissioner, Michael Connor, in a prepared statement.
Farmers still reeling
While the announcement wasn't unexpected, it was more bad news for an agricultural industry in California that is the nation's most valuable, and is
still reeling from last year's low water allocations.
The state's agricultural yield was estimated to be worth $44.7 billion in 2012.
In 2013, most Central Valley farmers who contract for federal irrigation water got just 20 percent of their normal water allowance. This year, their
allocation is projected to be zero for the first time.
Growers will have to rely on local wells and stored water. Farmers in some parts of the state are in a better position to do this than others.
Officials at the State Water Project - which provides a lesser amount of irrigation water - said last month that they were also likely to provide
nearly no water to farmers.
State's driest year
California is coming off its driest year since record keeping began in the 1800s, and the first part of the year has seen little rain. The past two
winters have been abnormally dry, too.
Residents and business in many communities also rely on the state and federal water projects, as do wildlife such as sensitive fish populations.
They're likely to suffer as well.
In the San Joaquin Valley, the state's most productive agricultural region, many growers have already ceased planting winter crops such as broccoli,
tomatoes and lettuce because of the drought. Upcoming plantings of watermelons and cantaloupes also could be cut short.
"I don't know any farm in the area that's not affected by the drought," said Fresno County grower Don Cameron, who runs Terranova Ranch near the small
town of Helm.
Valuable well water
Cameron has had to use valuable well water to nourish his carrots and tomatoes, which are normally supported by winter rains. The only good news for
Cameron is that he has access to water outside the state and federal systems, meaning he's been able to sustain production.
"Everywhere I look, though, it's field after field with nothing in them and nothing being prepared to grow," he said.
Water experts say growers will direct what limited supplies they have to their most valuable crops. That means high-dollar products, such as almonds
and grapes, won't disappear anytime soon while lower value items, like grains, are likely to fall off.
Specialty produce
Specialty vegetables and fruits also may become harder to find.
Jay Lund, who heads the Center for Watershed Sciences at UC Davis, said products from other parts of the world will fill some of the void, easing the
impact on price.
"They'll go up a little bit," Lund said. "But I don't think it will be catastrophic. Time will tell."
A Lot To See And A Lot To Do
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Cypress
Elite Nomad
Posts: 7641
Registered: 3-12-2006
Location: on the bayou
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Mood: undecided
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Already got potatoes planted; tomatoes, peppers and misc. will be planted as soon as the almanac says it's time. Plenty of rain, the river is
approaching flood stage. Way more water than we can use in south MS, but it provides nutrients down in the marsh. The downside? Too much fresh water
drives the specs, redfish and flounder out.
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Bubba
Senior Nomad
Posts: 957
Registered: 2-17-2009
Location: Pismo Beach, Ca.
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It's very dry here. We've only had 2 less than average rains all winter and it's not looking good for March either.
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Hook
Elite Nomad
Posts: 9011
Registered: 3-13-2004
Location: Sonora
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Mood: Inquisitive
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All right, then!. I can smuggle my heirloom toms back NORTH and help defray the costs of wine smuggling coming south again!!!
Should have about 40 plants this year, after I get done with cloning suckers.
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gnukid
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4411
Registered: 7-2-2006
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Except every single californian could grow enough tomatoes for the entire block with the run-off of the kitchen sink.
Grow a garden!
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Skipjack Joe
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8088
Registered: 7-12-2004
Location: Bahia Asuncion
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I've been paying $5 a pound for heirloom tomatos for about 2 years now. They're worth every cent of that.
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aguachico
Senior Nomad
Posts: 602
Registered: 3-23-2007
Location: tijuana
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Mood: logic cannot get thru to the illogical
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Tomatoes suck big time in CA. I sure miss the big ones from our garden in Pennsylvania.
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bajabuddha
Banned
Posts: 4024
Registered: 4-12-2013
Location: Baja New Mexico
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Mood: Always cranky unless medicated
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It's so dry in southern New Mexico, just the other day i saw a fire hydrant chasing a dawg!!
I don't have a BUCKET LIST, but I do have a F***- IT LIST a mile long!
86 - 45*
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monoloco
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6667
Registered: 7-13-2009
Location: Pescadero BCS
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| Quote: | Originally posted by aguachico
Tomatoes suck big time in CA. I sure miss the big ones from our garden in Pennsylvania. |
It's because all
the commercial varieties have been bred for shipping and shelf life, not flavor As far as I'm concerned, most of the grocery store tomatoes are
nothing but flavorless ornaments these days.
"The future ain't what it used to be"
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bacquito
Super Nomad
Posts: 1615
Registered: 3-6-2007
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Mood: jubilado
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Wow, a box of 24 heads of lettuce could fetch over $100!!
bacquito
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DavidE
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 3814
Registered: 12-1-2003
Location: Baja California México
Member Is Offline
Mood: 'At home we demand facts and get them. In Mexico one subsists on rumor and never demands anything.' Charles Flandrau,
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It's the SPECULATORS who drive prices. Welcome to the wonderful world of greed.
Wanna bet about the same time as Cal Ag prices go up there's going to be a scare about produce from Mexico?
Letters to CA senators years ago about the need for establishing a gigantic pipeline from the Pacific Northwet went into the trash. Politicians are
failed lawyers, I never forget that...
A Lot To See And A Lot To Do
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Hook
Elite Nomad
Posts: 9011
Registered: 3-13-2004
Location: Sonora
Member Is Offline
Mood: Inquisitive
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Skipjack Joe
I've been paying $5 a pound for heirloom tomatos for about 2 years now. They're worth every cent of that. |
I was thinking about selling some of mine down here. Is that what they go for in the States? 
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monoloco
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6667
Registered: 7-13-2009
Location: Pescadero BCS
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| Quote: | Originally posted by DavidE
It's the SPECULATORS who drive prices. Welcome to the wonderful world of greed.
Wanna bet about the same time as Cal Ag prices go up there's going to be a scare about produce from Mexico?
Letters to CA senators years ago about the need for establishing a gigantic pipeline from the Pacific Northwet went into the trash. Politicians are
failed lawyers, I never forget that... |
Yeah, like sending water from the PWN is going to be a real popular
idea with the folks in Oregon and Washington who are currently using it.
"The future ain't what it used to be"
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bacquito
Super Nomad
Posts: 1615
Registered: 3-6-2007
Member Is Offline
Mood: jubilado
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| Quote: | Originally posted by monoloco
| Quote: | Originally posted by DavidE
It's the SPECULATORS who drive prices. Welcome to the wonderful world of greed.
Wanna bet about the same time as Cal Ag prices go up there's going to be a scare about produce from Mexico?
Letters to CA senators years ago about the need for establishing a gigantic pipeline from the Pacific Northwet went into the trash. Politicians are
failed lawyers, I never forget that... |
Yeah, like sending water from the PWN is going to be a real popular
idea with the folks in Oregon and Washington who are currently using it. |
But think of it, if the pipline had gone in, the folks in the PNE could then appreciate desert living!!
bacquito
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brewer
Nomad
Posts: 419
Registered: 1-4-2011
Location: BCS
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Mood: Grateful
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| Quote: | Originally posted by gnukid
Except every single californian could grow enough tomatoes for the entire block with the run-off of the kitchen sink.
Grow a garden! |
True that.
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willardguy
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6451
Registered: 9-19-2009
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how about just not eating lettuce and tomato?
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Barry A.
Select Nomad
Posts: 10007
Registered: 11-30-2003
Location: Redding, Northern CA
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Mood: optimistic
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| Quote: | Originally posted by willardguy
how about just not eating lettuce and tomato? |
That is NOT the preferred alternative!!! 
Barry
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willardguy
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6451
Registered: 9-19-2009
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then what is? pay the price or grow your own? whats the question?
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Bob H
Elite Nomad
Posts: 5867
Registered: 8-19-2003
Location: San Diego
Member Is Offline
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| Quote: | Originally posted by willardguy
then what is? pay the price or grow your own? whats the question? |
Spot on! WG....
The SAME boiling water that softens the potato hardens the egg. It's about what you are made of NOT the circumstance.
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vandenberg
Elite Nomad
Posts: 5118
Registered: 6-21-2005
Location: Nopolo
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Mood: mellow
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| Quote: | Originally posted by willardguy
then what is? pay the price or grow your own? whats the question? |
Some folks lack a green thumb and others have no thumb at all.  
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