IRVINE, CA (July 12, 2021) – In “No Water = No Crops,” a series of videos released today by Western Growers BB #:144734, three California farmers show the impact the drought is having on their operations, and the cascading losses that result to farmworkers and their communities.
“This is one of the most difficult decisions I’ve had to make in a long time,” said Joe Del Bosque of Del Bosque Farms, who sacrificed his asparagus field which still had five years’ productivity left.
“Seventy people are going to lose their jobs here. Next year, there will be no harvest here. Those 70 people lose two months of work. It’s a very difficult hit for them.”
“Around this time of year we’d normally be prepping for harvest,” said Ross Franson of Woolf Farming, who started knocking down almond trees in their 400-acre orchard.
“But due to the dire drought that’s going on in the state of California right now, we made the decision to pull these trees out simply because we didn’t have the water to irrigate them.”
“These trees are all dead, and they shouldn’t be,” said Jared Plumlee of Booth Ranches, which produces citrus in Orange Cove, California, and destroyed 70 acres of trees as a result of the drought.
“It’s just a shame. This block had probably 20 years of productive life, and we were forced to push it out.”
Western Growers President and CEO Dave Puglia warns that the regulatory uncertainty of water deliveries to farms is jeopardizing the future of agriculture in California and threatens to change the state’s landscape in fundamental ways.
Del Bosque:
Franson:
Plumlee:
About Western Growers:
Founded in 1926, Western Growers represents local and regional family farmers growing fresh produce in California, Arizona, Colorado and New Mexico. Western Growers’ members and their workers provide over half the nation’s fresh fruits, vegetables and tree nuts, including half of America’s fresh organic produce. Connect and learn more about Western Growers on Twitter and Facebook.
