California
How climate change could turn America’s poorest region into a produce-growing hub
In FERN’s latest story, published with Switchyard Magazine, reporter Robert Kunzig takes us to the upper Mississippi River Delta, where the idea of growing more fruits and vegetables — to ease the burden on California in the climate-change era — is taking root.
Louisiana patient is first severe U.S. case of bird flu
A Louisiana resident was hospitalized with “severe illness” due to the bird flu virus, the most serious U.S. case since the viral disease appeared in wild birds in the South nearly three years ago, said the Centers for Disease Control on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency as bird flu outbreaks in dairy herds, previously limited to the Central Valley, were detected in Southern California.
Second recall of raw milk in California because of bird flu
California state agriculture officials ordered the recall of raw milk from a dairy farm in the Central Valley after tests found bird flu virus in a sample from the farm's bulk tank. The state Department of Food and Agriculture warned against consumption of milk from Valley Milk Simply Bottled on the grounds that it "may lead to infection with this rare, emerging flu virus." No illnesses were reported.
Reports of three new human cases of bird flu include California child
Arizona health officials said two workers employed at poultry farms have recovered from mild cases of bird flu while the public health agency in Marin County, north of San Francisco, said it was investigating a possible bird flu infection of a child. If confirmed by the CDC, the U.S. total for bird flu infections would rise to 61 people in eight states this year.
USDA orders testing nationwide for bird flu virus in milk fresh from the cow
The Agriculture Department will launch a testing program next week that looks for the bird flu virus in milk fresh from the farm to get a clearer picture of the prevalence of the H5N1 virus among U.S. dairy herds. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said the tests would complement ongoing efforts …
Raw Farm recalls all unpasteurized whole milk and cream products
A Fresno dairy recalled all of its unpasteurized whole milk and cream products following “multiple bird flu detections in the company’s milk and dairy in the past week,” said the California Department of Public Health. Meanwhile, on Wednesday, the Centers for Disease Control confirmed the 32nd human case of bird flu in the state.
Imports own the olive oil market in the United States
Domestic production of olive oil, based mostly in California, is six times larger than it was 20 years ago but it amounts to less than 2 percent of the U.S.'s steadily growing consumption, forecast to be more than 400,000 metric tons this year, say USDA analysts. Drought in Europe, the major producer, drove import prices to record highs but they are projected to decline in the year ahead as production recovers.
Two additional cases of bird flu in West Coast farmworkers
Bird flu infections have been confirmed in a dairy worker in California and a poultry worker in Washington, raising the U.S. total to 46 people, said the Centers for Disease Control on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the USDA said tests indicated that migratory waterfowl were the source of H5N1 avian flu infections in two pigs on an Oregon farm.
USDA confident of eradicating virus, although bird flu count keeps climbing
Thirty people have contracted bird flu from exposure to infected animals this year, and more cases are expected, said the Centers for Disease Control on Thursday. At the same briefing, the USDA said it was confident of eradicating the viral disease in dairy herds despite the ever-rising number of outbreaks in California.
Two more California dairy workers have bird flu
California now has 15 confirmed cases of bird flu in humans, all of them dairy farm workers, up from the previous count of 13, said the state Department of Public Health on Wednesday. “While the risk to the general public remains low, additional human cases of bird flu are expected to be identified and confirmed in California among individuals who have contact with infected dairy cattle.”
Carbon pipeline regulation, trophy hunting, and a CAFO ban are on November ballot
A "voter veto" of a state law regulating carbon dioxide pipelines is on the general election ballot in South Dakota and residents of Sonoma County, in California's wine country, will decide on Nov. 5 whether to ban large-scale livestock farms. The handful of state and local referendums across the nation that involve agriculture also include a vote whether to ban slaughterhouses in Denver.
Five additional human cases of bird flu in California, more expected
With five new cases, California accounts for 11 of the 25 cases of human infection by the bird flu virus in the United States this year, said the Centers for Disease Control on Thursday. Additional cases were expected among individuals in contact with infected dairy cattle, said the California Department of Food and Agriculture.
Five California farmworkers have mild cases of bird flu, says state
On the same day the CDC confirmed the third human case of bird flu in California, state officials said Wednesday that they had identified two more possible infections, also farmworkers in the Central Valley. In less than six weeks, California has become the U.S. hot spot for bird flu, with one-third of all the infected dairy herds in the country and all of the human cases since Sept. 6.
California dairy worker has bird flu, first in the state
A dairy farm worker in California’s Central Valley with mild symptoms tested positive for the bird flu virus — the first case in the state and the 16th in the nation this year — said the California Department of Public Health on Thursday. The worker was being treated with antiviral medication and was staying home to recover.
Bird flu spreads among California dairy herds
Five of the six dairy herds infected with the H5N1 avian flu virus this month are in California, all in the past week and all in the Central Valley. State officials said those herds were part of a group of farms targeted for testing because of outbreaks in three other herds at the end of August.
The divers who keep the water flowing on California farms
In FERN's latest story, produced with KQED's The California Report, reporter Lisa Morehouse takes us inside the obscure, but crucial, work done by commercial divers to keep irrigation canals clear and functioning properly.
Rivals trim soy oil’s lead among biomass-based diesel feedstocks
With the explosion in production of renewable diesel, yellow grease and corn oil are cutting into soybean oil's position as the dominant feedstock for biomass-based diesel fuel, said three agricultural economists.
Report: California paraquat use concentrated in poor, Latino communities
Between 2017 and 2021, 5.3 million pounds of the herbicide paraquat were sprayed on California fields, with 66 percent of it in five Central Valley counties whose residents are predominantly poor and Latino, according to a new Environmental Working Group analysis.
‘We are in for a bumpy time’ with Prop 12, says Vilsack
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack told state agriculture directors to fasten their Prop 12 seat belts on Wednesday because “we’re going to have to get to a point where ... chaos becomes really prevalent” in the meat market before there’s a decision on who regulates interstate trade. “We are in for a bumpy time,” he said.