USDA Grants $1.2 million in Research Funds to the Navel Orangeworm SIT Project
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is allocating $17.6 million to California as part of its effort to strengthen the nation’s infrastructure for pest detection and surveillance, identification, and threat mitigation, and to protect the U.S. nursery system. Included in the grant is $1.2 million for research associated with the Navel Orangeworm (NOW) Sterile Insect Technology (SIT) program. Overall, USDA is providing more than $70 million in funding this year to support 372 projects in 49 states, Guam, and Puerto Rico. USDA provides this funding under the authority of the Plant Protection Act Section 7721. “In 2019, California agriculture generated more than $50 billion in cash receipts and exports totaling about $21.7 billion. The state is a leader in U.S. agricultural production, and protecting that vital industry is essential to keeping our nation’s agricultural economy strong,” said USDA Under Secretary Jenny Moffitt. “These projects we are funding are focused on doing just that.” These funds will support statewide projects covering a range of plant health and pest mitigation activities including, but not limited to:
- $4.5 million to survey for invasive fruit flies;
- $4 million to support agricultural detector dog teams, which search for harmful invasive plant pests in packages at mail and express parcel delivery facilities;
- $3.1 million to support National Clean Plant Network foundation plant stocks for citrus and other fruit trees, grapes, roses and other crops;
- $2 million to support state Emergency Plant Health Response teams in managing outbreaks of exotic plant pests;
- $1.2 million to further develop and evaluate the existing navel orangeworm sterile insect release program, which reduces the pest’s impact on the state’s $6 billion pistachio and almond crops;
- $446,000 to survey for Asian defoliator moths;
- $209,814 to develop tools for the identification of pheromones and related attractants for invasive cerambycid beetles, which impact economically significant crops;
- $350,000 to support pest and disease mitigation research to protect ornamental nurseries;
- $300,000 to conduct surveys for stone fruit commodities; and
- $268,500 to develop a technology that leverages contrast x-ray imaging and artificial intelligence to detect invasive pests.
Since 2009, USDA has supported more than 4,800 projects and provided nearly $740 million in PPA 7721 funding. Collectively, these projects allow USDA and its partners to quickly detect and rapidly respond to invasive plant pests and diseases. A lot of credit goes to the American Pistachio Growers, who led the funding effort.
Welcome to WAPA
Governor Signs Ag Overtime Bill
Ignoring the pleas of real farmworkers and the agricultural industry, Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today
signed AB 1066, the ag overtime legislation. This means that California will have the most stringent trigger
of any state in the country for overtime for farmworkers, with 45 states having no overtime protection at
all. The Governor signed this bill, supposedly to bring “equality to all workers”, yet taxi cab drivers,
commercial fishermen, car salesmen, student nurses, computer programmers, and carnival workers all work
without any overtime provisions whatsoever. The Governor signed this ag overtime bill in the same year that
minimum wage legislation was also passed that will take California to the highest minimum wage as well as
legislation forcing California to adopt additional greenhouse gas regulations for businesses in California.
California is the only state in the country subject to such regulations. Today’s signing occurred despite
numerous requests by the agricultural industry to meet with the Governor to discuss our concerns. The
message is clear. California simply doesn’t care. These provisions will be phased in over the next few years
ending with the overtime provisions to be triggered at 8 hours per day and 40 hours per week.
In the Beginning
As folks transitioned out of cotton and into tree nuts, the industry recognized the need to have active and
effective representation at the local, state and national levels. Having enjoyed such effective
representation over the years from the California Cotton Ginners and Growers Associations, these folks
yearned for the same representation in the tree nut processing industry. Issues such as air quality, food
safety, labor, taxes, employee safety, and environmental concerns are at the forefront, and there is a
significant need for an aggressive and dynamic Association to lead the industry into the next decade and
beyond. In recognition of this, the Western Agricultural Processors Association was created in 2009.
The Western Agricultural Processors Association (WAPA) shares staff and office space with the California
Cotton Ginners and Growers Associations taking advantage of a unique and opportunistic situation. WAPA is a
voluntary dues organization with four shared staff and one dedicated staff person. Regulatory, legislative
and legal issues fall under the purview of this new organization for the tree nut processing industry, which
includes almonds, pecans, pistachios and walnuts. From air quality permits to conditional use permits, from
regulatory hearings on greenhouse gases to federal legislation on food safety, and from OSHA violations to
assisting members on hazardous materials business plans, no issue is too small or too large for WAPA. WAPA
has assembled one of the best and most capable staffs in the industry, and the results are already starting
to show
Membership
The Western Agricultural Processors Association represents facilities involved in the processing of almonds,
pecans, pistachios and walnuts.Membership in the Association is classified as Regular memberships are
limited to almond hullers or processors, pecan and pistachio processors, and walnut dehydrators and
processors.
Associate memberships are limited to any individual or business entity which is not engaged in agricultural
processing, but which provides products or services directly related to the agricultural processing
industry. WAPA Associate members include, but are not limited to, commodity brokers, accounting firms, and
insurance brokers.
Organization
The Western Agricultural Processors Association is governed by a Board of Directors, elected by its
membership.The Board consists of up to 15 members from throughout the state, and throughout the industry.The
Board meets on a quarterly basis and conducts an Annual Meeting in the spring of each year.WAPA, in
conjunction with the California Cotton Ginners and Growers Associations, conducts a special training school
for its members focused on safety.In combination with the school, the Association holds a Labor Management
Seminar for all of the managers.
Consulting Services
In researching and considering the concept of forming a new organization, the Boards of Directors for the
California Cotton Ginners and Growers Associations instructed staff to perform some of the work on a
consulting basis first. The point was to determine the workload from consulting and to determine if there
was sufficient interest. In November of 2007, the Association began conducting services under consulting
contracts for such services as air quality permits and safety plans.The effort has been so successful that
demand has progressed outside the tree nut industry into other agricultural processing facilities, including
vegetable dehydration facilities, tomato processing facilities, and wheat mills, as well as cotton gins in
Arizona.It was determined by the new Board of Directors of WAPA, that WAPA would maintain the consulting
services to provide offsetting income to help with the expenses of getting the new organization up and
running.Today, WAPA provides for a long list of satisfied clients in the agricultural processing industry,
by providing critical services such as air quality, safety, food safety, and environmental issues (Hazardous
Materials Business Plan, Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure Plans, etc.).