US Fish and Wildlife Service Proposes to List Monarch Butterfly as Threatened

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is proposing protection for the monarch butterfly and is seeking input on a proposal to list the species as threatened with species-specific protections and flexibilities to encourage conservation. Public comments will be accepted on the proposal until March 12, 2025.  The Service will then evaluate the comments and any additional information on the species and determine whether to list the monarch butterfly.  In North America, monarchs are grouped into two long-distance migratory populations. The eastern migratory population is the largest and overwinters in the mountains of central Mexico. The western migratory population primarily overwinters in coastal California. In the 1980s, over 4.5 million western monarchs flocked to overwintering grounds in coastal California. In the mid-1990s, an estimated 380 million eastern monarchs made the long-distance journey to overwintering grounds in Mexico, completing one of the longest insect migrations in the world.  According to the US Fish and Wildlife Service, the eastern migratory population is estimated to have declined by approximately 80% today. The western migratory population has declined by more than 95% since the 1980s, putting the western populations at greater than 99% chance of extinction by 2080. During this same period, the probability of extinction for eastern monarchs ranges from 56 to 74%, according to the Service’s most recent species status assessment.  To assist with monarch conservation efforts, the Service is also proposing critical habitat for the species at a portion of its overwintering sites in coastal California. In total, the Service is proposing 4,395 acres of critical habitat for the western migratory monarch population across Alameda, Marin, Monterey, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz and Ventura counties in California. A critical habitat designation imposes no requirements on state or private land unless the action involves federal funding, permits or approvals.   A 90-day comment period will open on December 12, 2024, and will close on March 12, 2025.

USDA Offers $2 Billion in MASC Funding for Specialty Crops

This week, USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) announced $2 billion in specialty crop funding through the Market Assistance for Specialty Crops program.  Specialty crop growers (almonds, pecans, pistachios and walnuts) are eligible to apply for funding due to higher market costs for perishability, transportation and increased labor costs.  Individual farms are eligible to apply for up to $125,000 in relief funding.  If you are interested in applying, please contact your local FSA office, or visit www.fsa.usda.gov to identify your local office.

Association’s Christopher McGlothlin Promoted to Assistant Vice President of Technical Services

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This past week the Association promoted Director of Technical Services Christopher McGlothlin to Assistant Vice President of Technical Services.  With this advancement, Christopher’s role will expand into more leadership responsibilities.  In the past year, Chris graduated from Class 52 of the California Ag Leadership Program, was elected to the AgOne Foundation Board of Directors and was most recently appointed by the United States Department of Agriculture’s Air Quality Task Force by the Secretary Tom Vilsack.  McGlothlin has also represented the Association at several regulatory hearings at the State Water Resources Control Board, California Air Resources Board and San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District.  In addition, McGlothlin testified before the California State Assembly Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials Committee.  The Association applauds Christopher in this latest chapter of his professional life and thanks him for his dedication, loyalty and service to the Association and its members!

Association Coordinates Metal Theft Meeting

The Association coordinated and co-hosted a metal theft meeting in Merced County this week to discuss a recent major uptick in copper wire theft in Merced and Stanislaus Counties.  Merced County Supervisor Lloyd Pareira and Stanislaus County Supervisor Vita Chiesa chaired the meeting with the Sheriff’s Departments from Merced and Stanislaus Counties.  The meeting was held at Hilltop Ranch in Merced county and in attendance was Stanislaus County Sheriff Jeff Dirkse, and a few sheriff deputies and officers from both Merced and Stanislaus counties.  Representing the Association was President/CEO Roger A. Isom and Director of Technical Services Christopher McGlothlin.  Isom wrapped up the meeting by thanking the Sheriff’s Departments and the California Rural Crime Prevention Task Force for their tremendous efforts in working to address this growing issue.  Isom stated “ We are members of the Rural Crime Prevention Task Force and they are an important tool against ag theft in this valley.  Today’s meeting was to bring folks together and make sure the lines of communication are open as we all work together against this menace that is once again resurfacing here in the valley.”   Coincidentally, the Merced and Stanislaus County Sheriff’s office announced a significant arrest had been made earlier that morning of the owner of an illegal wire and catalytic converter operation in Turlock.  Co-hosting the meeting with the Association was the Merced County Farm Bureau. 

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Newsletter Notice

Immediate Notice

Effective January 1st, our newsletter will no longer be available in print format.  We were notified by the United States Post Office that the 20 pound paper we currently use is no longer approved, and we must immediately switch to 70 pound paper for printing our newsletter.  This will increase our paper cost by more than 245%!  Coupled with postage cost increases, folding cost increases, it is no longer feasible to produce a printed version of our newsletter.  We sincerely apologize, but we will email you the newsletter or it will be available online at https://www.agprocessors.org/ .

If you currently get the print version and would like it emailed to you directly, please email our office at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

We are truly sorry for this inconvenience.

  1. DWR Announces Initial Allocation of 5% for State Water Project for 2025
  2. Portable Equipment Phaseout – Deadline Approaching
  3. EPA Releases Rodenticide Strategy, Including Final Biological Evaluation
  4. Associations Conduct Air District Permit Training

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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.).