Posts Tagged: farming

Women farmers become more prevalent in Contra Costa County

The number of farms in Contra Costa County has declined steadily for years, but the number  of women farm managers has more than doubled since 1978, according to an article in the Contra Costa Times. Women represent one-third of farmers in the county, according to data from the 2007 Census of Agriculture. That is three times the national rate, the paper said.

The increasing number of women farmers may be connected to another trend. The average size of Contra Costa farms has shrunk dramatically. The number of acres farmed by women in Contra Costa doubled from 2002 to 2007, with small-scale operations accounting for most of the growth.

Reporter Hannah Dreier sought commentary about the trends from the director of the UC Agricultural Issues Center, Dan Sumner.

"You're talking about a place where over time the agriculture has shifted to deal with an urbanizing county, so you get more boutique operations," the story quoted Sumner.

Other factors that contributed to the trend, according to the story, were:

• Many women like the freedom and flexibility that come with running a farm.
  
• Some women see sustainable farming as a way to do something positive for the environment and healthful for themselves.
• One women farmer suggested females do well at farmers market "because we're more chatty that way."

The ranks of women farmers in Contra Costa County swells.

UCCE contributes to LA agricultural 'oral history'

The public television station in Los Angeles, KCET, has produced a multi-media package on its website that delves into the unique circumstances of Richland Farms, an agricultural district in the heart of urban Los Angeles County.

The series, called Departures, is an oral history project that thoroughly explores neighborhoods through the people that live there. Director of UC Cooperative Extension in Los Angeles County Rachel Surls provided commentary in four online videos. She noted that LA County was the United States' top ag county until the 1950s

"It sort of dates back to the founding of Los Angeles when people first came and looked at Los Angeles as a potential site for a mission," Surls said. "They saw that it had great soil, they saw that things grew well here and they thought, 'ah ha, perfect place for farming.' So that's how it started."

Other industries have since become more important than farming in LA, but agriculture hasn't been erased. According to the website, when the city of Compton was formed in 1898 on land donated by Griffith D. Compton, he stipulated that certain acreage be zoned for agricultural purposes only. Large lots in what came to be known as Richland Farms enabled residents to grow food and tend livestock.

"It's like being out in the country, but you're right in the middle of this huge urban area," Surls said on the second video.

Today, interest in urban agriculture is growing. Surls said a survey found a 19 percent increase in home vegetable gardening between 2008 and 2009 and she attributes it to two things: the economy and a new way of thinking about the environment and nutrition.

"Even though we haven't been a huge agricultural producer since the 1950s, I'd like people to remember that food matters in Los Angeles."

Surls said she hopes UC Cooperative Extension can help reintegrate the practice of urban agriculture in communities such as Richland Farms and provide working "pilot" models for other communities across the county and throughout the state. The Departures website suggests visitors take a look at Surls' curation of links in her Twitter stream to see why.

Here are links to view Surl's four videos on Departures:

1. An overview of agriculture in SoCal
2. Information about Richland Farms
3. Agribusiness in Los Angeles
4. Farming during the Depression and beyond

Rachel Surls appears on four "oral history" videos on the Departures website.

Small farming is a lifestyle worth preserving

Farming is a life of sacrifice, but a part of Americana that should be protected, according to speakers at the California Small Farm Conference, held earlier this month in San Diego.

“You need to know the odds are against you," Michael O’Gorman, executive director of the UC Davis Farmer Veteran Coalition, told young farmers, according to an account published yesterday by the San Diego News Network. FVC helps returning veterans find employment, training and places to heal on America’s farms.

O’Gorman said farmers too often under estimate the value of their services and their contribution to the economy. He encouraged young farmers to be competitive and ethical in developing their businesses.

The article quoted Penny Leff of the UC Small Farm Agricultural Tourism Program in Davis as saying that agritourism “is putting a value on the [farming] experience.”  She told farmers that the public wants to experience farm life and they’re willing to pay for it.

Leff sees tourism as a means for farmers to increase profits as well as to educate the community about farming. Creating relationships between farmers and community members is critical for farmers’ success, according to the Network article, authored by Susan Russo.

The three-day conference included speeches by Rayne Pegg, administrator of the Agricultural Marketing Service for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and A.G. Kawamura, Secretary of California Department of Food and Agriculture.

The California Small Farm Conference featured many UC speakers.

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