The Food Price Index averaged 129.8 points in February 2023, down 0.6% from January and continuing the downward trend for the eleventh-consecutive month. As of February, the index has dropped 30 points from the peak it reached in March 2022. The marginal decline in February reflected significant drops in the price indices of vegetable oils…… MORE
Much Of West Coast Faces Ban To Fish Salmon Amid Low Stocks
SAN DIEGO (AP) — As drought dried up rivers that carry California’s newly hatched Chinook salmon to the ocean, state officials in recent years resorted to loading up the fish by the millions onto trucks and barges to take them to the Pacific. The surreal and desperate scramble boosted the survival rate of the hatchery-raised…… MORE
Man Arrested After An Intentional Deadly Hit-and Run In Del Rey
FRESNO COUNTY, Calif. (KMJ) — A man is now facing murder charges after deputies say he struck another man with his vehicle intentionally in Del Rey. According to the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, 48-year-old Jaime Loza was hit by an SUV back on March 16, near Carmel and Morro Avenues. When crews arrives, Lazo was…… MORE
Coalition Wants More Help For Businesses in Farm Bill
An agriculture-focused coalition is asking the House and Senate Agriculture Committees for dedicated funding for business technical assistance and farm viability in the upcoming Farm Bill. American Farmland Trust, the Agricultural Viability Alliance, and a national coalition of agricultural organizations, service providers, nonprofits, businesses, lending institutions, and government entities made the request in a letter…… MORE
California May Punish Oil Companies For High Gas Prices
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California lawmakers on Thursday will vote on whether to allow penalties on oil companies for price gouging at the pump, a first-in-the-country proposal aimed at stopping the kind of spikes last summer that caused some drivers pay up to $8 per gallon as the industry reaped super-sized profits. Gov. Gavin Newsom,…… MORE
Agriculture Fuels The Economy
As part of the National Ag Day Celebration this week, the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture released its annual Feeding the Economy Report. The data shows food and agriculture industries and their suppliers contribute over $8.6 trillion to the U.S. economy. NASDA CEO Ted McKinney says the report “proves our industry’s continued strength…… MORE
Powerful Pacific Tempest Clobbers Storm-Battered California
SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (AP) — A strong late-season Pacific storm that brought damaging winds and more rain and snow to saturated California has been blamed for two deaths and forecasters said additional flooding was possible Wednesday in parts of the state. Tuesday’s storm blasted the San Francisco Bay Area with powerful gusts and downpours, pounded…… MORE
Federal Judge Blocks Key Parts Of California Handgun Law
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A federal judge on Monday blocked key provisions of a California law that drastically restricts the sale of new handguns in the state, saying parts of the legislation violate the Second Amendment. A lawsuit challenging the law was filed last year by the California Rifle & Pistol Association and other gun…… MORE
Court Decision Allows WOTUS Rule To Stand
The Biden administration’s version of the Waters of the U.S. rule went into effect this week. The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association expressed displeasure in a District Court decision to deny a preliminary injunction of the rule. NCBA President Todd Wilkinson says, “This latest WOTUS rule will place more burdens on family farms and ranches, drive…… MORE
Gov. Newsom Visits Lithium Plant in Imperial Valley as State Moves to Reduce Fossil Fuel Dependence
(KMJ) – Governor Gavin Newsom along the California border Monday, visiting what’s called “Lithium Valley.” The governor was getting an update on the progress being made toward lithium production. Newsom, touring a geothermal plant, at the Salton Sea called Controlled Thermal Resources. CEO Rod Colwell gave an update about the plant, and jobs that would…… MORE
