After health care workers, which essential employees in California will get the COVID-19 vaccine? [Sacramento Bee]
… A job description isn’t the only factor the state will consider when determining who will be prioritized. … Here are some of the industries advocates argue should be considered first: Among the most at-risk essential workers are California’s 800,000 agricultural laborers. … Assemblyman Robert Rivas, D-Hollister, said he agreed it’s important to first inoculate health care workers. But, he added, farm workers must be included in the preliminary phases of vaccine distribution.
https://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article247508310.html
‘We have failed’: How COVID-19 affects California’s 800,000 farmworkers [Sacramento Bee]
… A new study released by the Clinica de Salud del Valle de Salinas and the University of California, Berkeley School of Public Health underscores the COVID-19 pandemic’s unequal toll on agricultural workers in California. … Blood samples taken from farmworkers surveyed for the study found that nearly one in five tested positive for COVID-19 antibodies, meaning they contracted the virus earlier. … Yet, farmworkers were split about getting a COVID-19 vaccination. A combined 31% of farmworkers said they were either unsure, unlikely or very unlikely to get the vaccine.
https://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article247615350.html
U.S. says Canada shields its dairy market in violation of trade pact [Wall Street Journal]
The Trump administration filed a complaint against Canada over the market access for U.S. dairy products, in the first enforcement action under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said Wednesday that Canada has hampered the ability of American dairy farmers and producers to sell their products, by using quotas that prefer Canadian producers. … The U.S. dairy industry, with support from many members of Congress, has complained about its market access to Canada.
Black farmers, civil rights advocates seething over Vilsack pick [Politico]
President-elect Joe Biden’s decision to bring Tom Vilsack back to lead the Agriculture Department has enraged many farmers of color who say his record on civil rights should have disqualified him from the job. … Biden chose Vilsack because he wanted someone at USDA with deep knowledge of the department’s operations and who can immediately address the problems facing rural communities, farmers and low-income families in need of food assistance during the pandemic, according to a person familiar with Biden’s thinking. … While the criticism of Vilsack on racial equity is well-organized and the disappointment runs deep on the left, the opposition is not expected to threaten his path to confirmation.
Yes, farmers’ markets are still open during the Bay Area’s stay-at-home order. Here’s what to know [San Francisco Chronicle]
As an essential service, farmers’ markets will continue to operate in the coming weeks despite the Bay Area’s new stay-at-home order. They remain a crucial way for many locals to get fresh produce — with the benefit of being outdoors, which many argue makes them a safer shopping experience than grocery stores. Farmers’ market operators have already done the work of distancing vendors, getting rid of tables to discourage lingering and chalking out lines to help people stay six feet apart.
https://www.sfchronicle.com/food/article/Yes-farmers-markets-are-still-open-during-the-15788476.php
Opinion: Agricultural entrepreneurs try to stay ahead of virus [Half Moon Bay Review]
These are difficult days for local agriculture. … For the flower industry, coronavirus is just the latest existential threat. That is evident in the mere fact that these are the final weeks of existence for the California Cut Flower Commission. … There are pockets of good news, for agriculture generally and cut flowers specifically. In an article in the Ag Alert weekly, California Cut Flower Commission interim CEO Dave Pruitt said cut foliage has found a holiday niche. He said many sellers are using their flowers in handmade wreaths that are particularly popular with people stuck in their homes this strange year.
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