President's Message

Hello all what a goofy finish to April that was! I felt like I was in Kansas with all the wind storms that we were hit with. As most growers probably experienced, there was extensive crop damage, depending on the areas you farmed in, that’s Mother Nature, with its wrath of good wet rain, it also brings some devastation. Beside the adverse weather, the crops seem to be progressing along very well. The nut crops seem to be producing well, and vines seem to have average bunch counts so far, so let’s see how everything plays out. As the season moves along and temperature rise, be mindful of your employees…heat is a serious concern.  If you have not yet, please sign up for our upcoming heat safety training on May 12^th.  These trainings are required by law, so please don’t get caught unprotected as OSHA is cracking down on people, and the fines are very hefty. Plus, we don’t want to paint Agriculture as the bad guys.  We want to show OSHA and all the other regulatory agencies that Agriculture does comply with all rules and regulations which helps all growers. For those that missed our scholarship Wine & Beer tasting it was a great success! We awarded nine well deserving Madera County students scholarships to a study of their choice in the agricultural field. These scholarships totaled a whopping $40,000! The most we have ever given. As a Committee member we could not deny any of these intellectual students a chance to gain a career in the agricultural field. We should all be proud to help the kids by participating in the event. We all need to support agriculture.