Food & Farm News
» August 27, 2008 «
Pest infestations prompt two quarantines
Quarantines for exotic pests have been declared in two California regions. A 75-square-mile area in residential Lakewood in Los Angeles County has been designated an Oriental fruit fly quarantine zone. Treatments have begun and crews are removing fruit from trees. In Napa and Sonoma counties, a quarantine zone is being established for the light brown apple moth after two were found in traps. This means 55 farmers in the zone must have their winegrapes inspected before shipment.
Group seeks alternatives to honeybee pollination 
A hard-working pollinator of the state's food and fiber crops--the honeybee--is being threatened by a mysterious disorder. That's why a group of researchers is touring Yolo County farms today (Wednesday). They seek ways to provide pollination with native bumblebees and other native California pollinators should the honeybee disorder continue. The decline in pollinator populations is a critical challenge for California agriculture.
Drought declarations affect nearly every county
Drought has hit California hard. Fifty-three of the state's 58 counties are eligible for federal government assistance because of drought. The only five not eligible are Del Norte in the north and Imperial, Orange, Riverside and San Diego in the south. Government programs include assistance payments and emergency loans and, in some counties, funds for livestock forage. Counties adjacent to those declared disaster counties are also eligible for assistance.
Suspicious eggs ID'd as Asian gypsy moths
Agriculture specialists with U.S. Customs and Border Protection discovered Asian gypsy moth eggs on a ship in the Port of Oakland. Inspectors say there were two silver dollar-sized masses on a crossbeam--an almost needle-in-a-haystack find. The Asian gypsy moth threatens more than 500 trees and shrubs. The discovery marks the third such find this year at a port of entry.
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