Food And Farm News
July 22, 2026
Researchers study potential of agave crop
Agave, a succulent long grown in parts of Mexico to make tequila and mezcal, has in recent years attracted the attention of California farmers seeking options as they face water shortages and the prospect of fallowing land. The drought-resilient crop has demonstrated commercially viable yields with less than a tenth of the water usage needed for many tree crops. To help farmers, experts are ramping up research on cultivating agave in California and exploring various potential markets for the crop. According to researchers, the long-term potential of California's budding agave sector may depend on learning which practices traditionally used to grow the plant in Mexico need to be altered for the state's various growing environments and which varieties grow best in California. "We want to see which ones, depending on the variety, will thrive in the Central Valley so we could take the risk for the farmers," said Ángel Reyna, president of Madera Community College, which earlier this year planted 20 agave varieties in a test plot.
Mechanical harvest research bolsters table olive prospects
California table olive producers have endured a challenging decade. Once an important crop in the Golden State-particularly in Butte, Glenn, Tehama, San Joaquin and Tulare counties-high picking costs, relentless foreign competition and a shift to more promising crops have shrunk the sector. Today, more than 60% of the state's olive acreage is dedicated to oil production rather than canning. Research being conducted by a team of University of California researchers, including farm adviser Becky Wheeler-Dykes, is aimed at improving mechanical harvest efficiency for table olives to save on labor costs. For the past three years, the researchers have been testing the use of the synthetic ethylene precursor Accede, which loosens fruit attachment, requiring less force from trunk shakers to remove the fruit and allowing more olives to be harvested at once. The product is not yet registered for use on olives. Wheeler-Dykes said the UC team has been collecting the required data for registration and expressed hope that Accede will become registered by next year.
Overnight guests add key revenue stream for farms
More California farms and ranches are incorporating small-scale overnight camping into their operations. The trend comes as farms seek to diversify their incomes amid rising land ownership costs, water uncertainty and fluctuating crop prices, according to the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources. It was also boosted by Assembly Bill 518, state legislation approved last year that created a new state category for small nature-based campsites so that they no longer need a commercial occupancy permit. "It is a positive that agricultural producers may have more options to diversify their income in a way that is compatible with their farming business and that invites the public to appreciate the beauty of California's agricultural lands," said Rachael Callahan, statewide agritourism coordinator for the UC Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program. "It is promising that policymakers are thoughtfully engaging with how to create new opportunities for farmers and ranchers, and remove barriers, to ultimately strengthen farm viability."
In case you missed it:
Wildfire mitigation tool threatened as goat herder wage soars to $240k
California's minimum wage for goat herders quadrupled this month due to a shift in the state's interpretation of its labor code and the expiration of a temporary solution. As of July 1, employees who graze goats on fire-prone landscapes will earn $240,000 a year, according to an estimate by the California Farm Bureau. The regulatory accident, which unintentionally differentiated sheepherders from goat herders, could soon have real consequences. If the mistake is not fixed, ranchers said that within weeks they will be forced to shut down their businesses and sell off tens of thousands of animals. They said the loss of goats could result in hundreds of herders losing their jobs, and it could cripple one of the primary tools California uses to reduce wildfire fuels. "We will ship all the goats out of California and have them slaughtered," said Robert McGrew, vice president and CEO of Dixon-based vegetation management company Ecosystem Concepts Inc. in Solano County.
For more information about any story in Food and Farm News, contact the California Farm Bureau Marketing/Communications Division at 916-561-5550 or email news@cfbf.com. Connect with us on Facebook, X, or Instagram: @CAFarmBureau.
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