Author Archives: Karen Ross, Secretary, California Department of Food and Agriculture

Note – Public Service Recognition Week is May 7-13. That’s right, we’re all in this together. The dedicated public servants of CDFA work tirelessly to fulfill an essential function – assisting farmers and ranchers in producing quality agricultural products, including a food supply that benefits Californians and helps feed the world. It is driven by experts in the many areas …

New South Wales: Our trip to Australia included a trip near the village of of Yenda, for a tour with the irrigation, energy and wastewater management team for Casella Family Brands, the owners of Yellow Tail and Peter Lehmann wines, among other labels. Yellow Tail was launched in the USA in 2001 and quickly surpassed all initial projections to become …

New South Wales: One of our last stops in Australia was so fun – Ferrero Rocher, the world’s third largest confectionary!! Claudio Cavallini, general manager of the company’s Australian agriculture program, welcomed us to the 2,000-hectare property -a former cattle ranch being converted to hazelnut plantings. In addition to its famous namesake chocolates, Nutella is one of the company’s products. The …

New South Wales: Australian farmers grow some of the same specialty crops as we do in California, including citrus. Frank Mercuri, chairman of Pacific Fresh, hosted us for a tour of as citrus packing house and an orchard. Pacific Fresh is owned by 8 farmers and packs for another 22 growers. The co-op was established in 1997 and has quickly grown …

New South Wales: On this day we left Canberra at 7am and traveled south and west to what is known as “irrigation country.” The scenery reminds me of a drive from Sacramento to Ione (Amador County). Our stops included a visit with representatives of Coleambally Irrigation, a farmer-owned co-op. The district encompasses 491 irrigated farms producing rice, wheat, corn, cotton, barley, …

CANBERRA, the Australian capital: A number of us were late in arriving to Canberra because of weather delays while traveling. So we made a quick turnaround to join up with the rest of the delegation and our hosts for day-one of our visit, starting at the offices of the Australian agriculture ministry. We then observed the Parliamentary “Question Time” at the Capitol …

I had an opportunity this week to travel to Santa Maria, where the Santa Barbara County agricultural commissioner‘s office, the Santa Barbara County Farm Bureau, and Allen Hancock College worked together to present the Spray Safe program for pesticide application. More than 300 farm employers and employees participated in the half-day program. The commitment to this educational program was impressive because it …

I was honored and very pleased to be asked back to officiate the California Grown certification ceremonies for flowers on floats in this year’s Rose Parade.  You can’t help but get caught-up in the festive energy in Pasadena, and the stunning flowers on display add to a simply wonderful experience. FTD provided flowers for dignitaries’ cars that really showcased the …