Agriculture and Technology by Elise Oliver

The central valley of California is home to some of the most productive farmland in the world. Agriculture generates $47 billion in sales each year for California. This billion-dollar industry has grown in sophistication so that agriculture involves more than the basics of planting a seed, watering it, and watching it grow until it is ready to harvest. This sophistication is in the form of technological innovation. Research and technology has allowed agricultural processes to increase efficiencies.  

For example, we see this technological innovation taking place in the almond industry. Almonds grown in California supply the entire nation and comprise 80 percent of the world’s reserve. However, almond farmers face a major obstacle in that almonds require a tremendous amount of water. Technology has helped to combat the drought by increasing the precision in how much water each almond tree receives. Moisture sensors document activity in the soil and send the information to the cloud. This information is transferred to the irrigation system in which it will respond accordingly depending on the results. Water is then mixed with a precise amount of fertilizer and is administered to multiple areas of the tree’s circumference to promote more efficient water uptake. This method uses less water due to its precision and thus has helped the industry respond to major obstacles.

California agriculture is unique compared to the rest of the nation’s farming because of the sheer number of crops our climate allows us to grow. Our Mediterranean climate permits farmers to grow a multitude of commodities as compared to the Midwest, which prospers in a select few crops such as wheat, corn, and soybeans. These Midwestern crops are undoubtedly important for the nation, as a lot of them go toward feed for cattle. But Californian commodities face a unique set of challenges, as we specialize in what is known as specialty crops. We hear this term spoken in common vernacular but its meaning can become lost. As defined by the USDA for funding purposes, specialty crops include fruits, vegetables, tree nuts, and dried fruits. Only about three percent of cropland is utilized to grow specialty crops, but because they mandate higher prices, they comprise a quarter of the value of crops grown in the United States.

Californian specialty crop farmers face interesting challenges since their commodities must maintain freshness from the time they are harvested to the time they make it to the supermarket. This can become difficult when California produce is being shipped all the way across the country. For example, it is technology and research that has helped to overcome these logistical challenges. It took research to figure out how to package salad in bags that would still allow the lettuce to breath. While this may not seem like technology in the conventional sense, fresh-bagged salad was a major victory for the industry.   

Specialty crop growers have a tremendous responsibility to supply the nation with its produce and nuts, yet it only receives one-half of one percent of subsidies, with the remaining going to grains. Midwestern farmers have somewhat of an advantage over our California specialty crop growers in that they can gather together and form a strong coalition to ensure their needs are heard. Because agriculture in California is so diversified, it becomes more difficult to form strong coalitions to lobby, since our different farmers have different needs. The disparity in funding for research from the government that specialty crop growers receive compared to growers of corn, wheat, and soybeans is baffling since California farmers supply the nation with its fruits, vegetables, and nuts.                                                 Technology in agriculture has certainly progressed, with more and more growers recognizing the importance of investing in research in order to improve their commodities and be competitive in the market. But specialty crop growers alone cannot fund the research in technological innovation. Luckily the USDA in recent years has begun to allocate more subsidies to specialty crop growers, recognizing their important role to the nation.