Tulare County Farm Bureau’s year in review
As the year starts to wind down and the holidays approach I felt it would be a good time to look back and recap some of the work your Farm Bureau has been doing for you.
On the advocacy front there have been multiple State Groundwater Management Act workshops, outreach meetings, newsletter briefings, as well as attendance at numerous meetings throughout the 11 Groundwater Stainability Agencies in the sub-basins. Farm Bureau had a presence at the Irrigated Lands Regional Stakeholder meeting and was intensely involved on the Interim Groundwater Drilling ordinance in Tulare County creating positive outcomes for growers. We also wrote comments in support of Congressman Valadao’s bill H.R. 23, the Gaining Responsibility on Water act, and were able to gain the support of our parent organization, the California Farm Bureau Federation, on this important legislation for our county and the state. Additionally, we have worked with law enforcement, our district attorney, and County Ag Commissioner to modify the walnut nut theft ordinance to better meet growers’ needs. Other work in the county included meeting with the Tulare County Association of Governments on various road construction issues impacting farm roads. Just recently, I had the opportunity to meet with Special Assistant to the President of the United States Ray Starling.
From an education perspective we have supported the youth of the county through our Youth Leadership Program, now training our 33rd class, and the Blue Jacket Bonanza program. We hold an annual Art Calendar contest and place informative radio ads about water — both of which occur during National Ag Week. Farm Bureau also organizes all the outside demonstrations and rotational presenters for Ag Ventures Day. A day in which 1,600 fourth-graders from Tulare and Visalia city schools learn about agriculture at the International Agri Center. Additionally, each year we host two Garden Workshops and Plant Giveaways for teachers. To help support these education efforts and scholarships to Tulare County students, we held our 30th Annual Fundraiser for Education and Scholarship in March.
As another benefit to our members, TCFB hosted multiple training classes throughout the year such as; Hazardous Materials, Concealed Carry, as well as Nut and Cotton Harvest Safety. Sutton Hague Law group assisted with an Ag Labor Compliance class to help our members stay up to date with ever changing regulation. Our insurance partner, Nationwide, assisted with training classes as well. Those classes included: BIT Transportation compliance, Worker Protection Standards, and Heat Illness Prevention classes.
There were multiple social events such as our Gala Fundraiser in March, we celebrated our 100th Annual Awards Banquet in May, fall hit Bounty of the County occurs in September, and we host a Rural Crime School in October. We still have a couple of great upcoming events you can help us celebrate. This November our Young Farmers and Ranchers Casino Night is on the fourth as well as our Centennial Dinner on the 30th.
These are but a few brief highlights of the work we do on behalf of the farmers and ranchers of Tulare County. We stand ready to protect our agricultural futures as well as preserve our past heritage and history. We have been a voice for Agriculture for 100 years and look forward to continuing this legacy for another 100 years. With your help and support we can certainly achieve this goal. God bless you all.