When Antonio Bravo stepped into the Salinas hotel in May 2020, he first noticed a foul smell. Then he saw the bare metal cot with no mattress that his employer, which supplied workers to pick strawberries for brands like Driscoll’s, had given him to sleep on after long days in the fields. When he and his roommates asked a supervisor to eradicate the bedbugs in their room, they say he told them to buy their own insecticide. Through an attorney, several workers complained to state regulators, who visited the hotel in the summer of 2020 but said in inspection records they found no violations of state law. As the number of agricultural guest workers like Bravo has risen dramatically in California, the episode highlights how state regulators have struggled to ensure that farms are providing safe housing to their workers. 🔗 Read Felicia Mello's investigation: https://cal.news/3xE5Aly 📸 Enrique Castro #CA #California #CalMatters #agriculture #guestworker
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Top Ten Reasons To Be Thankful There Were No Lawyers On The Mayflower. It has become a Thanksgiving tradition to publish a post I wrote some years ago. At the time, it became a meme to list the top ten things about virtually anything. So, I wrote some for Thanksgiving, highlighting the fact that lawyers don't seem to appear until after a civilization and government have taken hold. Lawyers don't produce food, protect ships on the ocean, plant crops, or many other tasks a group of Pilgrims needed on their voyages to the New World. Lawyers tend to be risk averse, and wouldn't be caught dead on a vessel striking out into the unknown. But, what if there were other reasons there weren't any lawyers on the Mayflower? In fact, the lack of lawyers is probably the reason we even have a Thanksgiving. Top Ten Reasons To Be Thankful There Were No Lawyers On The Mayflower. 10. Conducting a trial on a small wooden ship would be difficult. 9. The Seamen's Union would go on strike, and refuse to offload passengers and freight until their lawyers conducted settlement negotiations. 8. It would have taken years to get zoning approval for the houses the Pilgrims wanted to live in. 7. Where would all of the secretaries and paralegals have slept? 6. Contract negotiations with the Indians would have delayed the food delivery by months. 5. Litigation over the failure to pay a minimum wage to the food preparation staff would have resulted in a strike, and nobody would get to eat. 4. A lawsuit over the despoliation of the environment would have caused the crops to go unharvested. 3. The Indians would have filed a lawsuit claiming that the Pilgrims were trespassing on tribal land, and obtained an injunction. 2. The Society for the Preservation of the Flowers of May would have prevented the docking of the ship, for tradename infringement. And, drum-stick roll , please, the Number One reason to be thankful there were no lawyers on the MayFlower: 1. The Pilgrims and the Indians would have flooded the colonial courts with litigation for negligent food preparation when they all got sick from eating wild turkeys. Enjoy your Feast. Happy Thanksgiving. Thank You, God, for making a world with work for lawyers.
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The Full S.I.P. 11.5: For Wine-Searcher Caroline Henry gives an in-depth analysis of why contract #grapeworker conditions are so poor, and why it will be difficult to effect change. Five foreign workers died during this year’s harvest; during a heat wave. A look at the challenges and opportunities for #organicgrapegrowing in California. The Oregon State University Openly Published Environmental Sensing Lab (OPEnS) is developing a mechanical “pied piper” that can mimic #vineyardpests vibrations used to communicate to potential mates; in hopes to disrupt and/or confuse the insects and decrease damage to #grapevines without #pesticides. Diverse Powered Brands hosts a #pitchday day for Target https://lnkd.in/ekcCBVex
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This is an interesting ABC Radio segment on the future of Australian family-owned farms. However, I note they never really nailed the answer to their fundamentally important question "what are the food security implications of the loss of family-owned farms". Hermoine Parsons was interviewed and gave part of the answer ... she mentioned the important national security benefit of having large numbers of diverse family-owned farms underpinning our nation's food security. However, Parsons is the Managing Director of the Australian Logistics Council, and most of the members of the ALC are large corporations and most of their customers are likely to be large corporate and institutional agribusinesses. So, she dodged a full answer to the direct question, what's the food security implications of the loss of our family-owned farms? The answer is centuries old ... large corporate and institutional farms are more likely to be absentee landlords. And absentee landlords do not have the same commitment to prosperous local communities and national food security that Australian family-owned farms have. The superannuation funds that bought up the water rights stripped and laundered from Australian dairy farming families through criminal abuses of market and political power over the last few decades are using Australian water rights to grow food for "the most productive user". So, that means almonds for export, and not fresh fruit and vegetables for Australian tables. The global capital markets investors in Australian water rights don't care about affordable food for everyday Australians. They have one goal and one goal only ... to maximise their yield on their investment, and that means a very effective foreign tax on the price of Australian food. And that is not being picked up by the current Senate Inquiry into Supermarkets' pricing, presumably because the details surrounding Canadian PSP's investments in Australian water rights and the secret trading in our water rights by politically exposed persons with insider information is covered by national secrecy laws.
What is the future of the family farm? - ABC listen
abc.net.au
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It's time for a change. It's time we reconsider what the true cost of cheap products is and make informed decisions that support sustainable, ethical aquaculture. As consumers, we have the power to influence change through our choices. Let's choose wisely. A recent investigation by The Outlaw Ocean Project reveals disturbing conditions and malpractices within the shrimp industry. The allure of cheap shrimp comes at a high cost: 💔 Slavery and exploitative labor practices 🚫 Corruption and falsely "certified" farms 📉 A profit-driven economy thriving under the worst conditions for workers and the environment This investigation unveils a stark reality: those working face horrendous conditions, and in turn, consumers are left with a product far removed from ethical and sustainable practices. #SustainableAquaculture #EthicalChoices #ShrimpFarming #Aquaculture #Sustainability https://lnkd.in/ekMCTmcX
The Whistleblower
theoutlawocean.com
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As of March of 2023, the United States is now a net importer of food. We’ve lost 107,000 independent cattleman in the last 5 years. And 665,000 (50%) in the last 4 decades. This is the largest segment of our agricultural sector, and the losses are accelerating. We’ve lost over 90% of our pig farms since 1982. The cattle industry is set to follow suit…unless something is done. What is driving the consolidation and offshoring of our most important agricultural sector? - 4 meat packing companies own 85% of the market and are engaged in collusion and manipulation to drive cattle prices down and meat prices up, keeping the difference. They are making record profits on record margins for the last decade or more. An anti-trust law suit is underway, but it’s an uphill battle. Thanks to R-CALF USA - The United States eliminated country of origin labeling (COOL) for beef, allowing cheap, inhumanely raised beef to flood our markets from South and Central America and American’s don’t even know we’re consuming it. - ESG & “sustainability” agendas are putting a regulatory burden on ranchers that is unreasonable, costly, and ineffective. Proper land management through grazing enhances, rather than degrades the land. We can employ simple and cost effective strategies to incentivize their adoption without crushing people’s livelihoods. Oh, and we’re not just losing ranchers and overall agricultural production. We’re losing our largest segment of independent land owners in the United States as their land is gobbled up by developers of corporate Ag conglomerates. Learn how to help your local rancher here:
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https://crofter.com
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Small Business Consultant | I help Small businesses Scale Revenue and Profits in the next 90 Days | Host of Main Street Success Stories Podcast | Speaker | Travel Enthusiast | Golden Retriever Devotee
Excellent article about my clients business Mayberry Farms in Mayville, Wisconsin. They received a grant to help them grow their honey, strawberry and goat milk soap business. Exciting things are happening in Mayville! Read all about it in link in comments. #locallyowned #localbusiness #clientsuccess #clientsinthenews
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In 2021, more than half of Canada's beef producers had a herd size of <72 head. Smaller herds may represent long-term, established farms, or they may be new entrants who are working on building their numbers. With small herds, there are a few key things that can have a big impact. Read ⬇️ or listen 🎧 to discover 5 key strategies that help producers with small herds: https://lnkd.in/gMhDKs6b
Five Management Tips To Make a Big Impact in Small Herds
beefresearch.ca
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"When buying a bull, it is often for one of two jobs: either mating to heifers or mating to mature cows. For terminals, there are fewer things to worry about. But, if you are using the bull as a maternal - to breed your future cows - the job is a bit more complex." Be prepared for the upcoming bull sale season in NZ: read Dr Mark Ferguson's article in the latest issue of BEEF Country (see page 101 of the magazine).
BEEF Country 2024 - Country-Wide Magazine
country-wide.co.nz
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"Barons" by Austin Frerick dives into the monopolization of the American food industry, focusing on seven families whose wealth and market dominance have come at significant costs to the environment, workers, animal welfare, and democracy itself. The book underscores the role of political power in economic concentration, pointing to historical and contemporary examples where such dynamics have threatened democratic principles. Frerick advocates for political action to dismantle these monopolies, promoting a transition towards a fairer, more sustainable agriculture and food economy. He emphasizes the importance of challenging corporate power through knowledge, understanding, and collective political effort. https://lnkd.in/gs6GwUjD
Barons
islandpress.org
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