Pam Lewison
Agriculture
What’s in a label? Ag should re-evaluate its belief in COOL
The global marketplace provides a vast array of food choices and helps to regulate prices by providing out of season food at nearly any time of year. “Where” food comes from can help consumers make choices about what is important to them – affordability, fair wages for farmworkers, use of ...
Agriculture
NPPC, SCOTUS get a reprieve from Prop 12 implementation
Some good news for pork producers nationwide: implementation of Prop 12 has been delayed. On Sept. 1, the Superior Court of Sacramento approved implementation of Prop 12 after a 180-day preparation period. The 180-day period would have given producers until Feb. 28, 2023, to implement all the housing rules of ...
Agriculture
Prop 12 has its day in court: will California being the undoing of our national economy?
In 2018, the voters of California supported Proposition 12 as an animal welfare measure that would ban the sale of pork in their state harvested from animals housed in pens smaller than 24 square feet. Prop 12 went into effect on Jan. 1, effectively forcing pork producers in the United ...
Agriculture
Hope for WOTUS changes after Supreme Court hearing
Imagine every highway speed limit in the United States changing every few years to a government official’s determination of a “safe” speed. In some ways the interpretation of the Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule is similar. When the federal administration changes, the interpretation of the WOTUS changes to ...
Blog
What’s in a name? Chicken labeling can be confusing for consumers
My husband and I recently got into a discussion about the differences in the labeling of chicken. He saw a post on social media outlining the supposed differences between “pasture raised,” “cage raised,” “cage free,” and “free range.” It is easy to get caught up in the virtuous marketing of ...
Blog
Ag Already Doing Its Part to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions
The United States Senate recently passed an energy spending bill that would, in part, funnel billions toward agriculture to address greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from livestock and soil tillage. The goal of this legislation is to bring the U.S. in line with its promised GHG emissions reduction target of 50 ...
Blog
Wildfire needs holistic approaches to be extinguished before it begins
A fire in Paso Robles was recently stopped after just an acre burned. The quick stop was credited to the use of sheep and goats for “fuel abatement.” After catastrophic wildfires have burned valuable land across the west in recent years, the deployment of grazing livestock to minimize fuel loads ...
Blog
To Protect Ag, Time for California to Roll Back AB 5
When rampant inflation and government policy collide, independent workers and consumers bear the brunt of the consequences. The recent enforcement of California’s AB 5 is beginning to ripple through California and, by extension, the rest of the country. The law, intended to provide guarantees to independent contract employees for paid ...
Commentary
What does the SEC have to do with farming anyway?
The Securities and Exchange Commission isn’t usually associated with a discussion of agriculture or greenhouse gas emissions. A recent proposal might change that. The SEC has proposed businesses begin disclosing their “climate-related risks” by tracking greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) throughout their value chain to investors. Writing that “investors will . ...
Agriculture
Fourth of July cookouts are a costly proposition
Monday is the annual celebration of freedom from the tyranny of an absentee monarchy. In 2021, the White House tweeted that a Fourth of July cookout would cost Americans $0.16 less than in 2020 and touted it as a victory. Will there be a similar tweet for 2022? As the ...
What’s in a label? Ag should re-evaluate its belief in COOL
The global marketplace provides a vast array of food choices and helps to regulate prices by providing out of season food at nearly any time of year. “Where” food comes from can help consumers make choices about what is important to them – affordability, fair wages for farmworkers, use of ...
NPPC, SCOTUS get a reprieve from Prop 12 implementation
Some good news for pork producers nationwide: implementation of Prop 12 has been delayed. On Sept. 1, the Superior Court of Sacramento approved implementation of Prop 12 after a 180-day preparation period. The 180-day period would have given producers until Feb. 28, 2023, to implement all the housing rules of ...
Prop 12 has its day in court: will California being the undoing of our national economy?
In 2018, the voters of California supported Proposition 12 as an animal welfare measure that would ban the sale of pork in their state harvested from animals housed in pens smaller than 24 square feet. Prop 12 went into effect on Jan. 1, effectively forcing pork producers in the United ...
Hope for WOTUS changes after Supreme Court hearing
Imagine every highway speed limit in the United States changing every few years to a government official’s determination of a “safe” speed. In some ways the interpretation of the Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule is similar. When the federal administration changes, the interpretation of the WOTUS changes to ...
What’s in a name? Chicken labeling can be confusing for consumers
My husband and I recently got into a discussion about the differences in the labeling of chicken. He saw a post on social media outlining the supposed differences between “pasture raised,” “cage raised,” “cage free,” and “free range.” It is easy to get caught up in the virtuous marketing of ...
Ag Already Doing Its Part to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions
The United States Senate recently passed an energy spending bill that would, in part, funnel billions toward agriculture to address greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from livestock and soil tillage. The goal of this legislation is to bring the U.S. in line with its promised GHG emissions reduction target of 50 ...
Wildfire needs holistic approaches to be extinguished before it begins
A fire in Paso Robles was recently stopped after just an acre burned. The quick stop was credited to the use of sheep and goats for “fuel abatement.” After catastrophic wildfires have burned valuable land across the west in recent years, the deployment of grazing livestock to minimize fuel loads ...
To Protect Ag, Time for California to Roll Back AB 5
When rampant inflation and government policy collide, independent workers and consumers bear the brunt of the consequences. The recent enforcement of California’s AB 5 is beginning to ripple through California and, by extension, the rest of the country. The law, intended to provide guarantees to independent contract employees for paid ...
What does the SEC have to do with farming anyway?
The Securities and Exchange Commission isn’t usually associated with a discussion of agriculture or greenhouse gas emissions. A recent proposal might change that. The SEC has proposed businesses begin disclosing their “climate-related risks” by tracking greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) throughout their value chain to investors. Writing that “investors will . ...
Fourth of July cookouts are a costly proposition
Monday is the annual celebration of freedom from the tyranny of an absentee monarchy. In 2021, the White House tweeted that a Fourth of July cookout would cost Americans $0.16 less than in 2020 and touted it as a victory. Will there be a similar tweet for 2022? As the ...
