Focus on Agriculture

WASHINGTON — Before dawn on an October morning in 2015, representatives of the United Farm Workers turned up at a strawberry plant nursery in Northern California to meet with workers and urge them to consider unionizing. They were able to enter the nursery’s property thanks...

SALINAS VALLEY — Hartnell College announced it has received a multi-year grant of $260,000 from Bank of America that will strengthen its ability to help Salinas Valley agricultural workers succeed and advance in an industry increasingly shaped by technology and automation. The grant will support...

A new irrigation enhancement project has seen positive results for farmers in the San Joaquin Valley.

KING CITY — More than 1,100 backpacks filled with school supplies were delivered to students in King City and Salinas this year as part of Taylor Farms’ 13th annual Backpack Giving Program. After starting the program in Monterey County in 2010, Taylor Farms has since...

SALINAS VALLEY — University of California Santa Cruz’s CITRIS Initiative for Drone Education and Research (CIDER) along with several partners has received a $1 million, 15-month planning grant to support regional drone education and workforce development from the James Irvine Foundation. The funds will be...

LOCKWOOD — Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, Lockwood 4-H Club has managed to stay active with several events. On Feb. 13, the club hosted the first of three County Record Book Workshops. Of the 14 4-H clubs in Monterey County, eight of those clubs had members...

SALINAS — Hartnell College has been awarded a $9.5 million grant from the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture’s inaugural NEXTGEN program.  The official announcement was made during a presentation by the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack in Washington, D.C., on June 20. “This...

KING CITY — Monterey County Judge Rafael Vasquez has sentenced King City residents and farm labor contractors Elias Perez Jr., 43, and Alejandra Perez, 40, to three years in prison for insurance fraud committed between 2013 and 2017. Vasquez also suspended those prison sentences, placing...

SALINAS VALLEY — California Rangeland Trust has announced the conservation of the 9,400-acre Silacci Ranch in San Benito and Monterey counties. The project was completed by the Rangeland Trust with funding from the California Wildlife Conservation Board (WCB), the California Strategic Growth Council’s Sustainable Agricultural...

KING CITY — Jordan Davis, a 16-year-old junior at King City High School, has been named the 2025 Miss Salinas Valley Fair. The competition, held March 13-14 at the Salinas Valley Fairgrounds, saw Davis compete against fellow King City teen Aaliyah Sarina in categories including...