Focus on Agriculture

KING CITY — Next month, 18,000 children’s books will be distributed to low-income health clinics in Monterey and Solano counties as part of a revolutionary new reading program targeting farmworker families. Joshua Deutsch, a family physician at Mee Memorial Hospital in King City and Greenfield,...

UPDATE — Nov. 7, 2025: Full November SNAP/CalFresh benefits have begun posting to the EBT cards of Monterey County residents, according to the County of Monterey Department of Social Services on Friday. “The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) is telling us that California has initiated...

SALINAS VALLEY — A documentary short film set in the Salinas Valley has been officially selected for the prestigious 2025 Sundance Film Festival, and will have its world premiere during the festival’s celebrated Short Film Program. “The Long Valley” is a 13-minute documentary showcasing the...

MONTEREY COUNTY — Wild pigs in the Monterey County area were exposed to pesticide bait containing the anticoagulant rodenticide diphacinone, according to findings by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s (CDFW) Wildlife Health Lab (WHL) and the California Animal Health and Food Safety...

SALINAS VALLEY — Hartnell College and its partner, the Grower-Shipper Association of Central California, are reaching out to veterans and family members with an immediate opportunity for free courses in agricultural technology and paid on-the-job training at some of the largest Salinas Valley ag...

SALINAS VALLEY — In an effort to increase groundwater recharge and storage while reducing flooding, four local agencies and nonprofits collaborating on the Multi-benefit Land Repurposing Program are seeking public input about known areas of flooding and recharge. A public survey is now open and...

KING CITY — Salinas Valley Fair will host a virtual livestock auction this Saturday, June 20. This year’s auction is a charitable auction, with no meat product exchanging hands. Proceeds will instead be directed to 4-H and FFA exhibitors who participate in the auction. Some...

SALINAS VALLEY — Monterey Mushrooms, a mushroom grower based in Morgan Hill, has announced the release of its Certified Organic Spent Mushroom Compost (COSMC) to row crop and leafy green farmers throughout the Salinas Valley. A finely balanced mixture of straw, peat moss, cottonseed meal,...

MONTEREY COUNTY — Monterey County agriculture pumped more than $11 billion into the local economy in 2023 and supported 81,315 jobs, according to a new economic report. Assistant Agricultural Commissioner Rich Ordonez released the latest comprehensive analysis of the county’s largest industry on Nov. 18,...