16
Almond Facts
MAY | JUNE 2015
Kristen Voss –
Hughson
Fall 2015 School: California State
University, Chico
Major: Agricultural Science and
Education
Tristan Vos –
Ripon
Fall 2015 School: Dordt College, Sioux
Center, Iowa
Major: Agri-business & Crop Science
“I believe that one of our main
problems in agriculture at present
is the high speed rail. This ride is
claimed to go hundreds of miles
at a quick rate. Where are they
going to put this rail though? It
is proposed that the right-of-way
for this train will go right through
our agricultural land, seizing
thousands of acres of prime
farmland while hundreds of farms
will be cut in half by train tracks.”
“With the world population
expected to reach over 9 billion
by 2050 the demand to feed this
population will mandate higher
yields on smaller amounts of
productive farmland. Loss of
farmland to urban growth has
increased the urgency for the
agriculture community to find
better and more efficient means
of production. This ‘production’
includes many of the issues/
problems faced by today’s farmer
…The problems faced by the
agriculture community are many
and varied. I believe educating
yourself in all aspects of agriculture
and committing yourself to proper
stewardship of all our resources is of
utmost importance.”
Laine LaGrande –
Maxwell
Fall 2015 School: California State
University, Fresno
Major: Plant Science – Crop Production
Management
“Without water, farmers are limited
in what and how much of a product
they can produce and sell. People
will begin seeing a shortage in
commodities and a high increase
in prices. Since not as many crops
could be produced, this could
lead to a shortage of jobs in the
agriculture production workforce,
which is where I am pursuing to
work. If the drought does not end
soon, more and more problems are
going to arise.”
Brooke Henriksen –
Kingsburg
Fall 2015 School: Cal Poly,
San Luis Obispo
Major: Agriculture Business
Saul Navarro –
Arbuckle
Fall 2015 School: Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo
Major: Agricultural Environmental
Science
“The biggest issue currently
happening in the agriculture world
is the water shortage in California.
Here in the Central Valley we
are in a major drought. I believe
that by obtaining a career in the
agricultural world I will have the
opportunity to improve the water
situation and other issues that
occur in agriculture.”
“Our area, like other areas in
California has been greatly
impacted by the drought and
the lack of water. When our
area built the Butte Tehama
Canal, it was a joint area to
provide water to all the farmers.
Now, farmers in our area are
having to dig wells and are
using groundwater, a situation
that is dire. Our wells are
running dry. I am not sure how
to resolve this situation. We all
need to pray for rain.”
Makala Navarro –
Atwater
Fall 2015 School: Texas A&M University
Major: Agriculture Science
“Perhaps the most complex
challenge we see in the agriculture
industry is lack of knowledge. Most
of the general public is unaware of
the realties that occur in agriculture.
This gap between producer and
consumer – between public and
farmer – is what allows for anti-
agriculture campaigns to be so
powerful. This problem specifically
is what drives me to my future.”
