FisheriesCalifornia box crab fishery tests ropeless traps to keep whales safe
A small experimental brown box crab fishery off southern California uses only ropeless "pop-up" gear, hoping to show fishers can earn a living without entangling whales.
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California
FisheriesFruits
Bees still raise yields in self-fertile almonds, but one hive per acre may be enough
A two-year study in California's self-fertile Independence almonds found bee-pollinated trees set more nuts and yielded more, but two hives per acre gave no more flower visits than one.
AgribusinessCalifornia sets a $19.75 farmworker minimum wage, angering farm groups
Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 2646, lifting the minimum agricultural wage to $19.75 an hour from January, above the $16.90 H-2A rate; growers say it will raise labour costs by hundreds of millions of dollars.
FruitsDry September speeds California's almond harvest, but yields trail last year's
Warm, dry weather let growers move quickly through Central Valley orchards, Blue Diamond Growers reports, but per-acre yields are below last year, kernels are small and spider-mite defoliation threatens the 2027 crop.
FruitsUSDA finalises $30 million purchase of California walnuts for food banks
Contracts for 12 million pounds of walnut kernels bring this year's Section 32 walnut buying to $45 million as growers harvest a new crop on top of large stocks.
EnvironmentCalifornia will track PFAS "forever chemicals" in farm pesticides under new law
A bill signed by Governor Gavin Newsom requires the state's pesticide regulator to flag PFAS-containing pesticides in its public use database and follow their use over time.
LivestockCalifornia water board orders tougher nitrate and lagoon rules for Central Valley dairies
The State Water Board's Dairy Remand Order tells the Central Valley regional board to test lagoons against shallow groundwater, meter nitrogen and set new loading limits.
IslamCalifornia adds Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha to its state holidays
Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 2017, 'State holidays: Eid', on 27 September; both Eids are recognised by the Islamic lunar calendar, and closing schools is optional.
EnvironmentArgentine ant supercolonies have been at war for decades
Spread around the world by human transport, the invasive Argentine ant forms vast supercolonies that wipe out native ants; in southern California four of them have fought along their borders for a century.
HealthCalifornia creates a state label for foods that are not ultra-processed
Governor Gavin Newsom signed a bill creating certification of non-ultraprocessed foods, overseen by the California Department of Public Health through accredited third-party certifiers by June 2029.
CropsCalifornia tightens rules on cotton defoliant tribufos to protect farmworkers
The Department of Pesticide Regulation has finished risk-mitigation measures on the organophosphate tribufos, sold as DEF and Folex, tightening the label to protect farmworkers rather than removing the product.
Agrotech
More than 400 crop-robot makers now, but weeding and thinning are where farms are actually buying
The 2026 Crop Robotics Landscape counts over 400 companies, a fifth more than in 2024, while growers' advisers say proven weeding, thinning and irrigation systems are gaining ground and harvest robots still lag.
Agribusiness
California's specialty-crop growers offer the Midwest a warning on regulation, labour and imports
A two-day tour of the Salinas Valley and Bakersfield found California's fruit and vegetable growers squeezed by compliance costs that have risen 1,366% in under 20 years, overtime rules that cut workers' hours, scarce labour, and cheaper competition from Peru and Mexico.