Food Production Investment Program
Pre-Application Workshops in July
The California Energy Commission is hosting pre-application workshops for entities interested in applying for the newly created Food Production Investment Program (FPIP), which is a recently formed competitive grant program allowing food processors to compete for funds to adopt commercially available and advanced technologies to lower greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs).
Ag Council and others successfully advocated for the creation of this grant program during negotiations to extend the cap and trade program last year and FPIP is the outcome of that work.
FPIP is a first of its kind grant program for food processors to utilize funds to install advanced efficiency energy efficiency technologies or cutting edge, emerging technologies to reduce GHGs. FPIP grant funds will be available through a competitive grant application process managed by the California Energy Commission.
Ag Council President Emily Rooney and several Ag Council members actively participated in a recent food processing task force with other agricultural and food processing representatives to assist in the development of the FPIP grant program guidelines with state regulatory officials and Governor Jerry Brown’s staff.
Interested applicants are encouraged to participate in a pre-application workshop either in-person or online. Workshop information is provided below.
Pre-Application Workshops
July 10, 2018 at 10:00 a.m.
San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District
1990 E Gettysburg Ave
Governing Board Room
Fresno, CA 93726
To join the WebEx meeting, click HERE and enter meeting number: 920 583 492 (no password required)
July 18, 2018 at 10:00 a.m.
South Coast Air Quality Management District
21865 Copley Drive
Auditorium
Diamond Bar, CA 91765
To join the WebEx meeting, click HERE and enter meeting number: 928 219 708 (no password required)
With California’s farmers and food processors achieving the most ambitious regulatory standards in the nation, and given the competitive environment they operate in, FPIP provides reinforcement and support for entities reducing emissions. Funding for FPIP derives from cap and trade auction proceeds and is paid for by entities in the cap and trade program, which includes some Ag Council members.
For the grant guidelines, application link, and further details about FPIP on the Energy Commission’s website, please click the Learn More link below. The deadline to submit an application is August 31, 2018 at 5 p.m.
Please contact Ag Council with any questions at ph. (916) 443-4887.
Photo: Agronomist Valerie Bullard shows CDFA and industry representatives a radish produced with healthy-soils practices
CDFA, NRCS and Ag Council Tour Healthy Soils Projects
The following article was published on the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s (CDFA) Planting Seeds blog after Ag Council’s team and others joined CDFA Secretary Karen Ross for a tour of healthy soils projects.
Article published by CDFA’s Office of Public Affairs
CDFA Secretary Karen Ross recently joined growers, industry representatives including Ag Council, and partners from the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) on a healthy soils tour in late June in the San Joaquin Valley. The goal of the event was to bring together various stakeholders and learn about the role soils can play in absorbing carbon, improving yields and retaining water.
“California has emerged as a global leader in improving soil health on farms and ranches across the state,” said CDFA Secretary Karen Ross. “Tours like these allow us to see advances in soil health research and real-life examples of how building soil organic matter can result in a variety of added benefits.”
The group began their tour at the USDA Plant Materials Center (CAPMC) in Lockeford, San Joaquin County. Established in 1939, the 106-acre property is developing conservation technology through use of plant materials to enhance the sustainability of California agriculture. At the center, attendees learned about several techniques involved in building organic matter, including cover cropping, no-till, and hedgerow plantings.
Following the tour of the CAPMC, the group visited two separate private operations – Locke Farms, a walnut orchard adjacent to the CAPMC; and Vino Farms, a vineyard. Both operations are actively using management practices to improve soil health.
Tour participants discussing soil health in the CAPMC conference room. “The CDFA meeting was an opportunity for government and industry to come together at the living laboratory of the PMC to learn how management–including the use of cover crops and reduced soil disturbance– improves soil health by increasing organic matter (carbon), filtration, and soil water holding capacity,” said Margaret Smither-Kopperl, Manager of the CAPMC.
The tour is part of a wider initiative by the state to establish partnerships across government and industry to promote the benefits of building soil health. Last year, CDFA joined NRCS, the California Farm Bureau, UC Davis, and the California Association of Resource Conservation Districts (CARCD) in signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to establish the California Farm Demonstration Network. The goal of the network is to increase adoption of economically viable resource conservation practices in California’s agricultural systems.
To learn more about California’s Healthy Soil Initiative, please click HERE.