Farm Bureau delegates approve policies

By Caleb Hampton

California Farm Bureau approved changes to the organization’s policies last week during a House of Delegates session at the organization’s 106th Annual Meeting in Monterey.

“We are proud of the history of advocating for you, the farmers and ranchers, and that legacy is the foundation upon which we build,” California Farm Bureau Chief Operating Officer Dan Durheim said during the session.

“To remain relevant and effective,” Durheim said, “we must also have new ideas and embrace innovation. This balance between honoring our past and welcoming the future is crucial to our continued success.”

Farm Bureau develops policy recommendations each year through its Commodity Advisory Committees, which are groups of members that meet regularly throughout the year.

This year, delegates voted to approve proposed updates to policies related to wolf management, crop insurance, eminent domain and agricultural zoning.

“These proposals come directly from our members,” said Chris Reardon, California Farm Bureau vice president of policy advocacy.

Farm Bureau updated some policies in response to new challenges faced this year by farmers and ranchers, and revised others to clarify its position or align it with new policies of the American Farm Bureau Federation.

With growing wolf populations in California impacting livestock operations, Farm Bureau updated its policy on wolf management.

Prior Farm Bureau policy advocated for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to develop a wolf management plan “that balances the needs of public safety, private property and the environment.”

Farm Bureau’s revised policy on wolf management contains more specific directives, including that CDFW fully fund a compensation program for ranchers that covers direct impacts as well as deterrence costs and “pay for presence” of wolves. In addition to direct attacks, the presence of wolves can cause weight loss, decreased fertility and other impacts on livestock.

In 2022, CDFW rolled out a wolf compensation pilot program with $3 million in funding from the state Legislature, but the funding ran out by the end of last year.

Meanwhile, ranchers reported an increase in wolf conflicts as the number of wolves, which are protected by state and federal endangered species acts, increased throughout the past year.

State wildlife officials estimated last month there were at least 70 wolves in the Golden State, up from an estimated 44 last year. The reported numbers are “probably still lower” than the true number, Reardon said.

Farm Bureau’s new policy also advocates for wolf tracking and “real-time communication with affected producers and local landowners.”

“We need to go back to funding a full program that deals with the whole issue of wolves and the impacts on our members,” Reardon said. “That’s what this recommendation is about.”

The new policy includes language stating that “local ordinances that affect agriculture should be designed to support the uses allowed on agricultural-zoned land.”

The policy also urges local governments to “actively enforce against activities that are not compliant with allowable uses on agricultural-zoned land.”

Delegates also approved updates to Farm Bureau’s policy on eminent domain. Prior Farm Bureau policy opposed government agencies and utilities purchasing “excess lands with the intent of reselling them.”

The updated policy maintains that stance while adding that in cases when excess land is purchased by the government and ends up being “in excess of stated need or purpose,” the original landowner should have a “right of first refusal” to buy the land back for the price it was acquired for or its appraised value, whichever is less.

Should the original owner decline to buy it back, Farm Bureau’s new policy states, the land “should be offered to any private entity or individual.”

Farm Bureau also updated its crop insurance policy to align with new language from AFBF, which asserts that certain pest and disease impacts that affect California winegrapes should be included in federal crop insurance coverage.

The Grape Advisory Committee noted that the updated policy recommends better insurance coverage for circumstances unique to California grape growers, “including losses due to pests and diseases that are not currently covered by crop insurance.”

Farm Bureau delegates officially approved the addition of San Francisco Farm Bureau, which was established last year, to District 10, which also includes the Santa Cruz, Santa Clara and San Mateo county Farm Bureaus.

During last week’s Annual Meeting, California Farm Bureau President Shannon Douglass announced plans for the Commodity Advisory Committees to travel “up and down the state” next year, instead of meeting in Sacramento, to facilitate more participation from members in the policy development process.

“Grassroots movements are the backbone of our advocacy work,” Durheim said during the House of Delegates session. “They ensure that our policies and initiatives are grounded in the real-world experiences and needs of our members.”

The Farm Bureau COO added, “As we look to the future, let us remember that our strength lies in our unity and honoring our legacy and the power of new ideas.”

(Caleb Hampton is an assistant editor of Ag Alert. He may be contacted at champton@cfbf.com.)