Focus on Agriculture

Editor’s Note: The following profile is an excerpt from Amy Wu’s upcoming book, “From Farms to Incubators: Women Innovators Revolutionizing How Our Food is Grown,” which tells the stories of women entrepreneurs who are transforming agriculture through high technology. Claudia Pizarro-Villalobos was born and raised...

GREENFIELD — The 2025 Greenfield Harvest Festival spanned over two days earlier this month, beginning with a lively kick-off parade that set the tone for a weekend filled with community celebration, fall fun and local talent. The Oct. 18 parade, organized by the Greenfield High...

GONZALES — Luis Gonzalez won multiple banners in this year’s Monterey County Fair, including Reserve Supreme Champion Market Goat for his goat named Roberto. Gonzalez, an incoming freshman member of the Gonzales High School Future Farmers of America (FFA), raised two animals for the fair,...

MONTEREY COUNTY — Crop values fell in 2020 by a total of $499 million from 2019, with 2020’s total at $3.9 billion, according to the Monterey County Crop Report issued by Monterey County Agricultural Commissioner Henry Gonzales on July 20. The 11.3% decrease in production...

SALINAS VALLEY — The iconic Artichoke Festival is making a grand return to its roots in the heart of the Salinas Valley this year. Set for June 14-15, the annual festival will take place at the Monterey County Sheriff’s Posse Grounds in Salinas, a move...

MONTEREY COUNTY — Monterey County’s agriculture industry saw a major rebound in 2024, with overall crop and livestock production reaching nearly $5 billion in gross value — a 14.7% increase from the previous year. And, for the first time in county history, a single crop...

Nicolaus “Nicky” Hahn, founder of Hahn Family Wines and pioneer of California’s Santa Lucia Highlands AVA, died last Friday at his home in Zurich, Switzerland. He was 81 years old.

GREENFIELD — Scheid Family Wines is celebrating its 50th anniversary with special events throughout the year in its tasting rooms located in Carmel-by-the-Sea and at its estate winery just off Highway 101 between Greenfield and King City. Based in Monterey County, the family-owned and operated...

SALINAS VALLEY — California Strategic Growth Council has approved more than $8.3 million in grants to the Ag Land Trust (ALT), a nonprofit dedicated to farmland preservation along the state’s Central Coast. The funding will enable the organization to purchase conservation easements on three key...

SALINAS — As the decennial redistricting process wrapped up last month, the concern from The World’s Salad Bowl started to mount. Local politicians, regional business giants and other community leaders asked how a plan to pair the international agricultural hub with the Silicon Valley...