I just returned from the Biocontrols Conference held just outside San Diego, in Carlsbad. This is the second time I’ve attended this conference, and it’s a very well run event.
There was a panel discussion involving Materra Farming Company, Duncan Family Farms, Grimmway Farms and Tanimura & Antle. These four companies are some of the largest commercial growers in California, controlling more than 75,000 organic and sustainable acres.
My biggest takeaway was that they are all extraordinary stewards of the land, having implemented and committed to growing practices focused on building organic matter and sequestering carbon in the soil. They all shared something that they have known for some time: that by building better soil biology they produce more and better crops and have less disease and insect pressure. In fact, there were several comments that when problems arise in their fields, it’s typically a soil-degradation issue, and by addressing it, they witness rapid improvement as things start moving in the right direction again. Holy Cow! The largest growers in California are compost-, compost tea- and biology-based product advocates! These are companies that could farm in any manner they want and have decided that building their soil’s organic matter is priority number one!
Some practice a sustainable approach to agriculture as they don’t relish the downtime for completing the organic transitions or the requirements saddled on organic farms. However, their philosophy of “leaving the land better than how you found it” clearly demonstrates their commitment to improving the soil’s biology.
A couple of other key points are that by implementing these softer technologies, they are exposing their workers to far less risk. Workers should be safe in the fields, end of story. Finally, the improvement of their soils is a natural buffer for what may happen. Soils with greater organic matter can retain more water, reduce abiotic crop stress and just perform better. It’s only when this balance is lost that they see the need for harder technologies (ie: chemical fungicides). Pathogens are quorum sensing – meaning that they are aware of the numbers needed to attack a plant successfully. If the soil remains in balance, the quorum is never reached and the pathogens pose no problem.
These companies are applying a broad array of biological products, as diversity is the farmer’s friend. The payoff is clear — and these companies have access to any products available on the market.
In full disclosure, Andaman Ag sells organic products to Grimmway. Feel free to contact me to discuss how Andaman Ag can help your farm, too.