From the Fields - Javier Zamora

By Javier Zamora, Monterey County organic farmer

We’re coming out of the hole from last year when we got flooded. But there’s still some heavy issues that we’re facing, like insurance policy issues. They haven’t paid us anything, and the bank is chasing us. We still need to pay what we owe from 2023.

In terms of crops, this has been an incredible year. Yields were good, and quality was excellent. We didn’t face challenges in weather like last year, when we had rain and a lot of heat. Markets have been incredibly good. We’ve been able to sell pretty much everything we’re growing. There’s been lots of California Department of Food and Agriculture programs that are asking buyers to buy from small family farms. CDFA and the U.S. Department of Agriculture are giving some organizations like food banks money to purchase, especially from BIPOC (Black, indigenous and people of color) farmers. CDFA is pushing schools to buy directly from BIPOC farmers, and that is helping us. It is leveling the playing field for some of us who otherwise have absolutely no chance of getting into school districts.

Where we’re facing challenges is on the regulatory side with the water board and nitrogen reporting based on what you grow and how many pounds of fertilizer you use. The water board has absolutely no idea how to quantify that. We have 40 to 50 different crops, and they get really frustrated with that. They’re expecting farmers to give them a number and pay them $3,000 a year. They’re giving us fines, and that puts small family farms at a disadvantage.

Input costs have gotten much higher—from fertilizer to you name it. Labor has always been expensive, but it’s gotten really expensive. The biggest thing has been crop insurance policies that are not suitable for us. When you have a claim, they put you through the ringer. Crop insurance is not designed to help small family farms and specialty crop farms because we don’t grow two or three crops; we grow 40 to 50.