Below, find farmer, rancher and farmworker resources for coping with the several challenges facing our agricultural system today – drought, heat, wildfire, and more.

 

General Resources

• CalAgroClimate, is an online decision support tool to help farmers make production decisions regarding heat risk, frost risk, pests and crop phenology by integrating historical weather data, forecast information and crop-specific information.
• California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) Farmer & Farmworker Mental Health Resource page offers emotional and physical health resources for both farmers and farmworkers.

Drought

Below are some resources for coping with the effects of drought for farmers and ranchers.

• The state has a Drought Preparedness website with links to current conditions – including reservoir, snowpack and precipitation summaries. The website also includes current state actions.
• California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) Drought Assistance includes updates on state actions and activities as they relate to farmers and ranchers and relevant funding.
• California Water Boards Drought Information & Updates has regional drought information and other resources for Californians.
• U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency – several disaster assistance programs provide funding for producers affected by drought in disaster declared areas.
• USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) drought assistance website includes steps farmers and ranchers can take to be more resilient in the face of drought, including:
  1. creating a conservation plan for managing water resources
  2. finding financial and technical assistance through NRCS
  3. cultivating healthy soils

Flood

• California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) flood recovery page offers relief and support resources available from state and federal partners to support California’s agriculture community which was affected by heavy rainfall in early 2023. This information is also available in Spanish.
• The Community Alliance for Family Farmers (CAFF) is opening its Emergency Fund to farmers who experienced flood-related losses. Visit their website for more information.
• Kitchen Table Advisors has created a webpage, Crisis Support for Regional Ag Communities, that links to many resources, including GoFundMe pages for affected growers and information on private relief funds, including support offered by Mandela Partners.
• Central Coast Farms Guidance and Resources for Growers to Assess Crop Safety After a Flood

Heat

• The Western Center for Agriculture Health and Safety has resources and educational materials for heat illness prevention, including:
  • Prevention and identifying illness visuals in English and Spanish
  • California Department of Industrial Relations Heat Illness Prevention webpage

Wildfire

Agricultural Solutions to Wildfire

Learn more about policy solutions to scale up agricultural solutions to wildfire resilience in our blog series:
Part 1 – controlled burns.
Part 2 – prescribed grazing.
Part 3 – improving access to farms and ranches during wildfire events.
Part 4 – improved working conditions for farmworkers.

CalCAN hosted a webinar series, exploring two solutions in more depth: managed grazing and controlled burns.

See the below list for resources for farmers and ranchers to prepare for and recover from wildfires. Track active fires, number of incidents year-to-date, acres burned and more on CalFire’s Incident page.

Wildfire Preparedness

• CalFire wildfire preparedness webpage
  • Find a helpful checklist and sign up to get texts from CalFire about wildfires in your area here.
• From Cal-OSHA: Guidance for working safely in conditions with smoke caused by the wildfires is available on Cal/OSHA’s web page, including information for protecting outdoor workers .
• UCCE Sonoma: Wildfire Preparation YouTube series
• Community Alliance with Family Farmers (CAFF): Resources for preparation
• Farmer Campus: Farming through Wildfire Season online course and resources
  • Farmer Campus also offers self-led Climate Resilience via Agroecology online course
• Learn about why defensible spaces are important and how to create one from FEMA here.
  • More on defensible spaces & treating fire and fuels from CalFire.
• Learn about grazing can help mitigate fire fuels here.
  • Use Graze to find contract grazers

Wildfire Recovery

• California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA): Wildfire Recovery Resources webpage
• The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has a Disaster Assistance Discovery Tool that helps producers find what disaster assistance programs are available.
• CAFF Resources for disaster recovery includes several educational resources for farms and ranches recovering from the effects of wildfire and helpful tips to navigate federal assistance programs in addition to:
  • Insurance Post-Declared Disaster
  • Small Business Disaster Loan Assistance

COVID-19

Farmer and Rancher Resources

• Community Alliance with Family Farmers (CAFF) has developed a comprehensive webpage clearinghouse with frequently updated resources, news and advocacy information in response to COVID-19 here.

COVID-19 Farmworker Resources

• Guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and U.S. Department of Labor for agriculture workers and employers here.
• COVID-19 Infection Prevention Guidance videos in English and Spanish here.
• Resources for immigrant communities in the Central Valley here.
• UC Davis Western Center for Agricultural Health and Safety has developed a COVID-19 Resources for farmworkers here.