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Labels: avocado, Food, Ventura

Avocado trees stressed by excessive salt produce smaller fruit, said Charley Wolk, an avocado grower in Fallbrook, a major center of San Diego County's $137 million annual avocado crop, about 40 percent of the state total. Smaller fruit reduces growers' income, because they're paid by weight and not the number of avocados they produce.

"As the blend gets more Colorado River water, we get more salt," said Wolk, owner of Bejoca Grove Management. "I think it's rather unique. The water meets the state's standard for human consumption, but it's not worth a damn for us to grow things." - North County Times

Labels: avocado, California Agriculture, farmers, Water

Labels: Agriculture, avocado, California Agriculture, For Sale

Labels: avocado, farmers, farming, Music

Labels: avocado, California, California Agriculture, drought

State auditors say employees of the California Avocado Commission misspent tens of thousands of dollars in farmers' contributions on clothing, gifts and other personal expenses.

The audit released Friday also claims the Commission's former chief executive improperly used $17,000 to renovate his home.

Mark Affleck, who resigned as Chief Executive in May to take a leadership position with Saddleback Church, declined to comment friday. AP via Yahoo News

...The 89-page audit paints a picture of a freespending organization whose employees dipped regularly at the trough, charging up birthday gifts and flowers for colleagues, running personal mail through FedEx accounts and regularly charging lunches for the entire staff.

It says employees racked up more than $1.5 million on commission-issued credit cards from 2005-2008, the three fiscal years covered in the audit. Some of those charges were called "questionable at best and even personal at times." - SFgate

...Commission board members, their spouses, guests and employees spent thousands of dollars on "massages, nail service, facials and body treatments" during meetings at the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel and at luxury spas in La Jolla and Del Mar in San Diego County. - LATimes

Labels: avocado, California Agriculture, corruption

Holy guacamole! An avocado shortage is looming next spring.

California farmers expect to harvest the smallest avocado crop since 1990 and possibly even as far back as 1980. Hot weather in June, at just the wrong point in the growing season, is responsible for the shortfall. - Latte Times

Labels: Agriculture, avocado, Chocolate, food prices, shortages

We here in Santa Barbara LOVE our Avocados in so many ways!

Carpinteria's AvoFest has been going deliciously strong for 22 years!

Well, Santa Barbara County is the third largest avocado producer in North America, with Carpinteria being a major contributor. It seemed like a natural food festival in the making. Why have the Festival the first weekend in October? Oddly enough, statistics show that October is one of the sunniest months of the year with the least amount of rainfall.

And there it began...the California Avocado Festival.

• Spanish conquistadors discovered that avocado seeds yield a milky fluid that turns red when exposed to air. They used this indelible natural ink in documents that are preserved to this day.
• Sailors in the early 18th century relied on avocados for "midshipman's butter," spreading the creamy flesh on their otherwise hard biscuits.
• Bill Maher starred in a movie called "Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death"

Labels: avocado, Carpinteria, Festivals

Carl's Jr. restaurants are expanding their offerings of Guacamole Bacon Burgers, as the burger has been named the official burger of the upcoming California Avocado Festival.

The Guacamole Bacon Six Dollar Burger was added as a permanent menu item in 2003, and now, customers may order the burger in single, double or Six Dollar sizes. - LABizJournal

After decades of sustainable farming, he’s seen the power in working with nature rather than against her. So his trees thrive in all-natural compost. His farm creates energy rather than consumes it. And his continued research ensures that the land will stay lush and fruitful for generations to come.

In another life, Duncan worked in the high stakes field of investment banking. But Duncan longed for more; he wanted to work with his hands in the soil in search of fulfillment. Leveraging his opportunities, he moved into real estate, starting with the purchase of his father’s ranch in Carpinteria, California. He traded his high profile lifestyle for the satisfaction of farming Hand Grown in California Avocados.

In a move that will affect crop production across much of the region, the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California plans to end its discount program for agricultural irrigation water. The move, expected to be approved in October, will open the door to increased water costs for many Southland farmers.

If adopted by the MWD board of directors, the proposal could reduce food production, as farmers struggle to pay higher water costs on top of soaring costs for fuel, fertilizer and other supplies. - California Farm Bureau Federation

Labels: avocado, burgers, competitions, drought, Festivals, Recipes, Water

....Whether fans were watching for the commercials, the football or simply to coo at Brady, they'll combine to eat more on Super Bowl Sunday than any day but Thanksgiving, although this "holiday" is more about chips (14,500 tons) and guacamole (8 million pounds) than turkey and stuffing. (And don't double dip. This week, a researcher released a study that said three to six double dips transferred about 10,000 bacteria into the dip.) - AP

Saveur - This recipe is based on one in Rosa's New Mexican Table by Roberto Santibañez (Artisan, 2007); it's for the same dish that is prepared at Rosa Mexicano restaurants in New York City. "It is our signature dish—nine out of ten guests order it," says Santibañez.
Tyler Florence's Charred Tomatillo Guacamole.
Martha Stewart's Mango Guacamole.

Labels: avocado, Football

In 2002, the tree to which every Hass avocado in the world can trace its lineage finally succumbed to root rot at the ripe old age of 76. Her offspring account for 95% of the avocados grown in California, and the fruit of her labor resulted in one of the state's most important industries. Yet, despite speculation to the contrary, nobody knows what variety of seed produced the original Hass Mother Tree.

The tree began life as lucky-find; a simple seed planted by A.R. Rideout of Whittier. Rideout, an innovator and pioneer in avocados, was always searching for new varieties and tended to plant whatever seeds he could find, often along streets or in neighbors' yards.

In the late 1920s, Mr. Rudolph Hass, a postman, purchased the seedling tree from Rideout, and planted it in his new orchard. He planned to graft another variety on it, but when repeated grafts didn't take he planned to cut the tree down. Fortunately for avocado lovers everywhere, Hass's children talked him out of it. They preferred the taste of the tree's fruit to that of the Fuerte, the predominant variety and industry standard in those days.

This generally five-inch-long, egg-shaped avocado has a smooth, delicate, pine green skin mottled with dots that darken faintly when the fruit is ripe. Developed by a farmer named James Bacon in 1954, the fruit is harvested from the late fall through the spring, though some believe it peaks in midwinter. The bacon's pale, yellow-green flesh tastes slightly sweet, clean, and faintly sharp. - Saveur

State regulations require that domestically grown avocados meet a minimum maturity standard, as well as predetermined size and weight requirements. Avocados grown abroad, most notably in Mexico, Chile, and the Dominican Republic, have not had to meet the same standards. The lack of uniform quality requirements may damage the demand for all avocados, claim the bills supporters.

...On April 26, Senator Barbara Boxer — along with congresswoman Lois Capps and Congressman Darrell Issa — presented the Quality Assurance Act in both the House and the Senate. The proposed bill is designed to protect the interest of the consumer, while facilitating fair competition among avocado growers both in California and abroad.

The bill would require all imported Hass Avocados meet the same quality standards as the avocados grown in California. - The Santa Barbara Independent

What to do with this creamy, delicious little green glob of goodness?

1. Avocado Bread
2. Gavocadoburger
3. Beer Battered Fried Avocado Wedges
4. Avocado and Shiitake Quesadilla
5. Avocado Cake

Labels: avocado

I "heart" Avocado Festival Version!

Mexi Fest Guacamole (last year's winning guacamole recipe)

A blend of fresh yellow chile and a mixture of fresh tomatoes, yellow (sweet) onion, cilantro with a splash of lemon juice combined with Haas avocado.

Labels: avocado, Flickr Friday