Sustaining an Agricultural Region: Capay Valley Grown

View the project final report

Commodities

Practices

• Education and Training: decision support system, display, extension, farmer to farmer, networking
• Farm Business Management: cooperatives, marketing management, market study
• Sustainable Communities: new business opportunities, partnerships, public participation, sustainability measures

The Capay Valley, northwest of Davis, is distinguished by abundant biological diversity, rich soils, and the flow of Cache Creek, contributing to a viable agricultural economy. More than 200 farms and ranches in western Yolo County harvest products consumed by tens of thousands of Californians. Yet most of those products, once they
enter the food distribution chains, lose their identity, leaving them to compete in an unstable global marketplace.

At the same time, a casino in the Capay Valley draws visitors from the San Francisco Bay Area, adding pressure for land development. The attendant rising land prices and shifting land uses, along with depressed commodity prices, constrain opportunities for new and current farmers and threaten to destabilize agriculture. Capay Valley agriculture could benefit from a local agriculture products branding
program that includes sustainability goals.

Introduction

See Summary

- Establish standards for the “Capay Valley Grown” label, including sustainability goals that balance the values and expectations of producers and consumers

- Implement the “Capay Valley Grown” marketing plan