State government and innovation leaders called on Sacramento to support agricultural tech adoption, through increased public-private partnerships and refreshing outdated legislation.
On Day 1 of the 2025 World Ag Expo, University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources Vice President Glenda Humiston led a session on the role of California’s leadership in accelerating ag tech.
During California’s last major ag tech conference, FIRA USA, Western Growers Vice President of Innovation Walt Duflock warned of the state’s teetering ag tech investment landscape as other states and countries gain momentum.
That issue was less pressed by the expo panelists. Humiston steered the conversation toward internet access in rural ag territories – another major barrier to in-field tech adoption. Tulare County Board of Supervisors Chair Pete Vander Poel noted that while the county remains one of the top three agricultural producers in the state, COVID demonstrated the county’s sprawling lack of internet access.
“We have a lot of advancements that need to be made in technology, especially in the post-SGMA world as we see our water supplies cut back,” he said.
Public-private partnerships
Karen Ross, California Department of Food and Agriculture secretary, called attention to the steps made by the private sector and universities for combining California’s tech power with farm expertise. She specifically praised WGA and UCANR for taking the initiative, but said there’s a need for more appropriate-to-scale tech for small and midsized farm operations.
Ross did point to the California Jobs First initiative and associated 13 regional plans for understanding the need for regional solutions – noting the regions align almost perfectly with California’s FFA chapters.
“It's the face of agriculture that really matters, because we are the foundation to make sure that communities are healthy and thriving,” she said.
Former CDFA Secretary AG Kawamura shared a bit of his partnership through UCANR, using their dormant land to grow crops that go to local food banks. He referred to the last few decades as the “ag renaissance” as the state constantly grapples with and devises solutions to the industry’s problems.
Kawamura said the key challenge he sees Sacramento consistently struggling to address is invasive pests. He referred to the slew of pest problems California has faced in the last year, including a bee shortage and sprawling oriental fruit fly quarantines, as examples of policy gaps and a lack of infrastructure.
AG Kawamura“At the state level, at the national level, we have to invest in these infrastructures that allow us to do what we do, which is what this farm show is all about,” Kawamura said.
He added that he’d like to see the state develop a “robust” phytosanitary system focused on all levels of the mitigation process, starting with planning and defense. He added that consistent management and upgrading of phytosanitary efforts will be necessary to build adequate resilience.
Just last month, the Biden administration’s USDA allocated $129.2 million from the Commodity Credit Corp. to the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service to help prevent the spread of exotic fruit flies. But looking ahead, motions made by the Trump administration have called into question how certain APHIS’ ongoing role in pest prevention will be.
Humiston agreed with Kawamura and pointed to UCANR’s master gardeners program for stepping up to help county ag commissioners conduct early pest detection; Humiston said she thinks those volunteers are keeping California’s citrus industry going, working with residential growers to ensure commercial fruit do not get infected.
Legislative priorities
Senator Melissa Hurtado, D-Bakersfield, reassured listeners that the legislature is prioritizing access to opportunity, saying she’s encouraged by the Central Valley’s slow introduction of the tech sector. She mentioned that her office is working on wastewater surveillance to localize monitoring and keep farm health hazards contained.
Sen.Melissa Hurtado, D-Bakersfield “I'm just surprised at the technology that we have. The question is, [what] are we prioritizing? Are we providing the funding? Do we have the right plans? And when all that comes together, and you're all part of that, then it does. So very hopeful,” she said.
Sporting a red hat reading “Log it, graze it, or watch it burn,” first-term Assemblymember David Tangipa, R-Fresno, said he’s focused on empowering farmers to do what works best for their operations.
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Tangipa highlighted AQUA4D, a Swiss company with its U.S. office based in Visalia. They’re looking into reversing water molecules to create enzymes that stimulate produce yield, piloting the innovation in the Central Valley.
“Those are the innovations that we really need to push and really need to mold and highlight. … I'm just excited to be a partner,” he said, adding that he’d like to see the Central Valley receive the same investments in its ag systems that the U.S. provides in foreign aid.
Assembly ag chair Esmeralda Soria, D-Fresno, said she’s excited to hear more about local pilot programs and looks forward to seeing the growth of the F3 (Farms Food Future) Initiative and its relationship with multiple university campuses in the Central Valley.
She did note that F3 stakeholders informed her that a major setback in enrolling people in their workforce development curriculum is their immigration status, as undocumented farmworkers face uncertainty under the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement crackdown.
“So as we continue to grapple with ag tech innovation, we have to not forget that the workforce that fuels this industry is right now in a conundrum, and that we have to work with the state and federal partners to ensure that this workforce had the ability to get upskilled within the systems that we have,” she said.
Soria’s second-time ag committee vice chair, Juan Alanis, R-Modesto, said there’s much more lawmakers can do to review regulatory barriers that are outdated given new tech, such as a Cal/OSHA rule that requires someone be in a tractor at all times of operation.
“A lot of these laws were put on the books back in the '60s, '70s ago. They didn't think that there was going to be a tractor that's going to drive itself,” he said.
He's planning to make sure this session’s ag committee is “super educated," having noticed a lot of votes made without legislators being properly informed.
Correction: This article was corrected to accurately state Assemblymember Soria's district.
