July 2021

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Growing Education

by Wendy Millet and Kevin Alexander Watt

Education is a critical component of growing a regenerative food system. For those entering the field as newcomers or those transforming their existing operations, finding sources of trustworthy information and effective mentorship is essential for success. At TomKat Ranch, we are proud of the work we do as a learning laboratory to discover, demonstrate, and broadcast what we’ve learned about regenerative agriculture. In that spirit, we are so excited to share ….
 

Regenerative Ranching Apprenticeship

We are hiring our next full-time Regenerative Ranching Apprentice!

We are looking for candidates committed to learning and developing the skills and knowledge of regenerative ranching who have experience in agriculture - livestock (emphasis on cattle), fences, equipment, water systems, etc., understand the value of hard work, and are interested in committing several years (2-3) to gain experience, education, and contacts for the future.

The job description and application details can be found here.
 

Ecological Farming Association - Dirt First Conversation Series

The Ecological Farming Association (EcoFarm) has two webinars coming up as part of their Dirt First conversation series. The first webinar will look at how local ranchers and hospitals can work together to provide nutritious regenerative food to patients. The second webinar is a special book talk with Rupa Marya and Raj Patel on healing through decolonization.

For more information, please check out www.eco-farm.org.

Upcoming Workshop with Nicole Masters at TomKat Ranch

by Megan Shahan

Over the last couple of years, we at TomKat Ranch have had the good fortune of hosting Nicole Masters, one of our favorite soil scientists, to educate us and regenerate our land along the way. Nicole is a globally recognized agroecologist, speaker, and author of For the Love of Soil. She is also the Director of Integrity Soils, an agroecological education company. 

For nearly 20 years, Nicole has served as a Regenerative Ag coach and educator. She has worked closely with diverse production sectors including dairy, sheep & beef, viticulture, compost, nurseries, market gardens, racing studs, lifestyle blocks and large scale cropping. Working with such diverse clients she has gained a broad knowledge and understanding of the challenges facing different production systems. Listen to Nicole share her story and perspective on healing landscapes (~12 minutes). 

What We’re Reading: Regenerating soil, regenerating soul: an integral approach to understanding agricultural transformation

by Kevin Alexander Watt

Many people ask our team at TomKat Ranch, “If regenerative agriculture is so great, why don’t more people do it?”. This is a great question!  

Regenerative agriculture (RA) creates many valuable social, economic, and environmental benefits for producers as well as the human and wild communities around them. Many producers who make the switch from industrial agriculture to RA enjoy improvements to their quality of life and lament that they didn’t switch sooner (for more on this, enjoy the video Soil Carbon Cowboys). However, RA is still far from being the dominant way people choose to grow food.

In June, Hannah Gosnell published an article in Sustainability Science exploring this question. Her piece “Regenerating soil, regenerating soul: an integral approach to understanding agricultural transformation” pursues a holistic understanding of why some producers in Australia were willing to switch to RA and others were not.

BAR-C Update and Ribbon Cutting

by Kathy Webster

As one of the founding members and a board member of the Bay Area Ranchers Coop (BAR-C) I’m excited to share with you our most recent updates.

Since I last wrote, we raised enough funds to purchase a USDA-certified mobile processing unit (MPU), built our membership to 38 ranchers, began construction on our processing site, and hired our first employees! Even though we purchased a mobile unit, we determined BAR-C can be more productive and economically viable if the unit remains parked at a fixed location, much like a mobile home.

As with many construction projects, BAR-C has experienced its fair share of equipment and construction delays so we were eager to celebrate the arrival of the MPU to the site! On June 28th, we held a special ribbon cutting ceremony for our members and key partners.

It was a treat to finally meet in person with the folks who believe in the vision of BAR-C and have been instrumental in bringing this vision to life. BAR-C is a critical link in the local Bay Area food production chain, but it’s also more than that—BAR-C represents a new model for decentralized, small-scale animal harvest, one that can be replicated to support local food production in communities across the country. 

One of our members, chef and farmer Duskie Estes and her husband, John Stewart, came with their food truck, The Black Piglet, and served up amazing local sliders, BLTs, and salads. Another member, Isabel Squire, made a giant sheet cake that was both literally and figuratively icing on the cake. Our new business manager, Cindy Homen, cut the ribbon and everyone took turns checking out the new processing unit. 

Now we are busy preparing for our first month of processing in September before our Grand Opening Ceremony and BBQ in October!

Gathering for Action Anew!

by Annie Fresquez

After a long break from hosting gatherings on the Ranch due to COVID-19, we happily opened the gate to host a "Day at the Ranch" for Cal Poly’s Swanton Pacific Ranch team.

The day began with a welcome from Wendy Millet (Ranch Director) followed by a field walk by Mark Biaggi (Ranch Manager) and Chelsea Carey (Soil Scientist with Point Blue Conservation Science) to share updates on our soil trials and grazing experiments.

The group came back from the field buzzing with energy and eager to enjoy lunch in the garden thanks to local chef Tim Edmonds.

Over lunch, Kathy Webster (Food Advocacy Manager) shared our work on local, regenerative food systems and two of our Regenerative Ranching apprentices, Alex Michel and Jessica Teresi, shared updates on projects they are working on.

With a beautiful day, delicious meal, and such good conversation​ it was hard to bring the gathering to a close and say goodbye to our visitors. Look forward to next time!

Helpful Resources in Case of an Emergency in the San Francisco Bay Area and Beyond

by William Milliot

Extreme weather conditions can bring potential threats to life and property. During such times, it’s important to stay in touch with emergency services and on top of developing situations. Following are my top seven emergency information resources, I hope you find them helpful. 

And wherever you live, consider using them as a starting point for your own list to share with friends, family, and neighbors.

1. San Mateo County SMC Alert System is one of the first lines of emergency communication to our community. Sent via either text message or phone call (landlines as well as cell), it’s second only to the federal government’s radio or TV-based Emergency Alert System when it comes to immediacy.

2. Cal Fire CZU Twitter account. Always on the alert, Cal Fire’s CZU first responders are the guardians of the Santa Cruz Mountains. They keep their Twitter followers up to date on emergencies affecting the area including evacuation notices, red flag warnings, flash-flood, and debris flow alerts as well as briefings during emergencies. They also have an active Facebook page. Other Cal Fire units also have Twitter accounts so search for the unit in your area.

3. NOAA Fire Weather Planning Forecast for the Central Coast (zone 512) providing bare weather facts in a monospaced font. If you like your information with the look-and-feel of an old-fashioned telegraph, this site’s for you!  Also features a “DISCUSSION” of what to expect. NOAA’s National Weather Service offers an assortment of forecasts so dig into their site to find what you need to plan ahead.

4. ALERTWildfire.org (live camera feeds). ALERTWildfire “is a consortium of University of Nevada, Reno, University of California San Diego, University of Oregon and provides fire cameras and tools to help firefighters and first responders” in California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington.  One of their cameras, sponsored by PG&E, is now on top of Lane Hill on TomKat Ranch to look south over the Santa Cruz mountains.

5. MeteoBlue weather forecast for Pescadero. MeteoBlue might be the best online weather site available. It’s especially handy for watching wind patterns and directions that may prove useful when planning evacuation routes.

6. PurpleAir - air quality map for the Bay Area. Knowing air quality risk levels can mean the difference between staying indoors or venturing out—especially important for those suffering from respiratory conditions. PurpleAir has an easy-to-read, color-coded display to interpret risk levels.

7. And finally, @Weather_West, the Twitter account of Daniel Swain, climate scientist at UCLA, features extreme weather warnings, definitions of scientific terms, expert opinions, and all-around meteorological updates for California.

BONUS! For the map-lovers out there, try CALTOPO to keep track of near real-time fire progress. Check the ‘Fire Activity’ option to add heat signature and infrared sensor map overlays from MODIS, VIIRS, GOES Live, etc. satellites. And, InciWeb - Providing the public with a single source of incident information. Also, two more smoke and air quality maps - AirNow and FireSmoke.ca (thanks Canada!).

Please keep in mind, these resources are for reference only. Use them for monitoring situations as they are developing. Do not rely on them for making life and death decisions. During emergencies, always heed the advice of official government broadcasts and notices—first and foremost—as well as any instructions from emergency personnel.

Remember, as the weather goes, keep on your toes. Stay safe!

You can find these resources on the TomKat Ranch website.