MONTEREY, CA - The third annual Organic Grower Summit—slated for December 4th and 5th at the Monterey Conference Center—is right around the corner and promising to bring growers, producers, and supply chain leaders from across the industry together for a unique and elite event. As part of our industry’s passion to address key issues facing the business today, an exclusive showing of the award-winning Driscoll’s documentary The Last Harvest—which shines light on the labor shortage and immigration reform—will be held at the show followed by an open forum discussion among produce industry leaders.
“The Last Harvest is just one small part of our journey to demonstrate our commitment to enrich the lives of everyone we touch across our farming communities. As one of the few brands in a typically commodity-driven agriculture industry, we have the unique opportunity to advance topics, themes and challenges that are otherwise invisible to most consumers,“ said Soren Bjorn, President of the Americas, Driscoll’s. “In many cases, strategic collaborations across public and private sectors are needed to improve these larger industry challenges. We support solving systemic issues at a legislative and policy level and continue to be active in timely discussions.”
To check out The Last Harvest trailer and get a deeper dive into the film, click here.
This 22-minute documentary was produced by Driscoll’s in partnership with studio Farm League. Attendees will have the opportunity to hear the hopes, hardships, and sense of life-purpose in harvesting berries from three independent family growers during The Last Harvest. The issues contributing to agriculture’s labor shortage are not going to take care of themselves and the film proposes possible solutions to overcoming these challenges.
Following the airing of the documentary, a panel of produce industry leaders will hold a lively discussion on the challenges and solutions around the labor shortage, immigration reform, H2A, and growing innovations. The session will be moderated by Tonya Antle, Co-Founder, Organic Produce Network with panel members including Bjorn, Dave Puglia, Incoming CEO, Western Growers Association; Hannah Freeman, Co-Founder and CEO Ganaz, and Carmen A. Ponce, Vice President and General Counsel of Labor, Tanimura Antle.
In addition to the exhibition floor and the film showing, the event will feature a series of eight educational sessions and a trio of acclaimed keynote presenters recognized for their innovative and resourceful leadership in creating new and exciting opportunities for those involved in the production of organic crops and products, according to a press release.
The series of educational sessions will touch on areas including:
- What’s Next in Organic Plant Health?
- The Growing Hemp Marketplace
- Organic Cannabis on the Horizon
- Strategies to Reduce Risk through Organic Soil Health Practices
- Organic Farming in the Era of FSMA
- Organic Sales Data Dive
So who will be taking to the main stage for the day's keynotes? The presenters include Kat Taylor, Co-Founder and CEO of Beneficial State Bank, and Founding Director of TomKat Ranch Educational Foundation; Amy Ansel, Co-Founder of Titan Bioplastics; and David Perry, President and CEO of Indigo Ag.
The OGS is produced by partners California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF) and Organic Produce Network (OPN) and is designed to provide information vital to organic farmers and ranchers, as well as an overview of the challenges and opportunities in the production of organic products.
Mark your calendars for the event, if you have not already, and point your feet toward Monterey, California!
