“Over there, you see some almonds kind of in the distance? That’s under 3 to 4 feet of water. Out there, I got pistachios that since probably Friday have been under 2 to 3 feet of water.” Said Brandon Dykstra as he pointed to his fields.
Farmers in California are trying to protect crops and livestock from severe weather that has flooded large areas of the state.
Dairy farmers are now worried what they’ll be able to get to market like milk, butter, cheese and ice cream.
“Right now where we’re standing is basically a levee protecting our facility where all our animals are being housed.” Said Johnny Dykstra, pointing to the water rising on the other side of the levee that works to keep his herd dry.
California is the largest producer of dairy products in the country.
Farmland used for grazing has been under water for weeks.
More than 60% of the cow’s feed has been destroyed. Many producers already faced falling milk prices and high feed costs.
According to the USDA’s weekly dairy market report, snow in northern California is delaying work at some milk processing plants.
Flooding is impacting delivery.
“If we see, you know, where there’s too much of a financial burden, where dairy families have to, you know, close down their operations and, you know, in that sense, you could see more, more milk going away.” Said Johnny Dykstra.
