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After a four-hour workshop with state officials in Visalia, Punjabi American farmers were left frustrated and questioning whether California realized it had weaponized groundwater in a way that could destroy the San Joaquin Valley. “SGMA has good intentions,” said Selma grower Nick Sahota during the Dec. 5 event. “But it has become a weapon to destroy the San Joaquin Valley.” He wanted to know if lawmakers had considered the impacts not just on farmers, but trucking, convenience stores and other ancillary valley businesses that rely on ag when they passed SGMA in 2014. Sahota referred to the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, which aims to bring severely overdrafted

Central Valley growers fed up with reduced water allocations and pumping penalties are seeking answers from state Water Resources Control Board officials at a workshop Thursday in Visalia. The Punjabi American Growers Group, formed in 2020, is sponsoring the event, where the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) and its implications for farming operations are on the agenda. All farmers are invited to attend. “We are answering questions on behalf of our members, but this really needs to be done by the state,” said Jasbir Sidhu, co-founder of the Punjabi American Growers Group. “Since SGMA passed, the outreach has not been done and a lot of people have questions and concerns.

Makhan Singh had farmed in California for more than two decades when, in 2017, he bought a 300-acre ranch in Madera County. About half the ranch was planted with almonds. The other half was bare. To qualify for a mortgage, Singh agreed to plant almonds on the rest of the land, taking on more debt to make the long-term investment in the new trees. He had little reason to doubt the business plan. Almond prices were high. And while the land was in a “white area,” entitled to no surface water from an irrigation district.

Farmer Amrik Singh Basra stands in his almond orchard in Madera County. Implementation of California’s Sustainable Groundwater Management Act has left farmers in some areas facing bankruptcy as they confront groundwater pumping restrictions that limit their ability to irrigate their crops.Almond grower Amrik Singh Basra stands outside his house in Madera County. Groundwater pumping restrictions have caused his land to lose value and his lender to call on $4 million in loans.

The Punjabi American Growers Group, PAGG will sponsor an Agriculture Workshop on Saturday, May 18th from 8:00am to 3:00pm at the Madera Gurudwara Sahib, (the Sikh Temple) 23249 Avenue 14, Madera California. All are welcome to this event and it is an opportunity for growers and anyone interested in the challenges Central Valley farmers are facing.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Punjabi American Growers Group Calls for Regulatory and Policy Reforms at the Almond Board of California. California, USA (July 20, 2023)- The Punjabi American Growers Group (PAGG), representing hundreds of Almond Growers across California, is fervently urging the Almond Board of California (ABC) to uphold the law and prioritize the almond industry’s future.

A group of almond growers is requesting the Almond Board of California (ABC) change its focus. Citing increasing acreage and declining industry profits, the Punjabi American Grower’s Group (PAGG), based in Fresno, California, wrote a letter to Richard Waycott, ABC’s president and CEO, requesting ABC change its priorities.

A group of almond growers is requesting the Almond Board of California (ABC) change its focus. Citing increasing acreage and declining industry profits, the Punjabi American Grower’s Group (PAGG), based in Fresno, California, wrote a letter to Richard Waycott, ABC’s president and CEO, requesting ABC change its priorities.