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Ag may now stand for agave among Sonoma County’s next generation of farmers combating climate change.

The hardy plant used in the production of mezcal liquors, including tequila, is also used in soap, medicine, as a sweetener, and as a biofuel.

Agave is growing in popularity in California — from 50 acres in the last few years to over 200 acres, according to researchers at the University of California, Davis. Since agaves thrive in hot, dry conditions, they need on average only one-fifteenth of the water that other crops do.

"A small but growing group of farmers and distillers have been planting the seeds of what they hope will be a rich California market for agave spirits and other products — and an adaptive response to climate change and drought."

"Ron Runnebaum, an associate professor at UC Davis’ Department of Viticulture and Enology, has been working with [Stuart] Woolf, [Craig] Reynolds and others to research agave’s commercial use in California, which has mostly been uncharted.

• Most of the United States' fruits and nuts, like avocados and almonds, come from California. But scientists say human-caused climate change means more extreme heat and intensifying periods of drought for the state. That has led some farmers to seek out less-thirsty crops — like agave.

   

• The succulent has long been grown in Mexico and is the key ingredient in making tequila and mezcal. Agave, though, as a crop is a new idea for the United States. In California, it's more often seen as part of decorative landscaping.

   

“USDA’s Specialty Crop Block Grant Program is investing $23.1 million to support 44 projects across California this year,” said CDFA Secretary Karen Ross. “As we look to expand the competitiveness of the specialty crop sector, we also see the value of funding research for potential new crops to help growers adapt to climate change and develop successful marketing strategies. The California Agave Council is well positioned with research partners and innovative growers to bring a new high-value specialty crop to market and I wish them well.”

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An interdisciplinary team of scientists and researchers from University of California, Davis, are studying agave plants in the Golden State as farmers are turning to the crop as a potential drought-tolerant option of the future.

The research is centered on studying agave genetics, virus susceptibility, pest control, soil management and crop productivity, said Ron Runnebaum, a viticulture and enology professor who is leading the team of researchers at the newly formed UC Davis Agave Center. 

New possibilities for a new year: That was the theme of a recent symposium at U.C. Davis hosted by the California Agave Council. It was a day-long dialog about novel opportunities that are growing in the fields of western Yolo – and pouring into bottles from the beaches of Ventura to the edges of the Napa River. The California agave spirits movement is here, folks, and it represents a chance to turn the state’s most water-starved fields into functioning farms again, all while creating an intriguing, sun-lit addition to U.S.

For as easy as it can be to pass off rural places as disconnected from the day-to-day of big cities, Craig Reynolds can help people understand how close the link is between the dinner table and the fields of Yolo County, California.

“We grow everything. We’re the world food basket, right here, where you are," Reynolds said.

Reynolds is the director of the California Agave Council, a new trade organization made up of growers and distillers.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — For some, the loud sound of a blade being sharpened might be jarring. For Craig Reynolds, it’s the sound of untold potential in commercial farming of agave in California — the plant Tequila is made from.

After doing work on California water policy and growing agave in Mexico 16 years ago, Craig began to experiment with the idea of agave successfully being farmed in the sunshine state in 2014.

Raul “Reppo” Chavez surveys his agave crop on a sunny morning north of Sacramento, California. His largest plants sit at the top of a hillside, while the youngest and smallest are down by the road. “They look real good,” he says, nodding.

On a sunlit afternoon in 2021, a Honda hauling a long, white rowboat pulled into a truck stop as its windshield filled with a sapphire mirage of Mono Lake, the water pinched between jagged mountains and bright blue skies. 

As drought conditions affect crops, farmers in California are turning to growing agave. The plant, traditionally grown in Mexico and used for making tequila, is able to grow with nearly no water, although it does take time before it is ready to harvest. KOVR reporter Elizabeth Klinge has more. Air Date: Oct 8, 2022

Watch here: https://www.cbs.com/shows/video/Lbx976ymyZWavBu6i3_3LiKmfO4q1WCX/

Agriculture in California faces an uncertain future as drought, wildfires and other climate extremes become more commonplace in the West. But a fledgling industry focused on growing and distilling agave plants, which are used to produce tequila and mezcal in Mexico, could be California’s answer to fallowed fields and a lack of water.