CCA Credits Available
Improving Economics through Sustainability Field Day at Braga Barn
Date: Tuesday, August 26, 2025
Location: Braga Barn, Soledad, CA
(See field day agenda below)
About this Event:
The Improving Economics through Sustainability field day will be held on Tuesday, August 26th at the Braga Barn in Soledad, California from 8:30-12:30. Lunch will be provided. An optional afternoon add-on includes a field visit to Dole Ranch for the Dole cover crop study.
Economic sustainability is a critical component to building resilient and profitable sustainable farming systems. Incorporating sustainability on-farm often requires upfront investment in new technologies, practices or crop management systems. Improving economics through sustainability can support growers to make informed decisions when considering making changes to farming operations. This field day will showcase tools and case studies that demonstrate how operations can improve economics through sustainability.
What you can expect:
● A discussion on the costs and benefits associated with integrating regenerative agriculture practices
● Demonstration of WWF Global Farm Loss Tool
● Case studies for new automated weed control in-field technologies
● Comparing outcomes from strategic nutrient application regimes
● Success stories and tips for creating sustainability engagement
See the full agenda below.
Reducing Cost and Increasing on Farm Revenue with a Regenerative Lens
CEU Area Credit: Crop Management CEU Area Crop Production Equipment and Use - Effects of Tillage System on Soil Erosion (0.5)
Braga Fresh has been conducting a cost benefit analysis of a Healthy Soils Project on an organic field using traditional tillage on half the blocks and reduced tillage on the other half. Two years of data have been collected and the project is currently in its third and final year. This talk will compare the soil health outcomes, the carbon footprint, and the economic differences between the control (traditional tillage) and the experimental (reduced tillage) plots.
Jaylen Calabro is the Sustainability Coordinator at Braga Fresh, where she applies her academic background – a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Management and Protection with a minor in Sustainable Agriculture – to drive meaningful change in the agricultural sector. Passionate about bridging the gap between ecological science and practical farming solutions, Jaylen is committed to advancing sustainable practices that enhance productivity. She focuses on implementing regenerative farming methods that protect biodiversity, reduce agriculture's ecological footprint, and promote long-term soil and ecosystem health. Jaylen believes that by farming in a regenerative way farmers can ensure the vitality of their land and the prosperity of future generations.
Pam Krone works for the California Marine Sanctuary Foundation as their Water Quality Manager. She has been working on agricultural initiatives over the last 10 years to bring about increased environmental sustainability, with a focus on discovering and promoting management practices that can increase marine ecosystem health. She has a BS in Chemical Engineering from Stanford and an MS in Environmental Science from CSUMB.
Case Studies for Field Automation
CEU Area Credit: Crop production equipment and use-Equipment Innovations (0.5)
Western Growers has released a series of robotics case studies highlighting the real-world impact of automation in specialty crop production. The studies feature technologies like the Carbon Robotics LaserWeeder, which reduced weeding costs by up to 40% and improved yields by as much as 50%, and the Stout Smart Cultivator, which delivered a full return on investment in less than one year across 2,700 acres of lettuce. These innovations are part of the Western Growers Global Harvest Automation Initiative, aimed at accelerating the adoption of agtech solutions to reduce labor costs, increase efficiency, and enhance crop outcomes across the fresh produce industry.
Ben Palone is the Sr. Director of Automation and Commercialization for the Western Growers Innovation team. With a technical background in providing automation solutions for the industrial/agriculture industries, Ben aims to provide “third-party unbiased evaluations” of ag-tech solutions. He facilitates connections between startups/OEM’s, growers, and venture capital firms to ensure that technology solutions align with industry needs. Ben Palone’s commitment to advancing ag-tech underscores his passion for innovation and agriculture.
Reduced Nitrogen Trial: Benefits of Making Nitrogen More Efficient
Nutrient Management CEU Area: Soil Fertility-Nutrient Management in Cropping Systems (0.5)
Pam Krone and Gina Colfer will discuss the Dole Healthy Soils Project trialing reduced nitrogen applications and the results of this study over the past year. They will talk about the implications of reduced nitrogen usage and the positive benefits, both economically as well as ecologically and discuss what this could mean in the greater context of the agricultural community.
Pam Krone works for the California Marine Sanctuary Foundation as their Water Quality Manager. She has been working on agricultural initiatives over the last 10 years to bring about increased environmental sustainability, with a focus on discovering and promoting management practices that can increase marine ecosystem health. She has a BS in Chemical Engineering from Stanford and an MS in Environmental Science from CSUMB.
Gina Colfer is a licensed PCA and CCA specializing in Sustainability. She has worked in the Salinas Valley for over 30 years. After graduating from Cal Poly with a degree in Agronomy and Crop Science, she worked as a pest control advisor with Mission Organics and Earthbound Farm. She has been with Wilbur-Ellis spearheading their organics division in Salinas for the past 9 years.
Creating Momentum around Sustainability Initiatives
Sustainability CEU Area (0.5)
It has become clear for the need to explore different approaches towards agriculture sustainable outcomes even amongst our most conventionally trained growers. Gaining corporate buy-in within this context is especially challenging due to the uncharted territory concerns and pushing against business as usual. There are many tools and strategies to utilize when tasked with integrating sustainability into a traditionally unsustainable system. Alisha will share some success stories and tips for creating sustainability engagement at the leadership, operating under a tight budget, and growing your sustainability support team.
Alisha Cahan is Dole Fresh Vegetable’s Sustainability Manager leading sustainability integration across the entire supply chain including agriculture, energy, and waste management She holds an MBA in renewable energy from UNR, and undergraduate degree in environmental psychology from Williams College.
Demonstrating the Global Farm Loss Tool, Full Potential of Yield
Sustainability CEU Area (1.0)
Leigh Prezkop will demonstrate the Global Farm Loss Tool to attendees in a sweet baby broccoli field after it has been harvested. Leigh will complete the demo by inputting the data collected in the field into the Tool. Leigh will also discuss the background to the Tool’s creation, its primary purpose and how its being used today. Ammalia Lommel will discuss work GoodFarms has done over the past few years to reduce food loss on their farms and how it links to social responsibility and equitable work forces. Ammalia will also share about the work they have done to reduce plastic use in their packaging, and ongoing research the company is setting to reduce their impact from farm to packing.
Leigh Prezkop is a Senior Program Specialist for Food Waste at World Wildlife Fund. Leigh joined WWF in 2016 and manages the food loss on farms work in the greater food loss and waste portfolio. Leigh’s expertise includes horticultural production, food systems design, urban agriculture, small-scale aquaculture, and environmental public health. Previously, Leigh worked as a farmer and fermenter for medium-scale vegetable farms and urban-farm production companies. Leigh also served in the United States Peace Corps in Zambia as a Rural Aquaculture Promotion Extension Agent, teaching locals how to construct and maintain small fish farming operations. She earned her Masters in Public Health focusing on Environmental Health Science and Policy from The George Washington University and holds a BA in Communications from Sonoma State University. She also has a certification in holistic nutrition for pregnant women, postpartum women and infants.During her time at World Wildlife Fund, Leigh has led primary data collection and research of on-farm loss for a range of specialty crops, published under the banner “No Food Left Behind”. She has led various industry and stakeholder convenings on post-harvest loss and how to design loss out of the food system. She most recently developed the newly launched Global Farm Loss Tool that is being used by 10 global food companies and their supply chains in addition to dozens of companies and suppliers in the California area.
Amalia Zimmerman-Lommel is the Director of Social Responsibility and Sustainability at Andrew & Williamson Fresh Produce/GoodFarms, an international grower, shipper, and distributor of fresh produce with corporate offices in San Diego, CA. Amalia is a graduate of San Diego State University, where she completed her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (Finance emphasis) and a Master of Business Administration. Through Amalia’s leadership, GoodFarms was the first company to become certified under the rigorous standards of the Equitable Food Initiative (EFI) program and has accomplished certification at all internal farms in Mexico and the USA. She is blessed to work with a magnificent group of people that take stewardship seriously, with a goal to serve customers in a sustainable way and to positively impact the communities they do business in. As a result, GoodFarms received the first Fair Trade Certification for strawberries in Mexico, as well as numerous awards and recognitions in Social Responsibility. Amalia’s career has included various volunteer positions: California Strawberry Commission’s Sustainability Task Force, Ventura County Health Collaborative, International Fresh Produce Association’s Women’s Fresh Perspectives Committee, California Farmworker Resource Center work group, and a federal appointment from Secretary Vilsack as a member of
the Advisory Committee on Minority Farmers.
Optional Field Visit: Dole Cover Crop Study at Dole Ranch
Travel to field (map to be distributed - 10 minute drive)
For more information please contact Jeana Cadby
jcadby@wga.com | (805) 978-0221
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