An article from Perspectives From the Field
Carl Evers III, AFM, AgIS Capital Director of Sustainability and Vice President of California Operations, recently had the pleasure of sitting down with Emmy award winning career journalist Dave Price on Where Landowners Get Their News, a podcast from American Farmland Owner.
Watch the video below to hear Carl’s perspective on the future of California’s nut and wine grape industries. He also advocates for patience regarding California’s Sustainable Groundwater Management Act in favor of long-term benefits for the region. Carl embraces a philosophy rooted in his family’s agricultural legacy: “Good stewardship is good business.”
This episode is also available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
“He has a mantra for much of the agricultural industry…its challenges, solutions and future: ‘Good stewardship is good business.’”
“He has a mantra for much of the agricultural industry…its challenges, solutions and future: ‘Good stewardship is good business.’”
The following is an excerpt from American Farmland Owner’s article about this episode:
Evers spent most of his life in California and followed his father and grandfather into agriculture. The phrase he used early in our conversation, “Good stewardship is good business,” actually came from his father, Carl Evers II.
As “Evers III” indicates, he is the third but not just in the name.
“All three of us ‘Carls’ have been in California ag,” he explained to American Farmland Owner from his office in San Luis Obispo, California.
Growing up, Evers III tagged along with his dad, who managed farm properties around the region of their Modesto home.
He and his wife now raise two daughters and have their own operation, a lavender farm.
Evers III has experienced the nut industry in his home state of California and also during a two-year stint in Australia (Australian soil isn’t nearly as naturally fertile and requires much more work, he said).
Almond and walnut producers in the U.S. have struggled the past few years when exports couldn’t keep pace with the abundant supply. Evers III sees the situation improving, especially for almond producers.
“I think we’re finding the bottom of that trough,” he said.
The strong U.S. dollar remains a challenge for American producers, he said, as they look for a rebound in global demand.
For wine grape growers, uncertainty remains.
He’s not so sure what will happen in the wine industry. Consumers are not drinking as much, especially younger consumers. In fact, younger people are drinking less alcohol overall. Is that cyclical? Is it a more permanent change in lifestyle?
For Evers, though, everything comes back to his dad’s saying:
“Good stewardship is good business.”
Click here to read the full article at American Farmland Owner
