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EMPOWERING PRODUCERS OF FOOD & FIBER Friday, August 30, 2019 Volume 92, Number 35 CapitalPress.com $2.00 I R RI G ATI O N AGG R AVATI O N Modernizing irrigation systems can involve disruptions, complications By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI Capital Press B “IF YOU WANT TO TALK HURDLES, I’VE GOT A LOT OF THEM” Craig Horrell, the managing director of Central Oregon Irrigation District END, Ore. — Though preventing leaky canals from losing water doesn’t seem like a particularly controversial idea, irrigators in Central Oregon have found out otherwise. The plan appears to be a quintessential “win- win” for agriculture and the environment: Replacing open canals with piping will save 40% of the water that would otherwise seep into the ground, enhancing the aquatic habitat of the threatened Oregon spotted frog. Changing the traditional way of doing things is often complicated, however, and modernizing irrigation sys- tems across the arid West is no exception. More efficient systems have clear benefits but can cause disruptions, such as reducing the amount of irrigation water that pre- viously recharged aquifers or returned flows to rivers late in the summer. One of the obstructions for the Central Oregon Irrigation District has turned out to be the scenic value created by a 1.5-mile stretch of open canal that runs through a well-heeled neighborhood of Bend, Ore. “If you want to talk hurdles, I’ve got a lot of them,” said Craig Horrell, the managing director of the district, which provides water to 45,000 acres in the region. Neighbors intent on preserving the canal have nomi- nated it as a historic site, potentially triggering a land use fight that could cost millions of dollars in litigation. The irrigation district plans to bypass that stretch of open canal by burying the pipe along another path, though the dispute has yet to be fully resolved. In other historic areas, the district will bury piping for irrigation in the ground while still allowing water to course through the open canal as a circulating water fea- ture to avoid upsetting local sensibilities. “Actually laying the pipe is easy. It’s getting to that See Irrigation, Page 10 Mateusz Perkowski/Capital Press An open canal within the Powder Valley Water Control District. Some of the district’s main canals were replaced with pipe in conjunction with a reservoir project. Farm groups hail trade agreement with Japan By CAROL RYAN DUMAS Capital Press READ MORE U.S. agricultural groups were quick to thank President Donald Trump and the administra- tion’s trade team for forging a tentative trade agreement with Japan on Sunday. The groups have been concerned about los- ing ground to competitors that already have an agreement with Japan through the Comprehen- sive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pa- cific Partnership and the Japan-EU Economic Partnership Agreement. The stakes for U.S. farmers are large. They exported nearly $13 billion in agricultural prod- ucts to Japan in 2018, according to USDA For- • Dairy industry looks for equitable outcome in Japan deal • U.S.-Japan deal may help tree fruit PAGE 5 eign Agricultural Service. In 2018, U.S. exports to Japan included $2.8 billion in corn, $2.1 bil- lion in beef, $1.6 billion in pork, $927 million in soybeans and $717 million in wheat. Securing greater access for those products and others is appreciated, Zippy Duvall, Ameri- can Farm Bureau Federation president, said. “America’s farmers and ranchers are pleased to hear that the U.S. and Japan may be close to a trade deal that includes agriculture. This is much-needed good news on the agricultural trade front,” he said. The U.S. Grains Council is calling the tenta- tive agreement a critical win-win, allowing U.S. farmers a level playing field with competitors. “Japan is a deeply valued trading partner for U.S. grain farmers, currently the second-larg- est buyer of U.S. corn and a significant buyer of U.S. sorghum and U.S. barley for food and feed purposes,” Ryan LeGrand, USGC presi- dent, said. See Trade, Page 10 Associated Press File A sales person at the Jusco Supermarket in Tokyo arranges U.S. beef products. Japan remains the top market for U.S. beef exports, so a new trade agreement is especially important for ranchers. Farm entrepreneur Frank Tiegs to buy NORPAC cooperative By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI and GEORGE PLAVEN Capital Press Eric Mortenson/Capital Press Frozen peas head to the bagging machines at NORPAC Foods in Salem. Oregon Potato Co. is buying NORPAC’s assets as part of the co-op’s bankruptcy. Agribusiness entrepreneur Frank Tiegs is expanding his Northwest food processing empire with the planned purchase of most of the assets of the NORPAC farm- ers’ cooperative for about $155.5 million. The transaction is expected to close in October as part of NOR- PAC’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy fil- ing, which will allow the com- pany to remain operational while restructuring debt. Tiegs, whose Oregon Potato Co. is acquiring NORPAC, said he was drawn to buy the processor due to the “premium” green beans grown in the Willamette Valley, as well as the broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini, squash and other crops produced in the region. “We’ll probably add back some of the crops they discontinued and maybe some additional,” Tiegs said. “We will try to buy as much as we can and process as much as we can and be a grower-friendly company.” The Willamette Valley Fruit Co. in Salem, Ore., is already one of the 15 processing companies owned by Tiegs and he expects to use NORPAC’s facilities to pro- cess blackberries, Marionber- ries, blueberries and strawberries grown in the valley. “I’m already in the Willamette Valley and I want to expand my fruit business,” he said. “It’s prob- ably as much a fruit play as a veg- etable play.” Potentially, the amount of strawberries grown in the area could increase as result of the deal, “as long as labor will allow it,” Tiegs said, referring to the lim- ited availability and cost of farm workers to pick the labor-intensive crop. The purchase will include NORPAC’s Oregon facilities in Brooks and Salem as well as its plant in Quincy, Wash. It will also include the cooperative’s facility See NORPAC, Page 10
