2016 California Black Agriculture Expo ~ "One Standard For Humanity"

Sacramento, CA – Our 18th Annual California Black Agriculture Expo is preparing to showcase the diversity throughout our #1 California Agriculture economy and demonstrate a new positive direction expanding opportunity for California ~ Pan African and Caribbean Agribusiness.

Together, we will showcase past, present and future contributions by Black Farmers and Agriculturalists, while highlighting the journey to arrive a this new beginning.

A little more than a decade ago, US Ag Secretary, Ann Veneman, our first women Agriculture Secretary in U.S. History, helped us begin to break down barriers here in California and Nationally, helping to transform "America's last plantation" our United States Department of Agriculture.

Nationally, Black Farmers and Agriculturalists should have been declared an endangered species and received maximum governmental protection, however many producers were offered limited consideration by a federal court consent decree and much later other socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers were provided similar relief by the US Congress.

Today, California Department of Food and Agriculture, Secretary Karen Ross and CDFA Board President Craig McNamara continue to implement a forward vision expanding the reach of “California Grown” products in an ever changing political landscape and environmental climatic conditions.

Globally, Black Agriculture producers, are beginning to prosper utilizing ethnic specialty crops, in both urban and rural production. Together, we have an amazing opportunity to expand local capacity and export markets throughout diverse Pan African, Brazilian and Caribbean ethnic consumer markets, in deed we have come a long way and poised for amazing growth.

Few want to consider the long and difficult journey since, first California Governor Peter Burnett articulated his proposal to export every black person out of our state in 1850 in his inaugural address, while chattel slavery was imported as the California Gold Rush waned.

A plethora of California Legislative actions specifically targeted people of African ancestry beginning in 1850, and remnants of that systemic institutional racism is sustained in many parts of our State, reflecting an unyielding, relentless attack upon Black Agriculture reflected in the data the official 2012 US Census Agriculture.

Today, California Black Agriculture producers are officially quantified as less than 1% of all farmers in the State of California, as we prepare for a targeted effort to enumerate our new, returning and Urban Agriculture producers in the 2017 US Census of Agriculture.

Black Agriculture continues to work towards a renaissance of agriculture by regaining our stature and rightful place in the world's leading Agriculture community. 2017 we will expand formal collaborative partnerships to solidify key building blocks, to meet the challenge with a strong methodology for success.

California is named after an African Queen Califia. The African Founding Father of California helped to create Agriculture Export in the State of California; his steam vessel is seen on our California State Seal. The town of Allensworth, California highlights the efforts by US Colored Troops after the US Civil War and the story continues... the foundation is strong.

"One standard for humanity" is our theme for our 2016 Agriculture Expo.

California Black Agriculture producers will once again lead the world in providing nutrition, health and wellness for people of African ancestry globally. It is time to provide greater awareness and access to experience the amazing diversity of Pan African agriculture products throughout the State of California and beyond.

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