James G. Boswell II dies; farming tycoon - San Francisco Chronicle
08.04.09
Mr. Boswell died of natural causes Friday at his desert home in Indian Wells (Riverside County), according to a statement from the family.
As head of the family-owned J.G. Boswell Co., Mr. Boswell ran a company that has dominated California cotton growing for generations and its clout to influence land and water resource policy throughout much of the state.
Mr. Boswell was just 29 when he inherited 50,000 acres after the death of his uncle and family patriarch, J.G. Boswell. Over the next half century, he transformed the family farm in Corcoran (Kings County) in the San Joaquin Valley. Mr. Boswell's labs created new, more productive seeds.
Historians and agriculture economists credit Mr. Boswell for creating the template for large agribusiness concerns.
The Boswell business remains one of the world's top sellers of "the extra long staple cotton that goes into fabric blends and both soft and high-end apparel," said Don Villarejo, director emeritus of California Institute for Rural Studies in Davis.
Source: San Francisco Chronicle, USA
December Furlough
I'm not much of a journal keeper. I tried for a year, back in 2001, when Oprah told everyone how cool it was. It was not. My attempt at keeping a daily journal that year ended in a file that was impressive, yet short of the requisite 365 entries. Here, I find myself again committed to a weekly journal with no December entries! Oh well, maybe the end will be as impressive, even if short, as my 2001 venture. With so much to say, and so much to update all of you blog readers about, I will try to be short, if not sweet, yet thorough. Let's start with work.
WORK:
One of the reasons (read: excuses) I have no December entries is because December was quite hectic at work. Since beginning in August, my focus has been on health and healthy initiatives. Back in December we ('we' being the organization I work most directly for - Institute for Community-Based Research) began an assessment of alternative food systems in the Delta. An alternative food system can be any system that adds relief or removes one from the familiar grid of large-scale agribusiness -- such as big name grocery stores. These can include the use of farmers' markets, CSA's, buying locally, and use or participation in cooperatives. Specific focus for this assessment was giving to farmers' markets. JR and I traveled across the Delta interviewing farmers, restaurant owners, and market managers. After several drafts, the first phase of the assessment was written and completed at the end of December. Meanwhile, the Center for Community and Economic Development (CCED), the organization that houses my office and for which I also work, had some of its own requests for me. In addition to the seemingly numerous holiday parties I helped plan, attend, etc., I also was asked to attend a health conference in Jackson. All of this in an abbreviated month. The CCED closes, along with the university, for 2 weeks in December. So on Friday, December 20, I turned in all of my reports, packed my bags,...
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