No potatoes, no jobs A Klamath Basin potato shipper says it will lay off its 35 employees at the end of December, because it will run out of potatoes to sell. The basin's potato crop has been cut by two-thirds because of water shortages. Many farmers had irrigation supplies cut off this spring so water could be reserved for protected fish. The Newell Potato Cooperative in Tulelake usually operates 11 months a year, but will work only four months this year. Retail produce sales almost normal Produce wholesalers say their business is slowly returning to normal, after a slump that followed the September 11th terrorist attacks.
Wholesalers say produce demand from retailers has recovered almost entirely.
But they say sales of fruits and vegetables to restaurants, hotels and airlines remain slow. Supplies are increasing for produce items imported by air, such as pineapple from Hawaii and specialty fruit from Chile. A dispute about water supplies has led Sacramento Valley irrigation districts to file suit against the federal government. The irrigation districts say the government wants to reduce the amount of water they can draw from the Sacramento River. The lawsuit says the government's action violates water contracts that the districts signed with the federal Central Valley Project in 1964.