The Campaign for Organic & Regenerative Agriculture (CORA)

CORA is a grassroots organization of concerned residents from the Pajaro Valley and the Monterey Bay region dedicated to achieving an environmentally and socially just agricultural system.

A Toxic Pesticide Problem

Every year more than 1 million pounds of pesticides are applied in Santa Cruz County. Many of these pesticides are toxic and are being applied on agricultural fields near our schools and homes in the Pajaro Valley. Some of these pesticides are carcinogens, and are especially harmful to children. To see where these toxic pesticide fields are located, check out the map in our infographic below.

The Solution

CORA envisions a future in which the entire Pajaro Valley region will be farmed organically. In the immediate future, we want the fields near our homes and schools to be converted to organic in order to protect the health of our children and community. Sign our petition below.

Sign Our Petition Asking Driscoll's to Go Organic

Dear CEO Bjorn and Executive Chairman Reiter:

We are writing to request that you convert your field operations near schools and residential areas in the Pajaro Valley to organic. The Campaign for Organic & Regenerative Agriculture has released a map of conventional fields near Watsonville area schools and homes that are currently using toxic pesticides, many of these fields are under the control of Driscoll's and/or affiliated companies.

Public data shows that many of the toxic chemicals used on these fields, such as Malathion, 1,3 Dichloroproprene and Chloropicrin, cause cancer, learning disabilities, and other severe health problems. These toxic chemicals are being used on fields within close proximity to our schools and homes and pose a health risk to our students, teachers, farmworkers, and families who live in these communities. We are aware that approximately 20% of the farmland in the Pajaro Valley is already organic and that Driscoll’s and REITER affiliated companies have many organic operations as well. 

Thank you for considering our request to transition fields near Watsonville area schools and homes to organic. We appreciate the positive statements by Mr. Reiter in the past about these ideas and we now would like to see real action.

See the detailed infographic below.

Please sign our petition below asking Driscoll's to convert their fields near our schools and homes to organic. Share it with friends and family.

The Pajaro Valley:

How Do Pesticides Impact our community?

Click the next arrow to scroll through the infographic and learn more about what you can do to help us fight against toxic pesticides.

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