Today’s agriculture tools, seeds and methods, and the men and women who use them, make our food system healthier, safer, more affordable and more abundant than it has ever been. For example, we can grow more than six and a half times more Arizona cotton per acre than we did 100 years ago.

Arizona farmers grow more food and fiber with less – less land, less labor, less water, less soil erosion, less energy use, less greenhouse gas emissions – but with more efficiency and safety. Our Kerr Family Dairy is just one example of this.

11 MARCH 2003 — BUCKEYE, ARIZONA: The automated milking line at the Triple G Dairy in Buckeye, AZ, March 11, 2003. The Triple G is one the most technologically advanced dairies in Arizona. More than 3,000 cows per day are milked at the dairy on two rotating carousels which hold 48 cows a piece. PHOTO BY JACK KURTZ

June is Dairy month! Arizona’s 188,000 dairy cows provide us with the freshest milk, cheese and yogurt. On average, a dairy cow will produce 7 gallons of milk each day. Plus, 97% of your milk in the grocery store is coming from our local Arizona Dairies, including mine, Kerr Dairy.

11 MARCH 2003 — BUCKEYE, ARIZONA: Holstein dairy cows in a barn at the Triple G Dairy in Buckeye, AZ, March 11, 2003. The Triple G is one the most technologically advanced dairies in Arizona. More than 3,000 cows per day are milked at the dairy on two rotating carousels which hold 48 cows a piece. PHOTO BY JACK KURTZ

It’s summer! Time to find out if a watermelon is ripe by thumping it and listening for the hollow sound of ripeness. Arizona and California are the largest producers of Watermelon in the U.S. Make this and other melons and berries a centerpiece of your summer family picnics.

Fresh watermelon slices

Regions of Arizona represent different agriculture water issues. What is Maricopa County’s water issue is not Yavapai County’s. But one thing is common, Arizona’s farmers and ranchers get more crop per drop to grow the food we love.