Some farming families have been producing food and fiber in the San Joaquin Valley for more than 160-years.
They have made it through droughts, and pests, disease, and wars, and regulations. But, this year's deepening water crisis is forcing some farmers to think about planting their next crop in another country.
Manuel Cunha with the Nisei Farmers League said, "We probably have 60-70 farmers farming in Mexico today."
And that's not all, Cunha said, the invitations from Central American countries are getting louder to farm there instead of here.
"When they offered the land and the water at no cost to these growers, that's huge." Cunha said.
In the last couple of years he has met with foreign leaders inviting Central Valley farmers to move all or part of their farming operations to Honduras, and Nicaragua, and El Salvador, and Guatemala.
"I'm going and looking at areas of the world where they are making the investments in basic infrastructure in dams and providing water to new growing areas," said Stuart Woolf a local farmer.
Woolf and his family grow almonds and pistachios, some wine grapes and thousands of acres of tomatoes, more tomatoes than Italy. He hasn't pulled up stakes yet.
But if he, and thousands of other farmers can't get the water to grow their crops and fuel the economy of this great Valley, They'll go where they can, like Brazil, or Chile.
"But, they really don't pay for the water, and the water never stops, it's a constant supply and they don't need reservoirs because it's all in the Andes," said Woolf.
In the last few years Woolf has visited Turkey and Egypt, Central and South America, always in search of the best climate and soil and water to expand his family farms.
"I have friends who has gone down to Mexico and Guatemala and sourced some of these crops and they have done it successfully," he said.
"In this state our farmers are being beat up by a very poor water plan. The 2nd biggest thing coming at us is all the regulations. It's like farmers are bad and we need to regulate them to pieces,when you have countries like Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Guatemala saying we want to meet with your farmers, we want them to come to our country and we will help them and we will do this for them, why would you not want to do that," said Cunha.
Both Manuel Cunha and Stuart Woolf speak for hundreds of other farmers when they express dismay at the way the current water shortage has been mismanaged.
"Certainly in a year like this where we are struggling with drought, I can tell you that interest will only grow," said Cunha.
This summer, Cunha will host more foreign leaders, looking for new homesteads.
"I would imagine the meetings that I'm gonna have with the presidents and various farmers, there won't be enough room in the building. Because the farmers are going to come and say, we're going," said Cunha.
They have made it through droughts, and pests, disease, and wars, and regulations. But, this year's deepening water crisis is forcing some farmers to think about planting their next crop in another country.
Manuel Cunha with the Nisei Farmers League said, "We probably have 60-70 farmers farming in Mexico today."
And that's not all, Cunha said, the invitations from Central American countries are getting louder to farm there instead of here.
"When they offered the land and the water at no cost to these growers, that's huge." Cunha said.
In the last couple of years he has met with foreign leaders inviting Central Valley farmers to move all or part of their farming operations to Honduras, and Nicaragua, and El Salvador, and Guatemala.
"I'm going and looking at areas of the world where they are making the investments in basic infrastructure in dams and providing water to new growing areas," said Stuart Woolf a local farmer.
Woolf and his family grow almonds and pistachios, some wine grapes and thousands of acres of tomatoes, more tomatoes than Italy. He hasn't pulled up stakes yet.
But if he, and thousands of other farmers can't get the water to grow their crops and fuel the economy of this great Valley, They'll go where they can, like Brazil, or Chile.
"But, they really don't pay for the water, and the water never stops, it's a constant supply and they don't need reservoirs because it's all in the Andes," said Woolf.
In the last few years Woolf has visited Turkey and Egypt, Central and South America, always in search of the best climate and soil and water to expand his family farms.
"I have friends who has gone down to Mexico and Guatemala and sourced some of these crops and they have done it successfully," he said.
"In this state our farmers are being beat up by a very poor water plan. The 2nd biggest thing coming at us is all the regulations. It's like farmers are bad and we need to regulate them to pieces,when you have countries like Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Guatemala saying we want to meet with your farmers, we want them to come to our country and we will help them and we will do this for them, why would you not want to do that," said Cunha.
Both Manuel Cunha and Stuart Woolf speak for hundreds of other farmers when they express dismay at the way the current water shortage has been mismanaged.
"Certainly in a year like this where we are struggling with drought, I can tell you that interest will only grow," said Cunha.
This summer, Cunha will host more foreign leaders, looking for new homesteads.
"I would imagine the meetings that I'm gonna have with the presidents and various farmers, there won't be enough room in the building. Because the farmers are going to come and say, we're going," said Cunha.