The Farming Show

A local reporter is uncovering the true history of what used to be a major Skagit Valley crop: green peas.

Sophia Gates with Cascadia Daily News extensively researched the new article, and joins Dillon with details on why commercial pea farming has almost entirely disappeared from Skagit County, giving insight into the larger struggles all farmers in the region continue to face.

An embattled Moses Lake-area farm family finally got its day at Washington state’s high court, after suing the state Department of Ecology for breaking the law nearly a decade ago when it slapped the farm with a half-million dollar fine.

Ben Tindall, Executive Director of Save Family Farming, joins Dillon with details of what happened at the Supreme Court of Washington on Thursday, Oct. 1 when the Fode family’s case received its much-awaited hearing before the bench.

Farming in Washington state is in crisis, with more farms closing daily as farmers face costs that are often far exceeding what they get paid for their crops.

Sadly, this has led to worsening mental health problems among farmers, as they grapple with crushing pressures and a looming sense of failure.

State Rep. Tom Dent, a farmer himself, joins Dillon to explain how excessive state regulation has added even more unnecessary stress for farmers, and what his plan is to try to bring some relief for the people growing food in our state.

A Whatcom County government advisory committee is refusing to walk back false accusations it made against local farmers in its 2026 annual report to the County Council, instead claiming they “allow those contradictions to co-exist,” in a July 24 “Open Letter to the Whatcom County Council.”

Mark Stremler, Whatcom County Council member, joins Dillon to share his frustration with the Whatcom County Food System Committee’s handling of the situation, and its apparent inappropriate overlap with the private, activist-led “Whatcom Food Network” group.

The Farming Show previously reported on the situation, and confirmed the false nature of the committee’s accusations. Save Family Farming also sent a letter to Whatcom County Executive Satpal Sidhu laying out the report’s problems and calling for the report to be rejected and the currently activist-controlled committee to be reorganized.

A new Washington State University study surveyed hundreds of farmworkers across the state, and found that most are losing income thanks to Olympia’s overtime law for farming.

Maia Espinoza, Executive Director of the Center for Latino Leadership, joins Dillon to talk about the survey’s results, and how her organization assisted the WSU research effort.

Coming from schools all over Whatcom County, nearly 1,000 third grade students are slated to descend on the Northwest Washington Fairgrounds in Lynden in early November to hear from farmers about local farming.

Ellie Corbin, Whatcom Family Farmers’ Education Coordinator, joins Dillon with details on the 11th annual Whatcom Farm Circle and how local businesses and others can support the important educational event with sponsorships and more.

Bureaucrats in Washington state have forced a new, strict environmental rule for forestry that would have few, if any benefits while costing farm foresters and the communities they support literally billions of dollars.

Dr. Elaine Oneil, Executive Director of the Washington Farm Forestry Association, joins Dillon with an update on how foresters are fighting back, including a recent court win putting the rule on pause as their legal appeal moves forward.

Family ranchers in Eastern Washington continue to fight for justice after the state Department of Ecology accused them of damaging wetlands and slapped them with massive fines, when they were simply cleaning longtime stockwater ponds.

Oliver Dunford, a Pacific Legal Foundation attorney representing Wade and Teresa King and King Ranch, joins Dillon with the latest details in the ongoing legal saga.

The activist author of a misleading new UCLA-sponsored report claims farmers closely following the strict rules for hiring guest workers through the federal H-2A program are actually exploiting a “loophole.”

Enrique Gastelum, CEO of the Worker and Farmer Labor Association, joins Dillon to expose the truth about this flawed research and the falsified conclusions its author reaches–not surprisingly, exactly in line with already-existing political lobbying efforts.

As the public’s concern about higher food prices–especially beef–is getting headlines and political attention from President Trump, farmers and ranchers are again pushing back against his move to incentivize more beef imports from foreign countries.

Austin Allred, a beef producer and dairy farmer based near Royal City, WA joins Dillon with an inside look at the differences between what grocery shoppers and farmers face, and what the real long-term solution to high food prices needs to be particularly in Washington state.