Covering Agricultural Issues in the West With Journalist Todd Fitchette

Todd's Profile on Farm Progress: https://www.farmprogress.com/author/todd-fitchette

Todd's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/toddfitchette/

Todd Fitchette is the editor of Western Farm Press which is part of the Farm Progress Group. Todd has been there covering relevant agricultural issues for farmers in the West since 2013. His journalism career began in 1990 with community newspapers in California, where he earned First Place honors from the National Newspaper Association for his photography.

His career progressed to agriculture journalism where he reported on livestock and specialty crop issues in the West. This work includes covering subjects relevant to large herd dairy operations, specialty crops including fruits, nuts, vegetables and niche operations. He also covers public policy and water issues affecting western farmers. He has repeatedly been honored for his agricultural journalism by the Fresno County Farm Bureau in California. He currently lives in Yuma, Arizona.

I’ve been reading articles from Todd for several years now. I have always appreciated his ability to stay on top of the issues affecting agriculture in the west and to distill information down into a format that is accessible and digestible. I’ve run into him at events like the Almond Conference and FIRA USA and he always seems to be on-site wherever things are happening with the crops that matter most to the western United States.

I wanted to invite Todd onto the show to get his perspective as a journalist and someone who is covering these issues. I also wanted to learn more about storytelling and sharing information in agriculture. He shares openly about how he thinks about his work and how he goes about covering so many issues for his readers.