Clif Bar Invests in University of California’s First Organic Research Institute

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Originally Appeared in Presence Marketing News, February 2020
By Steven Hoffman

With a $1 million endowment from Clif Bar & Company and University of California (UC) President Janet Napolitano, the university will establish the system’s first-ever institute for organic research and education. The California Organic Institute will accelerate the development and adoption of tools and practices for organic farmers and those transitioning to organic by building on the capabilities of the UC Department of Agriculture & Natural Resources’ (UC ANR) Cooperative Extension and Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program, the university said in a release. “California's organic farmers already benefit from UC ANR's pest management, irrigation and crop production research, and this partnership with Clif Bar will give UC more capacity to focus on challenges specific to organic farming,” said Glenda Humiston, UC vice president of agriculture and natural resources in the release. “The California Organic Institute will serve many of the organic producers we depend on for ingredients like almonds and figs, as well as farmers outside our supply chain,” added Lynn Ineson, VP of Sustainable Sourcing for Clif Bar. “We recognize that the future of our food company depends on the ecological and economic success of organic and transitioning farmers.” According to UC ANR, California has the most organic farms in the U.S., with 3,000 certified organic farms in the state representing 21% of all certified organic acreage in the U.S.