Lundberg Family Farms, a national leader in organic rice, rice products and US-grown quinoa, today announced that it has been named the 2018 California Leopold Conservation Award® winner.

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Pictured Bryce Lundberg, Tim Schultz, Mike Denny, Grant Lundberg, Jill Lundberg, and Julianne Stafford (Photo: Business Wire)

Sand County Foundation, the nation’s leading voice for private conservation, created the Leopold Conservation Award to inspire American landowners by recognizing exceptional farmers, ranchers and foresters. The prestigious award, named in honor of renowned conservationist Aldo Leopold, is given in 14 states.

The award is presented annually by Sand County Foundation, Sustainable Conservation, and California Farm Bureau Federation. Lundberg Family Farms received a $10,000 award and a crystal depicting Aldo Leopold at the California Farm Bureau Federation’s Annual Meeting.

“We are honored to receive the Leopold Conservation Award in recognition of the environmental practices we have applied on our farms for over 80 years,” said Bryce Lundberg, VP of Agriculture and third generation family member. “Our grandparents instilled a deep respect for the land in our parents. Our family has been deeply influenced to maintain and expand upon that rich tradition.”

“We feel a profound responsibility to enhance our environmental stewardship in all that we do, whether in farming operations, where we have substantially expanded our organic farming practices in the third generation, to building wildlife habitat, including a 100-acre-plus riparian forest along the Feather River, to increasing our use of renewable energy, with nearly two megawatts of on-site production, to achieving Platinum Status with the U.S. Zero Waste Council at our primary production site,” Lundberg said.

“The Lundberg family is an absolute standout for its 50-plus years of truly pioneering stewardship for the benefit of people and the environment,” said Ashley Boren, Executive Director of Sustainable Conservation, which has co-sponsored the award since its inception in California. “They’ve led the way in so many areas. From pioneering organic rice production in the U.S., to boosting clean air by flooding instead of burning fields after harvest, to establishing an egg-rescue-and-release program that’s saved tens of thousands of migrating birds along the Pacific Flyway. The list goes on and on.”

“The California Farm Bureau Federation is proud to partner with Sand County Foundation and Sustainable Conservation in recognizing farmers and ranchers who make conservation a key focus of their business plan, with the annual selection of the Leopold Conservation Award recipient,” stated Jamie Johansson, President.

“This year’s California recipient, Lundberg Family Farms, has made conservation of the natural resources on their land a way of life, ensuring that future generations will enjoy the same vibrant ecosystems that they inherited from their parents and grandparents,” Johansson added. “As the most productive agricultural state in the nation, California farmers have shown their ability to protect the environment, while producing a cornucopia of food and farm products that not only create sustainable economic stimulus, but help feed the rest of our nation and world. We are proud that so many California agriculturalists share Aldo Leopold’s pragmatic vision for conservation and farming and ranching.”

About Lundberg Family Farms

Since 1937, the Lundberg Family has been farming rice and producing rice products at their farms in the Sacramento Valley. Now led by its third generation, Lundberg Family Farms uses organic and eco-positive farming practices to produce wholesome rice and quinoa products while protecting and improving the environment for future generations. For more information, visit Lundberg.com and follow us on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter and Instagram.

for Lundberg Family FarmsCarla Achacoso, 415-844-6206lundberg@accesstheagency.com