Burns, who has worked in the vineyard industry for than 30 years, is operations manager at Saini Farms in the Dry Creek Valley
By Tim Tesconi
Pat Burns, the new president of Sonoma County Farm Bureau, said his two-year presidency will be focused on growing the community support and goodwill generated by agriculture’s united effort to defeat Measure J.
Burns is gratified that voters resoundingly rejected Measure J, sending a clear message that they trust farmers and ranchers to do the right thing and want dairies and poultry farms to continue in Sonoma County. The Nov. 5 election was a decisive victory for Sonoma County’s multi-billion-dollar farming community, underscoring the value of agriculture standing together and telling its story.
“We will build on the momentum of Measure J and continue to strengthen our place in the community by educating both children and adults about the value of local food production and what it takes to produce that food,” said Burns, 54, a resident of Healdsburg and the operations manager at Saini Farms in the Dry Creek Valley.
Burns will continue the community outreach work of outgoing Farm Bureau president Doug Beretta, an organic dairy producer in Santa Rosa who has long been an advocate for agricultural education in the urban sector. Beretta was in the forefront of the campaign against Measure J and a strong voice for the multi-generational dairies that would have been forced out of business.
If passed, Measure J would have banned large animal operations like dairies and poultry farms in Sonoma County, threatening the entire business infrastructure associated with livestock and poultry production. The measure was put on the ballot by radical animal rights activists with the ultimate goal of eliminating animal agriculture in the United States and removing meat, milk and eggs from the American diet.
Sonoma County would have been the first county in the country to restrict the size of animal farms. Agricultural leaders warned it was just the starting point in a movement that would spread throughout California and to the rest of the country.
Voters got the message and supported the farming industry. Measure J was overwhelming rejected by 85 percent of Sonoma County voters.
During the 14-month campaign to defeat Measure J, the agricultural community learned the importance of connecting with consumers and putting a face on farming to dispel myths about remote corporate agribusiness giants producing our food.
Going forth, said Burns, Sonoma County Farm Bureau will continue to build bridges in the general community and expand agriculture’s outreach so that county residents have an even better understanding – and appreciation – for the thriving farming industry in the San Francisco Bay Area Food Shed. He said while water and labor are key issues for farmers, nothing is more important to the survival of Sonoma County agriculture than having the support of urban voters.
Burns said Farm Bureau’s annual Ag Days, held each March at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds, is one of the organization’s primary events to introduce urban kids, parents and teachers to the farmers and ranchers who live and work on the county’s 500,000 acres of farmland. He said Farm Bureau’s efforts are to expand Ag Days and bring it back to pre-pandemic levels when nearly 5,000 kids and adults attended the event.
Farm Bureau also plans to host the Sonoma County Farm Fest in July. The event, held for the first time in 2024, is an opportunity for the community to connect with Sonoma County agriculture and meet the farmers and ranchers who work the land.
Burns praised the hard-working, dedicated staff at Sonoma County Farm Bureau, under the direction of Dayna Ghirardelli, the organization’s executive director, to move forward on the goals prioritized by Farm Bureau’s board of directors.
Like Beretta, Burns is a get-the-job-done kind of guy. Born and raised in Healdsburg, he did not grow up in a farming family but was surrounded by agriculture and the people who propel it. His career path in agriculture started in 1993 when a friend’s father suggested working in vineyard management because wine grapes are the county’s dominant crop, planted on more than 60,000 acres.
The friend’s father arranged an interview with Bevill Vineyard Management based in the Dry Creek Valley. The interview took place in a field in the middle of a vineyard redevelopment job. Burns, who was working at Healdsburg Lumber at the time, was offered the job and accepted it on the spot. He started two weeks later and has been learning and growing his skills ever since while becoming a passionate advocate for agriculture and a leader in Sonoma County Farm Bureau.
“I got to learn and see how it was all done. I soaked it all up,” said Burns, who supplemented his work experience with viticulture classes at Santa Rosa Junior College and extension course work through U.C. Davis.
Burns worked for Bevill Vineyard Management until 2013 when he took the position of general manager of vineyard operations with Draxton Wines. In 2022 he was hired as operations manager at Saini Farms, which includes 300 acres of vineyards in the Dry Creek and Alexander valleys and the Saini Vineyards winery.
The Saini family began farming in the Dry Creek Valley in 1917, the same year that Sonoma County Farm Bureau was founded. The Saini family has been a member of Farm Bureau for most of the last century.
Today, members of the Saini family play key roles in running the vineyards and winery. They include brothers Mike and Brian Saini, fourth-generation family members, who work alongside their father John Saini. Mike’s wife Laura and Brian’s wife, Mikaela, also work in the family business.
Mike and Laura’s two children, Angelo and Valentina, and Brian and Mikaela’s three daughters, Sophia, Olivia and Gia, are the fifth generation on land that has been in the family for 107 years.
Burns likes the wide range of work he does at Saini Farms, everything from maintenance of the ranch houses to supervising night crews during harvest.
“I might be fixing a leaky roof one day and cleaning a clogged ditch the next day,” he said.
As a family-focused man himself, Burns also likes working for a multi-generational agricultural farming business dedicated to land and family legacy.
Burns and his wife Kathy live outside of Healdsburg and are fortunate that their two grown children were able to buy adjoining properties, creating a family compound where the grandkids can walk across the yard to visit their grandparents and help in the vegetable garden. Daughter Cortney and her husband Andrew Harris, have two children, Monroe, 3, and Myles, 10 months. Son Gary Randolph and his wife Chelsea, have a son, Hayden, who is three months old.
Burns said his passion for agriculture stems from the challenges faced every day by working outdoors and gambling with Mother Nature. In addition, he has the utmost respect for the resilient people who work in agriculture and strive every day to make sure things are done right while having an abiding respect for land and nature.
“Even after being involved for more than 30 years, I still get a sense of accomplishment when we complete a new vineyard installation or replant, or when I see the ground being tilled at the right time,” said Burns.
For Burns the best time of year is harvest, which is payday for farmers.
“I think that being able to harvest a crop that you have worked is one of the most fulfilling things,” said Burns. “Every year we get to see an end product to all of the hours that were put in throughout the growing season.”
Burns joined the board of Sonoma County Farm Bureau in 2017 to stay current on issues, such as water and labor, that impact agriculture. He believes Farm Bureau’s work in monitoring the over-reaching regulations proposed by different agencies is crucial to keep farmers and ranchers from being regulated out of business. He said Farm Bureau’s advocacy is vital for upholding the rights of farmers and landowners.
Burns quickly moved up the ranks of Farm Bureau leadership. He served as second vice president, then first vice president. He was slated to become Farm Bureau president two years but it was when he had taken the job at Saini Farms. He wanted to focus on his new job and asked that he continue as first vice president for another term.
That’s when Doug Beretta agreed to step back into the role of Farm Bureau president. Beretta, who has been on the Farm Bureau board for more than 25 years, first served as board president in 2003-2004.
Beretta said his most recent term as president was, of course, defined by agriculture’s united, strategically-planned campaign to defeat Measure J. Beretta said 2024 was a year like no other but he is beyond gratified by the stunning victory in the Nov. 5 election.
“The community came together to fight for agriculture,” said Beretta, a third-generation dairy rancher and one of Sonoma County agriculture’s most vocal and ardent supporters. Beretta continues as a director of Farm Bureau.
The other officers of Sonoma County Farm Bureau’s board of directors are first vice president Nicolas Hernandez Ramirez, a vineyard supervisor at Bevill Vineyard Management; and second vice president Daniel Charles, vineyard manager at Foley Family Wines. As students both Hernandez Ramirez and Charles were recipients of multiple agriculture scholarships offered by Sonoma County Farm Bureau. They are now stepping into key leadership roles for the county’s farming community.
John Bidia, a vineyard supervisor at Korbel Vineyards, continues as Farm Bureau treasurer.
