2009 California Food and Agricultural Code - Section 78201-78207 :: Article 1. Declaration And General Provisions

78201.  The production and marketing of asparagus constitutes an
important industry of this state which not only provides substantial
and necessary revenues for the state and employment for its citizens,
but also furnishes food vital to the public.

78202.  The maintenance of the asparagus industry of California is
necessary to assure the consuming public of a continuous supply of
this product and the maintenance of needed levels of income for those
engaged in the industry.

78203.  The production and marketing of asparagus produced in this
state is hereby declared to be affected with a public interest. This
chapter is enacted in the exercise of the police power of this state
for the purpose of protecting the health, peace, safety, and general
welfare of the people of this state.

78204.  No action taken by the commission, or by any individual in
accordance with this chapter or with regulations adopted under this
chapter, is a violation of the so-called Cartwright Act (Chapter 2
(commencing with Section 16700) of Part 2 of Division 7 of the
Business and Professions Code), the Unfair Practices Act (Chapter 4
(commencing with Section 17000) of that Part 2), or any statutory or
common law against monopolies or combinations in restraint of trade.

78205.  This chapter shall be liberally construed. If any provision
of this chapter or the application thereof to any person or
circumstances is held to be invalid, the invalidity shall not affect
other provisions or applications of the chapter which can be given
effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end
the provisions of this chapter are severable.

78206.  It is hereby declared as a matter of legislative
determination that members of the commission are intended to
represent and further the interest of a particular agricultural
industry concerned and that this representation and furtherance is
intended to serve the public interest. Accordingly, the Legislature
finds that, with respect to persons who are elected or appointed to
the commission, the particular agricultural industry concerned is
tantamount to, and constitutes, the public generally within the
meaning of Section 87103 of the Government Code.

78206.5.  Opportunity exists for continued growth and expansion of
the industry by creating new markets in major portions of this
country. The success of such an expansion program is uniquely
dependent upon effective advertising, promotion, and research because
the creation of new markets is essentially a matter of educating and
informing people of the use, nutritional value, and availability of
the commodity. The expansion of the asparagus industry also provides
an important source of jobs for many people in this state, a high
proportion of whom reside in historically depressed areas of the
state, and serves to ensure the preservation of an agrarian society.

78207.  The commission form of administration created by this
chapter is uniquely situated to provide those engaged in the
production of asparagus the opportunity to avail themselves of the
benefits of collective action in the broad fields of development,
maintenance, and expansion of markets, marketing research,
advertising and promotion, and production and processing research
necessary to achieve the purposes stated herein.