From rice fields to wineries, Placer County betting on its agricultural roots
As Placer County looks beyond its 175th anniversary, local leaders are doubling down on a clear priority: preserving and strengthening the region’s agricultural roots, even as development pressures and modern shifts threaten to reshape the landscape.
County leaders gathered Wednesday morning at Oak Creek Lodge in Sun City Lincoln Hills for the State of Placer County address, where Board of Supervisors Chair Shanti Landon outlined a long-term vision for the region.
Central to that vision is a comprehensive General Plan update that will guide growth and policy decisions through 2050, anchored by what Landon called the county’s top priority: preserving its rural character and protecting the agricultural backbone that defines Placer County.
Landon said the county remains committed to protecting its rural character as the agriculture community supports a $242 million economic impact in the region.
“Our top commodities include rice, cattle, poultry, nursery plants and walnuts, with a combined gross production value of nearly $90 million,” Landon said. “We also lead in sustainability with 8,600 acres of certified organic production and innovative programs such as the reintroduction and commercial cattle raising on 1,200 acres at Hidden Falls Regional Park.”
Landon said that by preserving farmland and supporting local producers, Placer County can remain strong for generations to come.
“Our ag industry also has successfully blended traditional farming with agriculture tourism, creating opportunities for residents and visitors alike,” she said.
The presentation shown at Wednesday’s event said Placer County agriculture provides more than 20 wineries, 75 farm stands, four farm breweries, 17 craft breweries and eight farmers markets.
Landon said protecting the ag culture begins with the Placer County Conservation Program, created in 2020, which spans 201,000 acres of Western Placer County.
The project provides a 50-year roadmap to protect endangered species and natural habitats, manage water and aquatic resources and create a fee system to offset environmental impacts from development. The plan has a goal of protecting 50,000 to 60,000 acres as a reserve system.
Landon said the program is a model across the country for other counties to use.
“The program streamlines the permitting process for development while ensuring that conservation occurs in a balanced and contiguous way,” she said. “It will eventually conserve more than 47,000 acres of open space in the county forever. So far, we have already conserved more than 9,000 acres since the program went into operation in 2020, so not only do we protect our land, but we are also committed to cleaning up our environment.”
Landon said the county aggressively pursues funds to help mitigate fire danger and restore damaged environments.
“When it comes to preserving our rural character, protecting our forests from wildfire is essential,” she said.
Landon said the county gained a wildfire risk assessment tool in 2023 that helps officials prioritize and determine which areas of the county should take priority for fuel reduction efforts.
“We secured a $150,000 grant from the California Fire City Council to boost outreach, GIS mapping and inter-agency collaboration,” she said.
She said the county is now coordinating with Nevada and El Dorado counties to develop strategies to attract the biomass sector to the Placer County region.
“We earned an A rating as a biomass development opportunity zone, positioning us as a leader in forest biomass and fuel reduction,” she said. “This is going to help us attract investment for long-term resilience and through the French Meadows ecological forest restoration project.”
County leaders approved three contracts in March totaling $1.3 million for tree thinning work as part of the French Meadows Ecological Restoration Project. The county is also working on the French Meadows fuel reduction program, a partnership between the county and the U.S. Forest Service to remove dangerous wildfire fuel across a large area. The project covers 22,000 acres of national forest lands and 6,000 acres of private land.
“Protecting our environment really begins with conservation, but it doesn’t stop there,” Landon said. “We aggressively pursue funds to mitigate fire danger and restore damaged environments, and we’re committed to preserving our agricultural sector so that it remains a vibrant industry for our county.”
Placer County acquired a Lincoln property on Oak Tree Lane in the 1960s and constructed both a gun range and skeet range that served law enforcement and the community. In 1999, the range closed, but county officials said firing lines and an earthen berm still exist at the site. Spent bullets and shot are still present at the gun ranges, and lead is present in the soil.
The Placer County Board of Supervisors approved in 2025 a $5.1 million project to remove lead and other debris and restore the soil to meet residential environmental standards.
Landon said Wednesday that the cleanup is estimated to be 85% complete.
“Part of the high cost for this project is due to the fact that the contaminated soil has to be hauled all the way from here in Lincoln to Kettleman City to be disposed of,” Landon said of the disposal site in western Kern County, 215 miles south.
