As many are feeling a pinch at the pump with gas prices on a recent rise, as oil prices skyrocketed amidst the conflict in Iran. One local farmer and politician say the issues plaguing farmers in California date back long before the first bomb was dropped."To pretend that Iran is the first reason why fuel prices are going up is false," said Rep. David Valadao.Valadao said in a phone call with 23ABC on Tuesday that while the conflict overseas could be creating some issues for farmers, the issues stemming from high oil costs are homegrown.The only reason why these things matter or have an impact on us is because, especially the state of California, has allowed our production to go down to a point where we're depending on other nations, said Valadao.California Farm Bureau Director of Policy Advocacy Matthew Viohl, echoing Valadao's sentiment on the length of the issues noting that any increase in costs would pose problems to farmers' pocketbooks.California farmers and ranchers have faced elevated input costs for several years. Any potential increase to inputs would come at a time when the U.S. farm economy is facing significant financial headwinds. California Farm Bureau continues to support policies that provide stability for farmers and ranchers, said Viohl in a statement.Tuesday, we met Jason Giannelli, a fourth-generation Kern County Farmer with his hands in various crops from corn to pistachios. Giannelli said the issue for local farmers is the constant increase in costs on things like water and electricity, essential tools to run their operation."They've been going up every year for at least I can remember for at least the last 10 years, if not more. Every year, they go up. We've seen our diesel prices go up. Commodity prices have been low. And that increase, when fuel prices go up it doesn't just hurt our machines that we run, with fuel prices, but also it hurts our inputs, our crop inputs, of our fertilizers and all that stuff. All that goes up as well."Both Giannelli and Valadao noted they believe that one of the ways to cut costs for California farmers is to increase oil production and refining efforts in the state.Stay in Touch with Us Anytime, Anywhere: Download Our Free App for Apple and Android Sign Up for Our Daily E-mail Newsletter Like Us on Facebook Follow Us on Instagram Subscribe to Us on YouTube ...read more read less