| News & Info Brief WARM HOLIDAY WISHES TO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY FROM FLORIDA LAND STEWARD PARTNERS A NEW SIGN-UP FOR CONSERVATION INITIATIVES
Florida Ag Producers can apply for financial assistance until March 20, 2015
Agricultural producers can apply until March 20th for 2015 financial assistance to make natural resource improvements through several specific initiatives. The USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Florida has designated funding for longleaf pine forests, seasonal high tunnels, pollinators, water quality, organic farming, on-farm energy and gopher tortoise habitat. Farmers and ranchers can apply through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program. Longleaf pine initiative--helps private landowners improve the sustainability and profitability of longleaf pine forest ecosystems. Seasonal high tunnel initiative--helps producers install high tunnels designed to extend the growing season, increase productivity, keep plants at a steady temperature and conserve water and energy. Pollinators-- helps producers develop habitat for pollinators. National water quality initiative—helps producers in Deep Creek and Clarks Creek watersheds on the Lower St. Johns River and the Little Scurlock Creek on the Lower Choctawhatchee River to improve water quality. Organic initiative--helps producers install conservation practices on USDA certified organic operations or those working toward organic certification. On-farm energy initiative--helps producers conserve energy on their operations. Working lands for wildlife initiative—helps producers create gopher tortoise habitat. The first step to getting involved in these programs is to develop a conservation plan with a NRCS specialist. Contact your local field office in Florida. Learn more about participating in conservation programs at www.nrcs.usda.gov/GetStarted.
UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA / IFAS LAUNCHES MARKETING TOOLS FOR SMALL AND MID-SIZED GROWERS
Source: University of Florida news release
Small- and mid-sized growers often cite marketing as one of their greatest challenges. Yet, there never seems to be enough time or money to promote your products directly to those who may want to purchase them.
Florida MarketMaker and Florida Food Connect are two resources managed by UF/IFAS that aim to help alleviate the burden of marketing for Florida's growers. While Florida MarketMaker unites growers with potential markets throughout the state, Florida Food Connect is a tool that links schools with the local producers who can meet their needs.
Florida MarketMaker provides a free and simple, yet powerful, web-based search tool to connect with others across the food production and distribution chain. It is the largest and most in-depth food-related database of its kind, featuring a diverse community of more than 81,000 Florida businesses: farmers/ranchers, fisheries, seafood dealers, farmers markets, food hubs, food pantries, processors/packers, wholesalers, retailers, distributors, wineries, restaurants and other types of buyers. Essentially, MarketMaker gives growers the power to create their own searchable websites, opening the door for a flood of buyers to discover them.
Florida MarketMaker has operated in Florida since 2009 but recent developments have led to improvements and increased capabilities for marketing and market research. This month, Florida MarketMaker released a new version, intended to make the website more user-friendly and increase functionality. UF/IFAS Extension partnered with a nonprofit organization, Riverside Research, to collaborate on further development of this website as a solution that aims to alleviate marketing challenges for growers in the digital age.
Here's how it works: Growers register their businesses in MarketMaker because food buyers of all types access the database to find products and services to meet their specific needs. Through MarketMaker, producers can reach more buyers and more efficiently form profitable business alliances. Growers can differentiate their businesses by categorizing their produce and affiliating with specific labels or industry. Buyers can use MarketMaker to find more suppliers of differentiated, high-quality products leading to more efficient sourcing and higher margins.
Consumers use MarketMaker to find suppliers selling what they need. When conducting a search, the search engine shows the results on a map. Once in the system, growers' profiles are easily discovered by many types of buyers, opening the door for new types of business relationships.
Growers who sell direct to consumers can also easily advertise their products on the Buy/Sell forum.
Once growers have registered in MarketMaker, they will also be featured in Florida Food Connect, the portal for Farm to School because the two sites are intricately linked. Growers interested in selling products to use in school cafeterias can easily make connections with distributors, school district food services, and individual schools looking to source regionally. In the coming year, Florida MarketMaker will merge with Florida Food Connect.
Florida Food MarketMaker is at: http://fl.foodmarketmaker.com/. Florida Food Connect is at: http://flfoodconnect.com/. If you would like more information about this topic or need help getting started on Florida MarketMaker, please contact Wendi Bellows at 352-294-7667 or email bellows@ufl.edu.
NEW ISSUE OF SFE FIRE LINES
The Nov-Dec 2014 issue of the Southern Fire Exchange bimonthly newsletter shares research highlights and resources focused on fire and birds in the Southeast. In addition, we are excited to feature the Florida Scrub Working Groups in our Partner Spotlight and to share a recap of two SFE field tours this fall. As always, you’ll find a list of upcoming webinars, conferences, and trainings, along with fire-related news and reminders: http://www.southernfireexchange.org/SFE_Publications/Newsletter.html
USDA SEEKS PUBLIC COMMENT ON NEW EQIP RULE
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is publishing a rule that outlines how it will improve the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), one of USDA’s largest conservation programs. The interim final rule includes program changes authorized by Congress in the 2014 Farm Bill.
USDA has established a 60-day comment period for the rule. The rule is available in regulations.gov – search EQIP on the main page. Public comments can be submitted through this site or by mailing them. Comments are due by Feb. 10, 2015. The changes are intended to simplify the EQIP regulation regarding conservation practice scheduling, payment limitations and other administrative actions. More details at the Florida Land Steward Blog
TAX TIPS FOR FOREST LANDOWNERS FOR THE 2014 TAX YEAR
Tax laws on timber transactions are very specialized but important to timber owners in terms of the ongoing cost of owning and managing timber, forest stewardship and compliance to the tax law. This bulletin reviews the major federal income tax laws to help forest owners in filing their 2014 income tax returns. The information presented here is current as of September 30, 2014:
2014 TAX TIPS (pdf)
COGONGRASS TREATMENT COST-SHARE PROGRAM NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS
Applications accepted through Feb. 27, 2015 to remove invasive plant
The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Florida Forest Service is now accepting applications for the Cogongrass Treatment Cost-Share Program. Cogongrass is an invasive, non-native grass, which occurs in Florida and several other southeastern states. Cogongrass infestations negatively affect tree regeneration, growth and survival, as well as wildlife habitat, native plant diversity, forage quality and property values. They also increase the risk of wildfires and alter fire behavior.
The Cogongrass Treatment Cost-Share Program is offered for non-industrial private lands in all Florida counties. It provides reimbursement of 50 percent of the cost to treat Cogongrass infestations for two consecutive years. Applicants who wish to conduct treatments in 2015 may apply through Feb. 27, 2015. To learn more about this program and obtain an application form, contact a local Florida Forest Service office or visit http://www.FloridaForestService.com. All qualifying applications will be evaluated and ranked for approval. This program is supported through a grant from the U.S. Forest Service. For more information about cogongrass and management see http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/wg202 For more information about the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, visit http://www.FreshFromFlorida.com.
SOMETHING BUGGING YOUR TREES?
Do you have pests or a disease in your trees? Leaves or needles wilting, and you don’t know why? Sawdust falling out of your trees, and you don’t know how to save them? There is help: ask your question at the free Forest Health Diagnostic Forum: http://sfrc.ufl.edu/treehealth/forum/.
FOREST STEWARDSHIP VIDEOS - VIEW AND SHARE!
All the new videos are on the Florida Forest Stewardship Program home page:
http://sfrc.ufl.edu/forest_stewardship
HAVE AN EVENT OR RELATED NEWS TO SHARE?
Drop a line to Chris Demers, cdemers@ufl.edu
More news and info at the Florida Land Steward Blog
| *** | EAST FLORIDA (Madison County, east and south) | | December 20 | High-Tech Agriculture Workshop, 10 am - 1 pm, farm at corner of SW 27th Ave. and SW 5th St. Ocala, FL 34474. Provided by Black Farmers and Agriculturalists of Florida. Will teach how to incorporate smart phone technology in agricultural production. Contact Howard Gunn Jr. (352) 572-1063, usa352@aol.com. | | January 23, 2015 | 2015 Timucuan Science & History Symposium: Looking Back 450 Years in the Place Where the Waters Meet, registration begins 8:00 am ET, Ribault Club on Fort George Island in Jacksonville, FL. The registration fee is currently $25 and will increase to $35 on January 1. See link above for details or contact the Timucuan Trail Parks Foundation, (904) 707-3584. | | February 26 | Forest Stewardship Workshop: Integrating Wildlife and Forestry, 9 am to 3 pm ET, Austin Cary Forest Learning Center, 10625 NE Waldo Rd, Gainesville, FL 32609. Details to come. Contact Chris Demers, cdemers@ufl.edu, (352) 846-2375. | | March 18-19,
2015 | Florida Urban Forestry Council Symposium: The Cost of Not Maintaining Trees (link), Patel Center of Global Sustainability, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL. Two full days of talks, featuring some of the world’s leading experts in the fields of arboriculture, urban forestry, and utility vegetation management. Foresters, 12 Cat 1 SAF CFEs are approved. See link above for details and registration. Event contact is Sandy Temple, (407) 872-1738, fufc@aol.com | | June 16-18 | Conference on Laurel Wilt Disease and Natural Ecosystems: Impacts, Mitigation and the Future (link), Coral Springs Marriott, 11775 Heron Bay Blvd. Coral Springs, FL. A timely opportunity to learn the most recent state of knowledge regarding laurel wilt, its biology, impacts in native ecosystems and efforts to mitigate for its devastating effects. Foresters, SAF CFEs pending approval. See link above for details. For a brief introduction to laurel wilt, see this video to learn more: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2x7vgFWLHkY | | WEST FLORIDA (Jefferson County and west) | | | | | REGIONAL EVENTS, WEBINARS, ONLINE TRAINING | | January 22, 2015 | Webinar: Cover Crop Economics Decision Support Tool (link), 2 pm ET, see link for details. | | January 25-27 | Southeastern Society of American Foresters Annual Meeting - "Southern Forestry Environmental Issues: Water Quality and Beyond", King and Prince Beach & Golf Resort, St. Simons Island, GA. Landowners and foresters are invited to get the latest information on federal and state environmental issues and how they impact southern forestry operations and businesses. Pre-registration rate is $245 for SAF members and $300 for non-members, available through January 7. Details and registration at http://sesaf.org/ | | January 27 | Webinar: Conservation Biological Control: Habitat Management to Control Pests (link), 2 pm ET, see link for details. | | January 27-
February 17 | 2015 Master Tree Farmer will be conducted every Tuesday evening beginning on January 27, 2015 continuing through February 17. The program will start at 7:00pm and end at 8:30pm. This year the program will be delivered via the internet which means you will have the option to watch it at home. Details at http://www.mastertreefarmer.net/treefarm2015.html | | January 28 | Webinar: Conservation Planning for Diverse Vegetable Rotations: Tools and Issues (link), 2 pm ET, see link for details. | | March 16 -
April 15 | Conservation Site Assessment & Planning (link), online: March 16 - April 10, 2015; In-person: April 14-15, 2015, Ordway-Swisher Biological Station, Melrose FL. Presented in a hybrid format, this workshop builds a foundation of skills useful in conducting site assessments and developing resource management plans. See link above for details and registration or contact the workshop coordinator, sefriedl@ufl.edu | | | |
*** |
