Wednesday, February 5, 2014

Weekly Harvest, February 5, 2014

Weekly Harvest Newsletter
Sustainable Agriculture News Briefs - February 5, 2014

Weekly sustainable agriculture news and resources gleaned from the Internet by NCAT staff for the ATTRA - National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service website. The Weekly Harvest Newsletter is also available online.

News & Resources

USDA Contract Price Addendum Allows Organic Producers to Insure Crops at Contract Price
New Publication Highlights Grazing as Conservation Tool
New Guide Helps Farmers Protect Organic Seed from GE Contamination
FarmsReach Plans Online Sustainable Seed Marketplace
Webinar Series on National Sustainable Agriculture Standard Planned
New Website Invites Participation in Protecting Bumble Bees

Funding Opportunities

Agriculture and Food Research Initiative: Food Safety Challenge Area
Cascadia Foodshed Funding Project
New York Outreach and Applied Research Grant Program

Coming Events

Good Food Festival & Conference
Wisconsin Cover Crops Conference
Arkansas Grazing Lands Conference

News & Resources

USDA Contract Price Addendum Allows Organic Producers to Insure Crops at Contract Price
A new initiative to support the continued growth of organic agriculture is now available from the USDA's Risk Management Agency (RMA). The Contract Price Addendum (CPA) allows organic producers with contracted crops to insure the crop at the contract price. Organic producers can now buy a Federal crop insurance guarantee that is more reflective of the actual value of the organic crop. The CPA is available for 62 crops beginning in the 2014 crop year.

New Publication Highlights Grazing as Conservation Tool
The Pasture Project and the National Audubon Society have released Conservation Grazing: An Opportunity for Land Trusts and Conservation Organizations. The 13-page PDF discusses various ways for land trusts and conservation organizations to approach grazing as a conservation practice and management tool.

New Guide Helps Farmers Protect Organic Seed from GE Contamination
Protecting Organic Seed Integrity, a new resource designed to help organic seed growers maintain seed free of genetically engineered (GE) contaminants, is now available from the Organic Seed Growers and Trade Association (OSGATA). The book serves as a one-stop tool for organic farmers, seed handlers, and seed companies to determine individual, scale-appropriate, and crop-specific strategies to maintain genetic purity in organic seed, as well as organic food crops.

FarmsReach Plans Online Sustainable Seed Marketplace
FarmsReach, the Berkeley-based social enterprise for farmers and ranchers, has announced a pilot e-commerce platform for non-GMO, sustainable seeds. FarmsReach's Sustainable Seed Marketplace will be an e-marketplace for non-GMO seeds from a mix of seed distributors, enhanced with anecdotal seed-performance data from North American farmers.

Webinar Series on National Sustainable Agriculture Standard Planned
Leonardo Academy has scheduled a webinar series on the National Sustainable Agriculture Standard (LEO-4000 - Public Comment Draft). The webinars will be held weekly, beginning February 4. The first webinar offers an introduction to the National Sustainable Agriculture Standard. Three subsequent webinars will focus on the environmental, social, and economic sections of the standard.

New Website Invites Participation in Protecting Bumble Bees
The Xerces Society has announced that the new website BumbleBeeWatch.org allows people to be directly involved in protecting bumble bees throughout North America. In addition to uploading bee photos, individuals can identify bumble bees, learn about their ecology, and connect with bee experts and others engaged in pollinator conservation. The information gathered from participants will help researchers locate rare or endangered populations, as well as track species whose status is less well known.

>> More Breaking News

Funding Opportunities

Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI): Food Safety Challenge Area
This AFRI Challenge Area promotes and enhances the scientific discipline of food safety, with an overall aim of protecting consumers from microbial and chemical contaminants that may occur during all stages of the food chain, from production to consumption. This program will support single-function Research Projects and multi-function Integrated Research, Education, and/or Extension Projects, as well as Food and Agricultural Science Enhancement Grants that address one of the Program Area Priorities.
Applications are due May 8, 2014; a letter of intent to apply is due by February 16, 2014.

Cascadia Foodshed Funding Project
The Cascadia Foodshed Funding Project (CFFP) is a collaboration between foundation and individual impact investors seeking to place capital in regional food and farm businesses. CFFP combines grants, equity, loans, and credit enhancements to invest in food-related social enterprises in five Pacific Northwest regions and to develop infrastructure for collective impact efforts. Each capital deployment is expected to be in the range of $25,000 to $250,000.
Applications are due by February 28, 2014.

New York Outreach and Applied Research Grant Program
The New York Farm Viability Institute is accepting proposals from farmers, producer groups, researchers, educators, organizations, agencies, and businesses for grants up to $150,000. Proposals should focus on applied research, as well as education and outreach to promote new or newly adapted ideas and techniques.
Applications are due by April 27, 2014.

>> More Funding Opportunities

Coming Events

Good Food Festival & Conference
March 13-15, 2014
Chicago, Illinois
This event includes the Good Food Financing & Innovation Conference on March 13, a dynamic day that connects funders with food businesses seeking financing. The Good Food Trade Show, Good Food Policy Conference, and School Food Conference are on March 14. On March 15, the Good Food Festival brings together family farmers, local food artisans, chefs, educators, families, and Good Food enthusiasts for a day of learning, eating, and connecting.

Wisconsin Cover Crops Conference
March 13-14, 2014
Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin
This conference aims to educate participants about soil health and the role of cover crops in improving soil health. This conference is intended for anyone interested in learning more about cover crops and cover-cropping systems. Breakout sessions are offered in five different tracks.

Arkansas Grazing Lands Conference
March 14, 2014
Russellville, Arkansas
At this conference, several southern graziers will discuss how changes in their grazing management improved soil health, increased forage production, and increased profitability. The featured speaker will be Oklahoma rancher and consultant Walt Davis.

>> More Events

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Weekly Harvest and ATTRAnews Archives
Digital versions of recent and archived Weekly Harvest and ATTRAnews newsletters are available online. ATTRAnews is the newsletter of ATTRA - National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service.

The National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service - ATTRA - was developed and is managed by the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT). The project is funded through a cooperative agreement with the United States Department of Agriculture's Rural Business-Cooperative Service.

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New ATTRA Video
Putting a Hand on Them - How to Tell When Your Lamb is Finished is an eight-minute video featuring agriculture specialist Dave Scott.

Question of the Week
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Virginia Beginning Farmer & Rancher Coalition Program | webinar | Gaining Access to Farmland: Economic Considerations of Farm Leasing | WED FEB 19, 3-4 PM (EST)

Join us for a Beginning

Farmer Webinar!

Wednesday, February 19, 2014

3:00 pm to 4:00 pm (Eastern)

Webinar Presentation

“Gaining Access to Farmland: Economic Considerations of Farm Leasing”

Presenter:

Dr. Gordon Groover, Extension Economist Farm Management

Department of Agricultural & Applied Economics, Virginia Tech

To participate in this webinar, please go to: http://connect.ag.vt.edu/econleasing/

Summary: When someone thinks of a farm lease, the first thought usually is, “how much will I pay or get paid?” This often occurs before the tenant or landlord have even meet or discussed any terms. However, the main thought process should quickly shift to, “how can we reach a fair and beneficial arrangement for farmland and improvements?” Focusing on price does ground the process on financial terms yet it “short-circuits" the process of systematically discussing the contributions each is providing to ensure a viable arrangement. For example, what kind of land and improvements can be offered by the land owner? What kind of experience, skills, management, machinery, and/or livestock can be offered by the land seeker? These types of questions are a sample of what needs to be analyzed to achieve a fair lease arrangement. This webinar will focus on basic economic considerations of leasing, establishing a negotiation range, and valuation of assets and other inputs supplied by the leaseholder and/or landlord--- together designed to help farmers address those important farm leasing questions.

Visit the Virginia Beginning Farmer and Rancher Coalition Program for recordings of past webinars and to see what other exciting initiatives are being developed. For more information about the webinar or questions, contact Kim Niewolny (niewolny@vt.edu).

System Requirements:

PC-based attendees

Required: Windows® 7, Vista, XP or 2003 Server

Mac®-based attendees

Required: Mac OS® X 10.5 or newer

No registration is required. A few minutes before 3PM, go to the website address above and login by typing in your name under the “guest account”. You will then be taken to the webinar. Once logged in, run the audio wizard setup (Select MEETING/RUN AUDIO SETUP WIZARD) to ensure your computer speakers are hooked up and on. To hear the audio and presenters, speakers must be turned on. For additional technical assistance, contact Carl Estes with Virginia Tech at (540) 231-1385. During the webinar, questions can be typed into the chat box on the left hand side of the screen. A recording of this webinar will be available at the Virginia Beginning Farmer Program website afterwards.

The Virginia Beginning Farmer & Rancher Coalition Program is a state-wide and coalition-based Extension program housed in Virginia Tech’s Department of Agricultural and Extension Education. Funding was sponsored by the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (BFRDP) of the USDA-National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) Award # 2010-49400. Program activity is currently funded, in part, with an integrated, competitive grant from VAES, VCE, and the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Virginia Tech. www.vabeginningfarmer.org

~~~~~~~~~~~

Kim L. Niewolny, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor/Extension Specialist

Director, Virginia Beginning Farmer & Rancher Coalition Program

Virginia Tech

Department of Agricultural and Extension Education (0343)

282 Litton-Reaves Hall

Blacksburg, VA 24061

tel: 540.231.5784

cell: 540.577.6559

fax: 540.231.3824

email: niewolny@vt.edu

Virginia Beginning Farmer & Rancher Coalition Program

www.vabeginningfarmer.org

Appalachian Foodshed Project

www.appalachianfoodshedproject.org

Community, Local & Regional Food Systems eXtension CoP
www.create.extension.org/node/91605

www.facebook.com/ExtensionsCommunityLocalRegionalFoodSystems

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To post to this group, send email to localfoodsystems@extension.org.
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To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/a/extension.org/d/msgid/localfoodsystems/2205665CCBCD0949BA5F832B1592EBC501C2097CB0%40mirkwood.cc.w2k.vt.edu.

UF/IFAS in the news, 2/5

Good morning! Today’s UF/IFAS news:

Life On The Half Shell

http://www.ocalastyle.com/styleadmin/newsadmin/templates/style-template.asp?articleid=2641&zoneid=34#test

Learn which plants clean the air

http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2014/feb/04/learn-which-plants-clean-the-air-35607/

Free rain barrel workshop for Hillsborough residents

http://tbo.com/freeandcheapblog/free-rain-barrel-workshop-for-hillsborough-residents-20140204/

Marion County inmates nurture 125-acre garden

http://highlandstoday.com/article/20140205/ARTICLE/140209999/1334

Community Briefs for February (Santa Rosa)

http://www.srpressgazette.com/community/community/community-briefs-for-february-1.272146

Sonia Tighe Joins GenNext Growers Advisory Council

http://www.growingproduce.com/farm-management/gennext-growers/sonia-tighe-joins-gennext-growers-advisory-council/

Other news:

Graham talks about springs, spying and Cuba

http://www.gainesville.com/article/20140204/ARTICLES/140209859?p=1&tc=pg#gsc.tab=0

Proposed convention center will need public investment

http://www.gainesville.com/article/20140205/ARTICLES/140209863#gsc.tab=0

CVS calls it quits: No more tobacco products

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/02/05/cvs-will-no-longer-sell-tobacco-products/5207853/

Guards help Gators to another 20-win season

http://www.gainesville.com/article/20140204/ARTICLES/140209842?tc=cr#gsc.tab=0

Tuesday, February 4, 2014

FW: UF/IFAS in the news, 2/4

Good morning! Lots of UF/IFAS-related stories in today’s news roundup:

Oaks stingy with acorns this year, leaving wildlife hungry

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-acorn-light-year-20140204,0,6597170.story

Expert Available to Offer Relationship Tips, Advice for Valentine’s Day Coverage

http://www.newswise.com/articles/expert-available-to-offer-relationship-tips-advice-for-valentine-s-day-coverage?ret=/articles/list&category=life&page=1&search[status]=3&search[sort]=date+desc&search[section]=30&search[has_multimedia]=

Formula from UF study to help citrus growers with efficiency, accuracy

http://www.alligator.org/news/campus/article_bed1d024-8d62-11e3-ac48-0019bb2963f4.html

Volunteers sought for Money Mentor program (St. Johns)

http://staugustine.com/living/community/2014-02-04/mentors-sought-fmmm-program#.UvDpLbQUbyU

UF researchers move one step closer to finding citrus canker cure

http://www.thegrower.com/news/UF-researchers-move-one-step-closer-to-finding-citrus-canker-cure-243439541.html

Agricultural Center 25th Anniversary Exhibit (St. Johns)

http://historiccity.com/2014/staugustine/news/florida/agricultural-center-25th-anniversary-exhibit-42779

New CEU Article in Citrus Industry Magazine

http://southeastagnet.com/2014/02/03/new-ceu-article-in-citrus-industry-magazine-2/

Timely Tendings: Spring vegetable garden preparations, perennial care (Pinellas)

http://www.tampabay.com/features/homeandgarden/timely-tendings-spring-vegetable-garden-preparations-perennial-care/2164028

EXTENSION CONNECTION: What are the benefits of volunteering for 4-H? (Okaloosa)

http://www.crestviewbulletin.com/lifestyle/extension-connection-what-are-the-benefits-of-volunteering-for-4-h-1.271939

Hendry farm tour still has a few seats open

http://www.news-press.com/article/20140203/NEWS01/140203028/Hendry-farm-tour-still-has-few-seats-open

Researchers want a better strawberry

http://www.usforacle.com/researchers-want-a-better-strawberry-1.2854072#.UvDoerQUbyU

Tri-State Cucurbit Meeting – February 24th ……(Jackson/Washington)

http://fosterfollynews.com/2014/02/04/tri-state-cucurbit-meeting-february-24th/

Robotics provide unique opportunities for 4-H’ers (Washington)

http://fosterfollynews.com/2014/02/04/robotics-provide-unique-opportunities-for-4-hers/

UF, other news:

Emails in UF law dean search become bone of contention

http://www.gainesville.com/article/20140204/ARTICLES/140209902/1009/living01?Title=Emails-in-UF-law-dean-search-become-bone-of-contention#gsc.tab=0

While Asking for Help, Detroit Sells a Comeback

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/04/us/while-asking-for-help-detroit-sells-a-comeback.html?_r=0

José Salvador Alvarenga's 13 months at sea backed by fishermen and officials

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/feb/04/castaway-story-backing-from-mexican

Court ruling allows EPA to yield oversight of water nutrient levels to Florida DEP

http://www.gainesville.com/article/20140203/ARTICLES/140209912?tc=cr#gsc.tab=0

Monday, February 3, 2014

Training "Transporting farm Workers"

Subject: FW: Training "Transporting farm Workers"

Please see the attached flyer for a program being conducted at the SWFREC in Immokalee related to "transporting farm workers". If you wish to attend the free program, please contact by email or phone to the names on the registration form to register.

Thanks
Steve Futch
Extension Agent, Multi-County, Citrus

February Hardee Extension e-news

Hello All!

Enjoy reading the February 2014 edition of Hardee Extension E-news attached.

Carolyn H. Wyatt, Extension Agent III
Family & Consumer Science/4-H
UF IFAS Hardee County Extension
507 Civic Center Drive
Wauchula, FL 33873
(863) 773-2164
Fax (863) 773-6861
Raising Kids, Eating Right, Spending Smart, Living Well. . .
Information and education brought to you by UF IFAS Extension to help you live well.