In Sarasota, Florida this week John Deere officials displayed hundreds of tractors, many of them new models to become available in 2009, many of them geared toward the ‘lifestyle’ rural crowd and folks involved in things like citrus, nursery, vineyards and other agriculture operations. According to John Deere representatives on hand for the event, the new models coupled with the more traditional larger models target today’s farm equipment consumer no matter what size of the operation. Whether it be for the very large ag operations or the very small, and all in between, John Deere seems to be making a real effort to serve all market segments when it comes to farm and lawn care equipment. In this post herein you can listen to interviews and view documents we received from the John Deere folks this week in Sarasota, as they hosted agriculture media along with John Deere dealer representatives from throughout North America. Just click to see the rest of this post and you’ll find links to the interviews and other materials. Read the rest of this entry »
WASHINGTON, Oct. 8, 2008 - Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer today announced that USDA has awarded more than $28 million through the Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI) to solve critical specialty crop agriculture issues, address priorities and solve problems through multifunctional research and extension.
The Specialty Crop Research Initiative was established by the 2008 Farm Bill to support the specialty crop industry by developing and disseminating science-based tools to address needs of specific crops and their regions in five focus areas: Read the rest of this entry »
This week in Sarasota, Florida John Deere is holding an ag media event to kick off its “Drive Green” campaign. We’re on the scene here in south Florida for this event. Hear more in this report and be sure to stay tuned to Southeast AgNet for more information.
Sponsoring this report:
According to the latest USDA forecast, the prospective area for harvest of 11 selected fresh market vegetables during the fall quarter is expected to be down 4 percent from last year. Acreage is lower compared to last year for snap beans, cabbage, cauliflower, celery, head lettuce, and bell peppers while acreage increased for carrots, sweet corn, cucumbers, and tomatoes.
USDA is funding more than 234 million dollars in projects for 70 trade organizations to help promote farm products overseas under the Market Access Program. Read the release with all the awards here.
USDA is on a mission to explain the details of country of origin labeling to the producers, packers, wholesalers and retailers who now need to make it happen in the stores according to Lloyd Day, Administrator of USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service.
Listen to report here:
Various awards were presented at last week’s Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association annual meeting. Legislator of the Year awards were given to Florida State Sen. Carey Baker, R-Eustis, and Rep. Denise Grimsley, R-Sebring. FFVA’s Researcher of the Year Award went to Ronald P. Muraro, a professor and extension farm management economist at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences. And the Merchandiser of the Year Award was presented to The Fresh Market of Greensboro, N.C.
The first round of specialty crop research grants under the 2008 Farm Bill are being reviewed and should be awarded in the early part of October.
Listen to reports here:
USDA has awarded 85 grants totaling almost $3.5 million directed by the new farm bill to help farmers markets nationwide, including $75,000 for the State of Alabama Farmers Market Authority; $60,000 for the Florida Associtation of Community Farmers Markets; and two separate grants in Georgia for the Sparta/Hancock Produce Growers Cooperative and Common Ground Athens.
USDA is purchasing up to 3.6 million pounds of fresh tomatoes with currently available Farm Bill funds. The tomatoes will be donated to child nutrition and other domestic food assistance programs.
The Florida Farm Bureau Federation is urging Florida growers to submit comments to the Environmental Protection Agency requesting the agency reevaluate its proposed Reregistration Eligibility Decisions for several important soil fumigants. The EPA has extended the comment period through Oct. 30.
FFBF Agricultural Policy Division assistant director Joshua Craft talks about why this is so important and how growers can go about making comments.
Now that the salmonella stpaul outbreak has been officially declared over, officials are evaluating what steps can be taken to avoid a repeat in the future.
With continued food safety concerns focused on fresh produce, the Food and Drug Administration is now permitting growers and importers to irradiate spinach and iceberg lettuce.
In response to requests from groups representing manufacturers and users of soil fumigants, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is extending the public comment period for reregistration of soil fumigant pesticides including methyl bromide. EPA had opened a 60-day public comment period in July but it has now been extended for an additional 45 days, closing on October 30.
EPA is requiring important new safety measures for soil fumigant pesticides to increase protections for agricultural workers and bystanders - people who live, work, or otherwise spend time near fields that are fumigated. These measures are included in risk management Reregistration Eligibility Decisions (REDs) for the soil fumigants chloropicrin, dazomet, and metam sodium/potassium (including methyl isothiocyanate or MITC) methyl bromide.
Producers are strongly urged to provide comments on how the changes would affect their business. Information about how to provide comments can be found on-line under the Federal Register for July 16.
The 2008 Farm bill is providing $49 million in fresh fruits and vegetables for elementary school children during the school day under the new Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program – with over 1.6 million allocated for Florida schools.
As all eyes are now on Gustav, officials are still trying to determine how much damage the heavy rains and winds from Tropical Storm Fay caused - from citrus and vegetables in south Florida to cotton and pecans in the tri-state area.
This information from the FL Dept of Agriculture:
With T.S. Fay making its way through the state, wanted to make sure everyone is aware that under the new Supplemental Agriculture Disaster Programs included in the 2008 Farm Bill, producers must have crop insurance or non-insured crop disaster assistance (NAP) coverage for the land for which assistance is being requested, and for all farms in all counties in which they have an interest, including grazing lands in order to be eligible to participate in the disaster programs. Since the 2008 Act was enacted after the application periods had closed for those programs, producers who did not have such coverage could not comply with this requirement in order to be eligible for the new disaster programs. However, the 2008 Act authorizes a waiver that allows producers to pay a fee, called a “buy-in” fee, to be eligible for this new disaster assistance. Read the rest of this entry »
Food and Drug Administration officials say they continue to find produce from Mexico that test positive for different types of salmonella, including the st. paul strain implicated in the outbreak that started at the end of April.
Dow AgroSciences has voluntarily suspended the sale and use of multiple spinosyn insecticides in Broward County and a portion of Palm Beach County. The action was taken in response to evidence that western flower thrips have developed resistance to a product with the active ingredient spinosad.
Products affected by this suspension are CONSERVE® SC turf and ornamental insect control, DELEGATE™ WG insecticide, ENTRUST® NATURALYTE® insect control, RADIANT™ SC insecticide and SpinTor® NATURALYTE insect control.
Dow AgroSciences is working with the University of Florida and the Florida Department of Agriculture to develop an educational program to help growers learn more about proper product rotation and Integrated Pest Management (IPM).
Whiteflies are always a concern for fruit and vegetable producers in the southeast and it can be expensive to control these pests. Because of that, John Altom with Valent says Venom and Knack help growers the most effective control for their dollars.
This week’s Commissioner’s Spotlight from Florida Agriculture Commissioner Charles Bronson is about the recent salmonella outbreak and its impact on Florida’s tomato industry.
Commissioner Bronson appeared before a congressional subcommittee in Washington, D.C. on July 31st to discuss the federal government’s handling of the matter. To read the text of the Commissioner’s testimony before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce’s Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, click on Commissioner’s Comments.
USDA recently announced $21 million in final Fiscal Year 2008 grant awards to states for the Senior Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program. These senior’s markets provide low-income seniors with coupons exchanged for fresh produce at farmers’ markets, roadside stands and community-supported agriculture programs.
USDA officials have announced that $49 million will be provided in fresh fruits and vegetables for elementary school children during the school day. All students in participating schools receive fresh fruits and vegetables at no cost where a high proportion of children are eligible to receive free- or reduced-price school meals.
With implementation of mandatory Country of Origin Labeling just over six weeks away, USDA is working to assist retailers and food industry organizations in implementing mandatory Country of Origin labeling with outreach and information.
Suppliers and retailers are invited to a free webinar outlining COOL requirements from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 8. Pre-registration is required by Aug. 7 to participate. Click here to pre-register and receive audio dial-in instructions. Computer log-in instructions will be sent separately to all pre-registered attendees before the seminar.
At a congressional hearing last week on the ongoing salmonella outbreak, Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Charles Bronson stressed the need to establish the roles and responsibilities of government agencies when food-borne illness strikes.
Georgia tomato growers saw big losses from the recent salmonella scare, as Tyron Spearman runs through the numbers compiled by the University of Georgia.
Listen to report here:
MAITLAND, Fla. (August 1, 2008) – Mike Aerts has been named director of the Marketing and Membership Division of the Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association effective Aug.1.
Since 1999, Aerts has served as assistant director of FFVA’s Environmental and Pest Management Division. In his new position, Mike will assist growers and shippers with the marketing of their crops as well as managing membership functions, commodity exchanges and industry marketplace issues. He also will oversee FFVA’s annual convention. Read the rest of this entry »
WASHINGTON — Florida Agriculture and Consumer Services Commissioner Charles Bronson appeared before a congressional subcommittee here today to discuss the federal government’s handling of the ongoing salmonella outbreak and its impact on Florida’s tomato industry. A text of the Commissioner’s testimony before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce’s Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee follows. Read the rest of this entry »
Florida’s Agriculture Commissioner will have a busy week shuttling between testimony before Congress and his Farm to Fuel Summit in Orlando…This in late Wednesday from the Florida Dept of Agriculture:
Florida Agriculture and Consumer Services Commissioner Charles H. Bronson will testify before a congressional subcommittee at 10 a.m.,
Thursday, July 31, in Room 2123,
Rayburn House Office Building, in Washington, D.C.,
about the nation’s salmonella outbreak and its impact on Florida’s tomato growers.
In Sarasota, Florida this week John Deere officials displayed hundreds of tractors, many of them new models to become available in 2009, many of them geared toward the ‘lifestyle’ rural crowd and folks involved in things like citrus, nursery, vineyards and other agriculture operations. According to John Deere representatives on hand for the event, the new models coupled with the more traditional larger models target today’s farm equipment consumer no matter what size of the operation. Whether it be for the very large ag operations or the very small, and all in between, John Deere seems to be making a real effort to serve all market segments when it comes to farm and lawn care equipment. 
In this post herein you can listen to interviews and view documents we received from the John Deere folks this week in Sarasota, as they hosted agriculture media along with John Deere dealer representatives from throughout North America. Just click to see the rest of this post and you’ll find links to the interviews and other materials. Read the rest of this entry »
USDA is on a mission to explain the details of country of origin labeling to the producers, packers, wholesalers and retailers who now need to make it happen in the stores according to Lloyd Day, Administrator of USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service.
Various awards were presented at last week’s 
USDA is purchasing up to 3.6 million pounds of fresh tomatoes with currently available Farm Bill funds. The tomatoes will be donated to child nutrition and other domestic food assistance programs. 
The Florida Farm Bureau Federation is urging Florida growers to submit comments to the Environmental Protection Agency requesting the agency reevaluate its proposed Reregistration Eligibility Decisions for several important soil fumigants. The EPA has extended the comment period through Oct. 30. 
Food and Drug Administration officials say they continue to find produce from Mexico that test positive for different types of salmonella, including the st. paul strain implicated in the outbreak that started at the end of April.
Protecting crops from harmful UV rays is the goal of a new crop sunscreen product from a company called Purfresh.
Whiteflies are always a concern for fruit and vegetable producers in the southeast and it can be expensive to control these pests. Because of that, John Altom with Valent says Venom and Knack help growers the most effective control for their dollars.
This week’s Commissioner’s Spotlight from Florida Agriculture Commissioner Charles Bronson is about the recent salmonella outbreak and its impact on Florida’s tomato industry.
USDA recently announced $21 million in final Fiscal Year 2008 grant awards to states for the Senior Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program. These senior’s markets provide low-income seniors with coupons exchanged for fresh produce at farmers’ markets, roadside stands and community-supported agriculture programs. 
MAITLAND, Fla. (August 1, 2008) – Mike Aerts has been named director of the Marketing and Membership Division of the Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association effective Aug.1. 
