Tallahassee, Fla. – A firefighting helicopter crashed during a training exercise in Leesburg with four people on board. One fatality has been confirmed and three individuals remain unaccounted for. The Federal Aviation Administration will begin investigating the incident and officials have not immediately released additional information. At the direction of Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, flags will be lowered to half-staff at all Florida Forest Service facilities, offices, …
Florida Forest Service Now Accepting Applications to Help Landowners Prevent Southern Pine Beetle Outbreaks
Tallahassee, Fla.– Applications are now being accepted for the 2021 Southern Pine Beetle Assistance and Prevention program for non-industrial, private forest landowners. They will be open through June 18. Florida Ag Commissioner Nikki Fried and the Florida Forest Service made the announcement on Monday for the program. It is limited to 44 northern Florida counties, which is the known range …
Commissioner Nikki Fried & FDACS Submit Public Comment on USDA Climate-Smart Agriculture Strategy
Tallahassee, Fla. – Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services submitted formal public comment on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s implementation of the President’s Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad. As part of the Executive Order, the USDA was directed to collect stakeholder input on a climate-smart agriculture and forestry strategy. Commissioner Fried …
Florida Forest Service Highlights Wildfire Awareness Week
The Florida Forest Service, a division of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, urges residents to be wildfire ready by highlighting Florida Wildfire Awareness Week, April 5-11. Since January, nearly 600 wildfires have burned more than 7,700 acres. Last year, a total of 1,969 wildfires burned 44,152 acres across the state. The wildfire threat in the Florida Panhandle is substantially …
Florida Food Waste Prevention Week is April 5-9
April 5-9, 2021 is Florida Food Waste Prevention Week, and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) has joined federal, state, and local agencies, businesses, non-profits, and other partners for the inaugural event. The campaign was designed to highlight the $165 billion in food discarded each year by Americans. According to FDACS, 3.5 million Floridians suffer from chronic hunger, …
Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried: 30-Day FDACS Legislative Update
(FDACS) — This is the halfway mark of Florida’s 60-day annual legislative session. Below, Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services offer an update of the department’s priority legislation for the 2021 legislative session. “I’m proud of our common-sense, bipartisan legislative priorities this year, which include fighting child and family hunger, supporting Florida’s farmers, major climate and energy …
Florida Rancher Jim Strickland: Combat Climate Change Through Agriculture
(FDACS) — Sixth-generation Florida rancher Jim Strickland recently published an opinion piece on the important role Florida’s ranches play in combating climate change and preventing over-development. The op-ed was published in The Invading Sea, a collaboration of 25 Florida daily newspapers and WLRN Public Media reporting on climate change and environmental issues, and a project of the Florida Climate Reporting Network. Strickland is the owner …
FDACS Looking for Environmental Leaders
The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) is accepting nominations for the Agricultural-Environmental Leadership Award. The award recognizes agricultural producers who demonstrate leadership in developing and implementing innovative techniques to safeguard the environment and conserve natural resources. Nominations must be submitted to FDACS by April 15, 2021. The nomination form may be downloaded below, and more information about …
UF/IFAS, FDACS to Help Teach Science, Engineering Through Aquaculture
Through a $64,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm to Schools program, the University of Florida and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) will help some Florida K-12 educators who teach science, technology, engineering, math, and agriculture start or strengthen aquaculture education programs. To apply for the program, follow the steps. The deadline for applications …
Fried & FDACS Launch Bilingual Farmworker Vaccine Education Campaign
With the COVID-19 vaccine becoming available for at-risk populations in Florida, Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services launched a bilingual vaccine education campaign to encourage COVID-19 vaccination among Florida’s farmworkers and agriculture community. A recent study found that food and agricultural workers are among those most at risk of death from COVID-19, facing a 39 percent increase in excess …