All posts by Shelby Martin

Tied to Ag: Ellie John, Manatee County

November 2023 FloridAgriculture eNewsletter

A Florida native, Ellie John was raised in the town of Duette, located in Manatee County. She was part of the Mighty 4-Hers of Duette and raised pigs during her youth. Growing up, John spent many summers on her great-grandparents’ farm and cousins’ dairy farm, both in New Jersey.  

John attended Manatee Technical College where she became a certified dental assistant. She was blessed to be a stay-at-home mom for 14 years with her children and has worked as a dental assistant at a family-owned practice in Manatee County for the last three years. 

Just like John did, her children participated in 4-H and showed cattle and pigs. Her husband is a fourth-generation cattle producer and actively ranches with John and their four kids. Additionally, the family owns a pasture restoration business and grows hay.  

Agriculture holds a very large part of John’s heart. She has served as the leader for the Myakka Allstock 4-H club for 11 years and is heavily involved in the Manatee County Fair in the supervision of the beef breeding barn.

John’s involvement with Florida Farm Bureau started in 2015 when a longtime family friend and board member asked her to join their newly established women’s committee. John served as a founding member and was the first co-chair, serving for two years. She has served as the committee chair for six years along with Chris Mahoney as her co-chair and 13 committee members, all involved in agriculture.  

“I have also served on the state committee for two years now and love my involvement with Farm Bureau,” said John. “I love the relationships I’ve built and the knowledge I’ve gained to help promote the ag industry.”  

Her favorite part of being involved in Farm Bureau is the Manatee County “Agventure” event, held during Farm-City Week in November. This event is a rotating activity center, with an agricultural themed make-and-take activity. John serves as the timekeeper, and they have more than 1,000 third graders learn about local agriculture. 

“What used to be a one-day event has turned into two days so we can reach more children,” said John. “We want to teach these kids that food doesn’t just come from the grocery store.”  

She is also involved with the Manatee County beef workshop and prospect show which also takes place during Farm-City Week. 

Through her strong community involvement, John is a powerful voice of agriculture in Manatee County. She continues to educate people in her community about the importance of agriculture and show them ways they can be tied to the industry.  

“I am tied to Ag through my involvement with the local 4-H clubs, FFA chapters, the county fair and our county Farm Bureau and use these groups as ways to educate people in our community about the importance of agriculture,” said John. “I also share the importance of farming and ranching through my social media whenever I can.” 

A Guide to Florida Farm Bureau Policy Development

November 2023 FloridAgriculture eNewsletter

As a grassroots organization, Florida Farm Bureau’s policies start with recommendations from members at the county level. This is predominantly accomplished through 16 commodity-based advisory committees, which are comprised of nominated members at the county-level and appointed by the organization’s state president.  

Each of the committees are made up of farmers, ranchers and growers, who are voting members on the committee, and industry professionals, who are non-voting technical advisors. These technical advisors serve as expert liaisons to their respective areas and guide Florida Farm Bureau’s policies through education. Technical advisors play a fundamental role in ensuring Florida Farm Bureau members are educated in industry updates to guide decisions that are made in accordance with current and scientifically-sound principles. 

Once policy amendments and new resolutions are proposed at advisory committee meetings, they are presented at the organization’s Annual Meeting to be accepted or rejected by the delegate body. If a policy is accepted and deemed of national importance, it is sent on to American Farm Bureau’s Annual Meeting in January for review. Once a policy is accepted on the state level, the Legislative Affairs Division implements FFBF’s policy book on the Hill by advocating and lobbying on behalf of our membership. 

In the 2023 policy process, 23 policies were amended, one policy was removed, and eight new resolutions were accepted. These changes represent the current needs of agricultural producers in Florida and will give FFBF staff the direction they need to advocate for farmers and ranchers at the local, state, and national level. 

Your Land Grant Partner

November 2023 FloridAgriculture eNewsletter

dr angleBy J. Scott Angle
[email protected]
@IFAS_VP

On June 16, 2020, UF/IFAS agronomist and longtime Gadsden County Farm Bureau member David Wright sent a text that doctors had found a golf-ball-sized tumor in his head. Colleague Sheeja George asked how she could help.

“Keep the crew going,” David responded.

George and colleagues revered David for his work ethic, his humility, and his love for agriculture. He had 10 kids and 10 tractors at his family farm in Quincy.

David’s 45-year career at the North Florida Research and Education Center in Quincy contributed to the understanding and adoption of what some call conservation farming. That is, he researched and taught producers about sod-based rotation and crop-livestock integration. It produces better yields and better environmental stewardship.

“We would be hard pressed to find a farm in North Florida that Dr. Wright’s shadow has not been on and had a positive effect on it,” wrote the Farm Bureau leaders in Gadsden, Calhoun, Jackson and Santa Rosa counties who nominated David for the Extension Professional of the Year Award.

And this compliment is recorded in a memory book at David’s retirement: “You don’t really ‘deliver’ a solution; you partner with many and ‘design’ them knowing that there is a human at the other end who is receiving and using it.”

Isn’t that what Extension is at its best?

David was cherished as a man as well as a scientist, so it’s very meaningful to us at UF/IFAS that the Florida Farm Bureau spotlighted Wright’s legacy by posthumously honoring him last month in Orlando. And it was meaningful to David that the Farm Bureau told him about the award before his death in July.

David recognized that science is in part a social phenomenon. In addition to hypotheses, observation and measurement, it depends on trust.

He built that connection and credibility with a question to colleagues: “Do you want to walk a few rounds?” The walk-and-talks around a pond at NFREC explored scientific challenges and built camaraderie.

The line between work and family was thin at best. Most of his kids have helped out at NFREC in some capacity. He considered clients to be friends and would knock on their doors, call them after hours and get to know their spouses and children.

He shared information with scientists nationwide that helped control soybean rust when it first hit the U.S. He also emphasized shared bonds, like when he gave a lobster hat to a departing USDA colleague who was moving to Maine, or when he helped a graduate student find funds to visit his family in Ghana.

David called me as his health deteriorated, and he urged me to start looking for a successor so that important science would not be interrupted. I think it was his way of telling me, “Keep the crew going!”

J. Scott Angle is the University of Florida’s Interim Provost. Since 2020 he has served as UF’s Senior Vice President for Agriculture and Natural Resources and leader of the UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS).

 

 

AFBF Convention Registration Open Now

Join your fellow Ag professionals and enthusiasts and attend the 2024 American Farm Bureau Federation’s Annual Convention in Salt Lake City, Utah, January 19-24, 2024. Farm Bureau members and non-members alike are welcome to be a part of our nation’s largest general Ag organization. At this celebration you will hear motivational keynote speakers, be able to cheer on our state award competitors, and interact with exhibitors while learning about their products on the trade show floor. Networking with fellow Ag leaders and attending educational sessions is also an important part of the AFBF Convention. Salt Lake City Farm Tours are on Saturday, January 20 and Tuesday, January 23 and are listed on the registration form.

Read more about the convention or register now here.

Your Land Grant Partner

October 2023 FloridAgriculture eNewsletter

dr angleBy J. Scott Angle
[email protected]
@IFAS_VP

When the Florida Farm Bureau Federation and UF/IFAS work together, we can help a youth from Live Oak develop into a voice for farmers and ranchers nationwide.

John Walt Boatright has returned the favor with years of service to both our organizations.

In fact, he started serving while he was still a student at the UF/IFAS College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (CALS). As a CALS ambassador, Boatright was the student speaker at our first Dinner of Distinction in 2012.

It’s our annual event honoring our staunchest supporters. Boatright has attended nearly all of them.

UF/IFAS Advancement’s Dinner of Distinction 2023. Photo taken 09-15-23

Boatright got to the podium again this year. This time he was silent as someone else spoke. Dean Elaine Turner told an audience of hundreds, “We are proud to have a part in his story through college and beyond,” before announcing Boatright as the recipient of the 2023 CALS Alumni and Friends Horizon Award for outstanding contributions to the College.

On the path from student speaker to guest of honor, Boatright established himself as a leading voice for agriculture policy. During his five and a half years in Gainesville, he regularly shared insights from his job as your FFBF director of national affairs with our faculty and students.

In fact, Boatright says, he understood that sharing those insights with UF/IFAS to be part of his job. He was told a major part of the reason FFBF headquarters is in Gainesville is to be close to UF, IFAS and CALS.

His sharing has taken many forms. Boatright served on the UF/IFAS Department of Agronomys industry advisory committee as well as on the Leadership Council for the UF/IFAS Department of Food and Resource Economics (FRE), his academic home as an undergraduate. He has spoken at every FRE Agricultural Policy Outlook Conference since his start at FFBF.

He’s been a repeat volunteer for CALS “Coffee and Careers” events on campus at which he meets with current undergraduates to review resumes and talk about his path from undergraduate to national leader.

CALS and FFBF both helped him along that path. Boatright acknowledges current FRE Chair Lisa House, who was his agribusiness management instructor a decade ago. FRE’s Mike Olexa taught him agricultural law.

Then-FFBF assistant to the president Kevin Morgan helped Boatright find just the right place in the organization. And Boatright’s former boss Jaime Jerrels mentored him in the policy arena.

So, it all seemed a bit surreal to Boatright to be held up as an honoree with his double-Gator Dad and House and Morgan in the audience, a dean handing him an award, a photographer documenting the moment, and this year’s CALS ambassadors greeting him.

As an FFBF professional and CALS Ambassador alumnus, Boatright has connected our two organizations in many ways, including speaking at meetings of the UF chapter of Collegiate Farm Bureau. It’s yet another way UF/IFAS and FFBF are growing Florida’s future.

Boatright wouldn’t be who he is and where he is if not for both our organizations. We thanked him for the decade he’s spent thanking us with his service.

Scott Angle is the University of Florida’s Interim Provost. Since 2020 he has served as UF’s Senior Vice President for Agriculture and Natural Resources and leader of the UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS).

 

 

 

Growing Forward: Ivan Howard

October 2023 FloridAgriculture eNewsletter

Ivan Howard grew up in Immokalee, Fla. on his family’s farm. His father was a farmer and his mother was a teacher. Howard raises beef cattle and grass.

After receiving his master’s in polymer science engineering from the University of Florida, Howard continued his education and completed his MBA at Mercer University. He has worked in capital markets and banking for 27 years and has owned a cattle ranch in Hendry County for 20 years. Howard is the executive director at Banco Santander, a European bank focused on private banking. He has served as head of the Hendry County Farm Service Agency board for five years and is on the biomedical engineering external advisory board for UF and serves as a Tenon Medical board member.

Howard’s parents were active Farm Bureau members, serving in various roles in the community and on the county board. Howard has been actively involved with the Collier County Farm Bureau for five years and now serves as the Collier County president. He has enjoyed watching young people in his community show interest in agriculture and partake in various programs, like the Young Farmers & Ranchers.

“Our Young Farmers & Ranchers program is really important,” said Howard. “Ag throughout the country is shrinking rapidly and will continue to do so if we don’t get our young people involved.”

One of Howard’s favorite Farm Bureau events is their county annual meeting. This meeting is a great opportunity to mingle with other members, learn more about the benefits Farm Bureau offers and focus on community outreach efforts.

Howard continues to grow agriculture forward in his leadership roles and in the community. He strongly urges young people in Collier County to get involved in local agriculture programs and emphasizes the importance of agricultural education.

“The future of the industry is the younger generation,” said Howard. “The state and other agencies are taking land out of ag production. We need to emphasize the importance of ag in our communities and support innovative technologies and growth in the industry.”

Celebrate National Watermelon Day

Watermelon is an iconic staple during hot summer months. It is grown in the western part of Florida, spanning from north Collier County all the way to Columbia County. The refreshing fruit available from late March until mid-July and again from October to December.

Florida is the top watermelon producing state in the U.S. It is responsible for 907 million pounds of watermelon produced annually, which accounts for 36% of the country’s domestic supply. In 2022, 25,000 acres of watermelon were planted in Florida and brought an estimated $192 million to the state’s economy.

Watermelon is a great summer treat but has also been a contributor to Guinness World Records. The largest watermelon ever grown weighed 350.5 pounds, surpassing the previous record holder by 42 pounds. A fifteen-pound watermelon was consumed in 23 minutes and 7.08 seconds.

More information about the refreshing melon can be found here. Try these fun recipes this summer from the Florida Farm & Family magazine.

Young Farmers & Ranchers Gather for Annual Conference

The 2023 Young Farmers and Ranchers Leadership Conference brought together more than 200 agriculturalists from across the state. Themed Growing Forward, the conference focused on equipping participants with leadership skills, industry insights and networking opportunities.  

Throughout the conference, participants engaged in a series of breakout sessions and farm tours. The session topics ranged from integrating AI in pest management, estate planning, the importance of personal branding, a legislative update on the 2023 farm bill and more. The conference featured keynote speakers Cody and Erika Archie, owners of Bar 7 Ranch in Gatesville, Texas. The couple spoke on the importance of being the voice of agriculture and meeting people where they are to share the story of agriculture. 

Conference attendees had the opportunity to test their industry knowledge and skills through various competitive events like Achievement in Agriculture, Excellence in Agriculture and Discussion Meet. The finalist for each competition will compete at Florida Farm Bureau Federation’s Annual Meeting in October. From there, the state winner from each category will compete at the national level at American Farm Bureau’s annual conference in January 2024. 

The Achievement in Agriculture finalists are Buck and NoraBeth Carpenter of Madison County, Brandt and Samantha Hendricks of Santa Rosa County and John and Emilee Peterson of Baker County.   

The Excellence in Agriculture finalists are Jaime Jerrels of Levy County, Rebecca Hall of Alachua County and Bernie and Avery LeFils of Volusia County.  

The final four Discussion Meet finalists are Erin Jones of Gilchrist County, Chad Haas of Volusia County, Sarah Luther of Suwannee County and Jesse Cone of Madison County. 

Young Farmers and Ranchers between the ages of 18-35 who are interested in honing in on their leadership skills and expanding their network are encouraged to join their local county Young Farmers and Ranchers group. Next year’s conference is set for July 12-14, 2024 in Palm Beach.  

To view conference photos, click here.  

 

Growing Forward: Erin Jones, Gilchrist County

June 2023 FloridAgriculture eNewsletter

Erin Jones
Gilchrist County Farm Bureau President

Erin Jones is a fifth generation Gilchrist County resident. Growing up, her family had cattle, hay and peanuts on their family farm in Bell. Her family has approximately 60 commercial beef cows and a Simmental Angus bull. Jones was actively involved in 4-H and FFA during her youth.

Jones attended Florida Gateway College for her associate’s degree and transferred to the University of Florida where she received a bachelor’s degree in animal sciences. She is currently working on her master’s in agronomy from UF and works for UF/IFAS Extension as the Suwannee County Livestock Agent.

Although her parents have been Farm Bureau members for decades, Jones began her own journey with the organization when she started school at UF. She was a founding member of the Levy/Gilchrist County Young Farmers & Ranchers (YF&R). Jones has served as the chair of the Gilchrist County YF&R committee since 2017 and attained a position on the Gilchrist County Farm Bureau board in 2018. She currently serves as president of board.

Jones is a proud advocate for agriculture in her county and loves educating others about the benefits of being a Farm Bureau member. She enjoys participating in numerous outreach opportunities throughout the year, but particularly enjoys the Christmas parade in Bell every December and the Quilt Festival held in Trenton in March.

“We table at the Quilt Festival because there’s such a variety of people that come to the event,” said Jones.  “I feel like we get the most exposure for agriculture at that event.”

The Gilchrist County Farm Bureau board is heavily focused on youth education and development. Jones believes in the future of the young people in her community and is continuously looking for ways to engage them in agriculture.

“Growing forward for us is being able to invest in the younger generation. They are the future of our organization,” said Jones. “If we can continue to educate young people we can continue to grow agriculture in our county.”

 

 

Growing Forward: Stormie Bigham, Jackson County

May 2023 FloridAgriculture eNewsletter

Stormie Bigham
Women’s Leadership Committee , District 1

Although she did not grow up on a farm, Stormie Bigham has been welcomed with open arms in the agricultural community. After marrying a rancher, Bigham worked as the bookkeeper for the family farm.  In 2006, they sold the farm in Sumter County, and over the span of three years, moved their beef cattle operation to Jackson County. After the move, Bigham worked as the bookkeeper for the Jackson County Cattlemen’s Association. In addition to cattle, the farm grew hay and seed.

Although Bigham and her family had been Farm Bureau members for years, they did not become as actively involved until their move to Jackson County. Bigham was approached by her Farm Bureau district field representative about joining the Women’s Leadership Committee and started her new role in January 2020. Due to COVID-19, Bigham was unable to meet her fellow committee members in person until December 2020. The committee met quarterly over virtual Zoom meetings and by the time they were able to meet face-to-face Bigham felt like she already knew everyone and felt connected with her fellow committee members. She relishes the opportunities Farm Bureau has provided her to grow her knowledge of agriculture and hone her leadership skills.

“I love the fellowship we have in Farm Bureau and the opportunity to work with other women and educate them about the importance of agriculture,” said Bigham.

One of Bigham’s favorite events that her county Farm Bureau participates in is the two-day Panhandle Watermelon Festival. Hosted in late June, the festival offers free entertainment for families, including a concert. Bigham’s county Farm Bureau has a booth every year to recruit new members and educate attendees about the benefits of being a Farn Bureau member.

“We set out FAMA products and a photo booth with a tractor and flowers,” said Bigham. “We had over 10,000 people attend last year, and a lot of traffic come through our booth.”

Bigham is continuously educating those around her about the many benefits of Farm Bureau and the importance of agriculture in their community through various outreach opportunities and events.

“I am growing forward by not only expanding my knowledge of agriculture in our state but educating others and helping them grow forward in their knowledge and understanding as well.”