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Members Complete Grassroots Policy Process

November 2024 FloridAgriculture eNewsletter

Delegates from nearly 60 county Farm Bureaus convened at the 83rd Florida Farm Bureau Annual Meeting Oct. 30 – Nov. 1, 2024, to finalize the public policy of the Federation.  Policy amendments and new resolutions rising from the county level through the State Advisory Committees were discussed and ultimately ratified unanimously by the voting delegates.

The strategic priorities of Farm Bureau are Advocacy, Membership, Public Awareness and Profitability of Agriculture, and this member-ratified policy serves as the foundation for all of Farm Bureau’s advocacy efforts.  Policies with national implications are forwarded to the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) as resolutions for AFBF policy, and over the past year, policies originating in Florida have spurred legislative engagement in Tallahassee and Washington, DC, letters from FFBF and AFBF to regulatory agencies such as the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, the U.S. Dept. of Labor and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and support for candidates, grants, initiatives and appointments that will enhance agriculture’s viability.

As we reflect on the conclusion of our state policy development process, we look forward with anticipation to the implementation opportunities we will encounter in the coming year.  Each of these engagements allows us to present a unified message, collectively as The Voice of Agriculture.

For more information on Farm Bureau’s policy process, please contact the Agricultural Policy Department at 352.374.1543.

Your Land Grant Partner

November 2024 FloridAgriculture eNewsletter

By J. Scott Angle
[email protected]
@IFAS_VP

Christa Court helps you bounce back from hurricanes. She asks what happened on your farm, combines your account with hundreds of others, and tells the big story in numbers.

She tells that story to members of Congress, disaster relief officials, commodity association leaders and a public that needs reminding that you are the bulwark against empty grocery store shelves.

Court is the UF/IFAS day-after economist. Legislators and disaster relief officials rely upon her numbers and reports in making decisions on disaster declaration, recovery, and relief.

After the winds die down and the Weather Channel leaves, after you’ve had a first look at trees down on fences, cotton blown away, fields flooded and center pivots mangled, she leads us in asking the collective question: How bad was it?

Your communications team at the Farm Bureau shares links to her surveys to collect the information she needs to make the case for relief. I urge you to participate in these surveys, for your own sake and to help the entire Florida agriculture industry. She’s got three going now:

Hurricane Debby Damage Survey
Hurricane Helene Damage Survey
Hurricane Milton Damage Survey

Court joined UF/IFAS Department of Food and Resource Economics in 2016. It wasn’t her plan for so much of her work to focus on the impact of disasters, but they came in rapid succession – including Irma, Michael, Sally, Ian, Idalia, Debby, Helene, and Milton.

But she chose the work because it was guided by her ethic – to do what producers need from their land-grant university.

Over time, she built a team with specialists in economics, GIS, policy, project management, and communications. That combined expertise produces not just numbers and reports but maps and other visuals that relate with compelling imagery the scope and scale of weather damage.

The day-after economist is working hard to get you to the year after, the decade after. Her work can drive a conversation about more and better risk management tools.

Court’s work will in the long run produce insights on what kind of programs are needed and at what funding levels. Then Florida agriculture can advocate for them.

When you answer a UF/IFAS damage survey, you’re helping Court help you in two long-term ways.

First, with every storm she builds bigger disaster-specific databases that will someday allow for accurate and rapid damage assessment without the need for surveys. No more filling out forms at moments when you’re hurting and need to be doing other things.

Second, Court and her team are refining data collection to develop a single industry standard so that you’re not asked to answer redundant questionnaires from academics, agencies and associations.

Every state’s farmers suffer weather damage. Not every state has a Dr. Christa Court. Two years ago, the Southern Agricultural Economics Association honored her with the Outstanding Extension Program Award. Colleagues in other states ask Court to share her expertise in documenting damage in detail rapidly and accurately.

Please continue to help her help you. Some day she may get us to a post-survey world. But right now, she needs you to tell your individual story so she can tell the collective one.

Scott Angle is the University of Florida’s Senior Vice President for Agriculture and Natural Resources and leader of the UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS).

 

Tied to Ag: Jared and Kamryn Smith, Flagler Co.

October 2024 FloridAgriculture eNewsletter

Jared and Kamryn Smith have a passion for agriculture that runs deep. As individuals, it is evident how much they love and appreciate the industry, and as a couple, their passion is magnified. Although they have different ties to agriculture, they have found ways to intertwine those ties and amplify their voice for the industry. The couple serves on the state Young Farmers & Ranchers Leadership Group, representing Flagler County and District 4.   

For more than one hundred years, Jared’s family has grown a variety of commodities from row crops and sod to cattle and hay. He is the sixth generation to not only grow up, but farm on his family’s land in St. Johns County. He received his degree in general agriculture from Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College and is a sales representative for Speedling Incorporated as well as an employee for Smith and Johns, Inc.   

Growing up around Farm Bureau, Jared had numerous opportunities to attend events throughout his childhood. Some of his fondest memories are those traveling to Tallahassee for Farm Bureau Day and attending county and state events with his parents. He has been a key member in revitalizing the Flagler County Farm Bureau Board and continues to serve on the board.   

“Growing up, the only place I wanted to be was on a tractor with my dad, uncle and grandad,” said Smith. “When people ask me what I do to relieve stress, I tell them I get up, go to work and get on a tractor.”   

Although Kamryn grew up in rural Clay County, she didn’t get her first taste of agriculture until middle school. During her freshman year of high school, she became more involved in the FFA program and fell in love with the industry. Encouraged by her high school agriculture teacher, her passion led her to the University of Florida where she received her bachelor of science in agriculture education, and later her master’s in agribusiness. Kamryn is now an agriculture teacher alongside the teacher who ignited her passion.   

“I grew up with little to no connection to production agriculture, until I got involved in FFA,” said Kamryn. “With all the opportunities that it provided, I realized just how important agriculture is and how I can make an impact in the industry. I couldn’t imagine my life any other way than getting to educate, advocate, and be a part of agriculture.”   

Although the two have had different agricultural paths, their passion for the industry is what brought them together. The couple met at a Young Farmers & Ranchers Leadership Conference in 2019, and the rest is history. Together, they founded their own business, Kattle & Jabor, that they run cattle through.   

The couple has enjoyed serving on the state YF&R Leadership Group and the ample opportunities it has presented them. With one year under their belts, they are excited for the upcoming events and farm tours they’ll be attending. Additionally, they have been able to strengthen connections across the state and work with friends and colleagues throughout the industry. 

“I love the community and being around folks with like minds,” said Jared. “It’s like church, we all go through different struggles but when we go to church, we can all support and help each other. It’s the same with Farm Bureau, we don’t deep dive into our issues, but we can encourage each other and come together because we all have common goals and objectives.” 

Throughout their individual and joint experiences, Jared and Kamryn continue to strengthen their tie to agriculture.  

“I’m tied to agriculture through my career, my family and my passion,” said Jared. “My career is agriculturally based, my wife and I met because of Farm Bureau.” 

“I am tied to agriculture in everything I do; from being a high school agriculture teacher and FFA Advisor, living out my dream of running a cow-calf operation and advocating for the industry,” said Kamryn. “I am thankful for all of the opportunities that the industry, along with Farm Bureau, has given me.”

FWC’s Florida Panther Payment for Ecosystem Services Pilot Program

October 2024 FloridAgriculture eNewsletter

Landowners who maintain and improve Florida panther habitat of high conservation priority on their property may be eligible for rewards.  Landowners within the following counties are eligible for participation:  Broward, Charlotte, Collier, DeSoto, Glades, Hardee, Hendry, Highlands, Hillsborough, Lee, Manatee, Miami-Dade, Monroe, Okeechobee, Osceola, Polk and Sarasota.

The FWC is providing annual payments to landowners who have Florida panther habitat of high conservation priority. Enrollment is voluntary and competitive based on the location, amount, and quality of panther habitat provided as well as available funding. Optional opportunities are available for landowners to coordinate with the FWC to monitor panthers on their property and receive additional payments for evidence of panther use. Information is also being offered on land management techniques to benefit wildlife, livestock depredation mitigation, and other topics.

The program benefits both private landowners and the panther population by providing per-acre payments for habitat conditions that support panther conservation and landscape connectivity. While Florida panthers are the primary focus of the program, it will provide benefits to varied species, such as white-tailed deer, Florida black bears, and others that depend on the mosaic of habitats used by panthers.

Click here for FWC’s Landowner Guide detailing program requirements, eligibility, payment rates, bonus payment opportunities, monitoring requirements, and more.

For additional information about the program, click here or contact Jake Fojtik for additional information.

Additional Resources:
Panther PES Brochure
Landowner Guide PES
Fillable Panther PES Application
FWC Panther PES FAQs

EPA Announced Final Insecticide Strategy

October 2024 FloridAgriculture eNewsletter

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published the Draft Insecticide Strategy (“Insecticide Strategy”) which outlines the changes that growers may need to implement on their farms to be in compliance with insecticide labels.

In 2022, the EPA was found in violation of their consultation process regarding the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the Federal Fungicide, Insecticide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). Due to this, the EPA will be releasing a series of frameworks to address registration and labeling of herbicides, insecticides, rodenticides, and fungicides. The Insecticide Strategy is the second of four strategy frameworks aimed to minimize ecological impacts on federally endangered and threatened (listed) species and their critical habitats.

Similar to the Final Herbicide Strategy, the Insecticide Strategy proposes the mitigation or efficacy points that a grower may need to gain through a “mitigation menu” of approved practices to be in compliance with an insecticide label. Furthermore, the Strategy identifies Pesticide Use Limitation Areas (PULAs), where growers will be subject to earn an even greater number of points due to their potential increased vulnerability to impacting endangered and threatened species through run-off, erosion, and spray drift.

A copy of Florida Farm Bureau Federation’s comments to the EPA regarding the Draft Insecticide Strategy can be found here. Please contact Maddie Campbell with any questions or concerns.

EPA Announced Final Herbicide Strategy

October 2024 FloridAgriculture eNewsletter

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published the Final Herbicide Strategy Framework (“Herbicide Strategy”) which outlines the changes that growers may need to implement on their farms to be in compliance with herbicide labels.

In 2022, the EPA was found in violation of their consultation process regarding the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the Federal Fungicide, Insecticide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). Due to this, the EPA will be releasing a series of frameworks to address registration and labeling of herbicides, insecticides, rodenticides, and fungicides. The Herbicide Strategy is the first of its kind aimed to minimize ecological impacts on federally endangered and threatened (listed) species and their critical habitats.

The Herbicide Strategy proposes the mitigation or efficacy points that a grower may need to gain through a “mitigation menu” of approved practices to be in compliance with an herbicide label. Furthermore, the Strategy identifies Pesticide Use Limitation Areas (PULAs), where growers will be subject to earn an even greater number of points due to their potential increased vulnerability to impacting endangered and threatened species through run-off, erosion, and spray drift.

To access the Final Herbicide Strategy issue brief, click here. Please contact Maddie Campbell with any questions or concerns.

Your Land Grant Partner

October 2024 FloridAgriculture eNewsletter
dr angle
By J. Scott Angle
[email protected]
@IFAS_VP

Agricultural land disappearing. A new expressway cutting through pastures. A generation of youth who need to learn where their food comes from.

Sound familiar? It’s what UF/IFAS Clay County Extension Director Annie Wallau and Clay County Farm Bureau President Gayward Hendry are facing as they work together to promote local agriculture.

On the strength of Hendry’s nomination highlighting Wallau’s efforts to teach Clay County’s next generation about the role farms and farmers play in their community and economy, she will be honored at this month’s annual meeting as the Florida Farm Bureau Extension Professional of the Year.

Wallau has been a leader in educating youth about agriculture, food, health, and nutrition.

When the pandemic shut down the county fair, it stopped the popular AgVentures® station-to-station hands-on projects to teach students where their food comes from.

Wallau worked with Clay County Farm Bureau and Clay County Fair Association on the idea of bringing the lessons to the students. The field trip in a box was born.

UF/IFAS and Clay County Farm Bureau packed and delivered the boxes with lesson plans and hands-on activity supplies on forestry, beekeeping, gardening, and beef, including the game Beef-o Bingo that gives students a fun way to learn about the many by-products of the beef industry that we find in our everyday lives.

And Annie worked to create Story Walk, which engaged students in ag literacy and physical activity by posting pages from a book on Florida agriculture throughout schools grounds, giving teachers the opportunity to take their students outdoors to walk and read.

(Left to Right) Greg Harden, Florida Farm Bureau District 5 Field Representative; Annie Wallau, County Extension Director – UF/IFAS Extension Clay County; Gayward Hendry, Clay County Farm Bureau President

Wallau has partnered with Farm Bureau to organize the Farm-City week luncheon that brings together Clay County’s civic and agricultural communities. She even hosted it at the Extension office until the event was so successful that it outgrew the space.

In addition to making Clay County a place to grow food, she is working to grow leaders. When Wallau met 4-Her Cross Middleton five years ago, she saw in him a future agriculturalist. She talked to him about careers in Extension, and she met with him frequently at her office to counsel him on selecting a college major at UF compatible with his learning style, background and career goals.

Cross graduated from the UF/IFAS College of Agricultural and Life Sciences in May, and Wallau has continued to advise him on how to engage with Farm Bureau. Cross now leads the county’s Young Farmers & Ranchers chapter and serves on the county board. Cross and Wallau are now working together to try to bring a new farmers market to Clay County.

My thanks go to President Hendry and Administrative Assistant Terri Davis of the Clay County Farm Bureau for nominating Annie. Thank you, too, to President Jeb Smith for personally informing Annie with a call that she said absolutely blindsided her in the best way.

Extension professional of the year is one of the highest honors an agent can earn because of who it comes from. Our decades-old partnership has great value to us, and when Farm Bureau elevates an agent, it is meaningful to our entire organization.

J. Scott Angle is the University of Florida’s Senior Vice President for Agriculture and Natural Resources and leader of the UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS).

 

 

 

OSHA Heat Rule NPRM Published in Federal Register

September 2024 FloridAgriculture eNewsletter

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published their notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) on a new standard titled Heat Injury and Illness Prevention in Outdoor and Indoor Work Settings (Heat Rule).

The Heat Rule would apply to all employees working outside or indoors, including agricultural workers.

To read the NPRM, please click here. Florida Farm Bureau is reviewing the NPRM and will continue to share updates as they become available.  Please be on the lookout for a Farm Bureau Action Alert with instructions on how to make your voice heard and comments recorded before the deadline of December 30, 2024.

Florida Farm Bureau Welcomes New Assistant Director

September 2024 FloridAgriculture eNewsletter 

Raulie Raulerson has been named the new Assistant Director of Local Government and Community Affairs. Raulerson joins the team with experience as the Environmental Administrator for the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Office of Agricultural Water Policy. Raulerson also has experience with the South Florida Water Management District and served as a research assistant with the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement.

Raulerson is a Florida native and has worked closely with agricultural producers on water
and environmental issues for the last 18 years of his career. He obtained his
Bachelor’s degree in biology from Florida State University and a master’s degree in
Software Engineering from the University of West Florida.

Raulerson resides in DeLand with his wife Rachel and is excited for the opportunity to
continue helping Farm Bureau members and agricultural producers in North Florida and
the Panhandle.