AgNet DEMO

Author: Clint

  • American Blueberry Growers Alliance Welcomes U.S. Trade Representative’s Request for Safeguard Investigation

    Today, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (“USTR”) formally requested that the U.S. International Trade Commission (“ITC”) initiate a Section 201 global safeguard investigation regarding imports of blueberries into the United States. 

    The American Blueberry Growers Alliance (“ABGA”) applauds USTR’s request and expects that the investigation will result in a remedy that allows the domestic industry to recover from the harmful effects of surging blueberry imports. 

    The ABGA is an ad hoc association of blueberry growers from across the United States. Over the past few years, ABGA’s members have lost market share and sales to massive increases in imports and have been forced to accept unreasonably low prices due to the competing prices of foreign blueberries. Imports of fresh and frozen blueberries have increased from 423 million pounds in 2015 to over 684 million pounds in 2019. Recognizing the harm that American blueberry growers have faced and will continue to face, USTR previously committed to request a Section 201 investigation on blueberries as part of the plan of multiple federal agencies announced on September 1, 2020 to help U.S. farmers of seasonal and perishable fruits and vegetables.

    “On behalf of U.S. blueberry growers, I want to thank the Administration for taking this critical action. The flood of foreign imports of blueberries has caused significant damage to growers from coast-to-coast and across the heartland of this country,” stated Jerome Crosby, Chair of the American Blueberry Growers Alliance. “At a time when domestic food security is especially critical, this action is essential to preserve American farms, our families’ way of life, and our communities, and we look forward to working with the ITC in conducting its investigation.”

    The ITC will immediately commence its investigation to determine whether the U.S. blueberry industry is seriously injured or threatened with serious injury by increased imports. The ITC must make this determination within 120 days of receiving USTR’s request, and this period may be extended to 150 days in extraordinarily complicated cases. The ITC will issue a report with its findings to the President of the United States within 180 days of receiving USTR’s request. 

    If the ITC’s injury determination is affirmative, the ITC will recommend one or more remedies to the President. Available temporary remedies include tariffs, quotas, and a combination of tariffs and quotas, among other options. The President will then decide whether to grant relief and what the remedy will entail.

  • Broad Mites Big Problem for Vegetable Growers

    Whiteflies are not the only insect wreaking havoc on vegetable crops this fall. According to Stormy Sparks, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension vegetable entomologist, broad mites are a problem for vegetable producers.

    Sparks

    “I’ve had several calls on broad mites, which are a problem primarily in peppers and eggplant,” Sparks said. “Unlike spider mites, spider mites like the middle of the summer because they like hot and dry weather, broad mites don’t like cold weather but they like it a little bit cooler and humid, which is what we have now. They tend to be a fall pest. Ten years ago, you never heard about them. But I’d say in the last three to five years, it’s almost an annual event.”

    Large Host Range

    According to UGA Extension, broad mites have a large host range, consisting of 60 families of plants. Along with peppers and eggplants, broad mites’ vegetable hosts include beets, beans, cucumbers, potatoes and tomatoes.

    Damage is especially severe in bell peppers. The damage is caused by secretion of a plant growth regulator or toxin as the mite feeds, and extensive damage can happen at very low pest density.

    “They make it look like the plant has a virus, same thing with eggplant. You get distorted growth. You get distorted fruit. It makes it unmarketable,” Sparks said.

    Some acaricides provide excellent control of broad mites. Examination of plant terminals is necessary to evaluate control success. Damage can continue for two weeks after successful control.

  • Strawberry Planting Season Draws Near

    File photo shows strawberries being grown.

    Alabama strawberry producers enjoyed sweet success in 2020. Farmers are hoping for a repeat performance this year as planting season nears. Edgar Vinson, assistant research professor and Extension specialist in the Department of Horticulture at Auburn University, said growers target Oct. 15 date as the latest timeframe they want to have this year’s crop in the ground.

    “They can certainly be planted after that date but you’re sacrificing plant size when you do that, and that’s going to affect yield,” Vinson said. “The later you plant, the less time you have to grow them to get them to that optimal size.”

    Increased Interest

    While strawberry production in Alabama is small compared to high-production states like Florida, it is growing with interest when you consider the number of farming operations there are in the state. In 2012, there was 74 farms on 158 acres. But that number increased 123 farms on 111 acres in 2017.

    “It certainly speaks to the growing interest, the growing consumer demand for fresh Alabama grown strawberry,” Vinson said. “Agritourism is a growing industry and strawberry production is certainly a destination for a lot of people who want to be able to harvest strawberries themselves.”

    It will certainly continue to grow in popularity if growers find similar success with production and marketing like they did in 2020. Against the backdrop of a global pandemic, strawberry producers capitalized on selling their crop to families who wanted to get their children out of the house.

    Alabama grower Bobby Ray Holmes said demand was overwhelming. U-pick strawberry operations provided families an outlet to escape the new norm of social isolation.

    “We had a really great year last year. Northern parts of the state, a lot of growers had more yield than they’ve ever had,” Vinson said. “I really think the (’21) outlook is good. You do have to consider the pandemic and where we’ll be.”

    Strawberries will normally be ready for small harvest in late March and continue through mid-June.

  • Farmers to Families Food Box Program Surpasses 100 Million Boxes Delivered

    (Washington, D.C., September 29, 2020) – U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced today that more than 100 million food boxes have been distributed in support of American farmers and families affected by the COVID-19 pandemic through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Farmers to Families Food Box Program.

    Perdue

    Earlier this month, the Department announced it had entered into contracts with 50 entities for the third round of food box deliveries, which include contracts to purchase up to $1 billion authorized by President Donald J. Trump.

    “It is incredible to think that in a little more than five months, this food box program has gone from an idea to a reality that has provided more than 100 million boxes of nutritious foods to people in need and along the way has helped to keep farmers and ranchers in business and allowed Americans working in our nation’s food supply chain to get back to work,” said Secretary Perdue. “I have been meeting with food banks and recipients across the country and it’s been heartening to hear all the positive feedback on how the program has saved businesses and fed Americans in need. We are now into the third round of deliveries and we’re working harder than ever to continue to build on the success of the program.”

    “With 100 million Farmers to Families Food Boxes delivered, we have utilized critical funding authorized by President Trump to continue connecting our great American farmers to millions of food insecure families. I am proud of this Administration’s mission to keep our most vulnerable families fed and support American family farms in the process,” said Advisor to the President, Ivanka Trump.

    You may view the Farmers to Families Food Box Program video or click on the image below to watch a highlight video of USDA’s Farmers to Families Food Box Program in action across the United States.

  • COVID-19 risk factors vary by farm workers’ legal status; shows need for tailored measures

    University of Florida/IFAS

    As laborers return to the fields this fall in Florida, both unauthorized workers and those authorized to plant and pick crops through a guest worker visa are vulnerable to the coronavirus. In fact, an estimated 75% of Florida crop workers have at least one underlying health issue that puts them at risk of developing COVID-19 complications, new UF/IFAS research shows.

    However, sources of risk for these two groups are different, according to the study.

    That is largely because domestic unauthorized workers are significantly older than H-2A workers, which increases their risk of developing COVID-19 complications, said Gulcan Onel, a UF/IFAS assistant professor of food and resource economics.

    Most of the members of both legal groups of workers do not speak English and have less than a high school education, Onel said.

    “These findings highlight the need for accessible and culturally-minded outreach efforts to educate workers about preventive measures for COVID-19,” she said.

    One example of UF/IFAS outreach is based at the Southwest Florida Research and Education Center in Immokalee. Faculty and experts there are hosting a series of workshops in September and October to help train farm supervisors to keep their employees as safe as possible from COVID.

    For her study, Onel used three different sources of data, including a citrus harvester’s survey her team conducted in several Florida counties. Onel also synthesized existing health and employment data from federal sources. She then compared the demographic differences of H-2A workers with those of unauthorized agricultural workers to draw conclusions about COVID-19 risks among these farm workers.

    Onel

    The federal H-2A guest workers program provides legal, temporary nonimmigrant visa classification to foreign-born workers, where able, willing and qualified U.S. workers are not available. That work typically lasts no longer than one year.

    Unauthorized workers are foreign-born workers who lack proper, legal documentation to work in the United States. Data show that unauthorized domestic workers, on average, have been in the United States for more than a decade.

    In addition to legal status groups, workers’ susceptibility to the virus varies by location across Florida counties, the study shows.

    Onel and her colleagues saw a high correlation between counties with the most COVID-19 cases and counties with the most agricultural workers. Among counties with the highest crop worker populations, Miami-Dade, Palm Beach and Hillsborough counties had the most COVID-19 cases. They were followed by Broward, Collier, Lee, Manatee and Polk counties.

    Among other findings:

    • H-2A workers live in employer-provided and controlled housing, which may make it easier to take measures to help mitigate COVID-19 for them, compared to domestic workers. On the other hand, H-2A workers spend more time traveling to their work sites than domestic workers, which may make transportation a higher risk factor for this group of workers.
    • Preventing or mitigating COVID-19 among unauthorized workers gets more complicated by today’s immigration environment. Contact tracing and encouraging workers to seek testing and/or care may be difficult because unauthorized domestic crop workers fear they will be deported. Ensuring privacy of workers and their contacts will be vital for effective mitigation strategies.
    • H-2A workers send more of their earnings back home compared to domestic unauthorized workers; therefore, H-2A workers likely have stronger ties with family in their countries of origin, the survey found.

    “This is important with the recent spikes in COVID-19 cases in Mexico and South America; higher remittances (back home) indicate that H-2A workers — who are mostly married and have minor-aged children – likely have stronger ties to their country of origin,” Onel said. “They might be more reluctant to return to U.S. farms amid the COVID-19 pandemic. On the other hand, existing workers in the fields may continue working, even when they are sick, to keep up with their support for family back home. Piece-rate payment schemes may further encourage risk-taking behavior among workers, posing a challenge for containing outbreaks.”

    While the study’s findings provide insights into COVID-19 risks for Florida crop workers, predicting when and a COVID-19 outbreak will occur is difficult and no trivial matter, Onel said.

    “This type of prediction requires tracking of data over time,” Onel said. “The county-level maps in our article — which layer farm worker populations and COVID-19 cases — can easily be updated periodically for more up-to-date information on higher-risk agricultural counties.”

  • Funding Available to Help with Organic Certification

    COLUMBIA – South Carolina farmers and food processors who want to pursue organic certification may qualify for reimbursement through a grant administered by the South Carolina Department of Agriculture. 

    Weathers

    “Organic certification can help agribusinesses find new customers and expand to new markets, and we’re happy to be able to help,” said Commissioner of Agriculture Hugh Weathers.  

    The Organic Certification Cost Share Program will reimburse producers and handlers of agricultural products up to 50% of the operation’s total allowable certification costs, up to a maximum of $500 per certification scope: crops, livestock, wild crops, and handling (i.e., processing). The deadline to apply for reimbursement for the current fiscal year is Dec. 18, 2020. 

    “This program is a big help in offsetting the expenses of becoming a USDA certified organic producer and the yearly inspections required to maintain the organic certification,” said organic beef farmer Leland Gibson of Gibson Organic Farms. “I try to encourage many farmers to get their farms transitioned into organic production, and one common response is that farmers hesitate to get organic certification because of the cost. My response is to mention the Organic Cost Share program.” 

    SCDA also has three other cost share reimbursement programs available as projects of the USDA Specialty Crop Block Grant Program, including one that offsets the cost of installing an affordable Cool Bot cold storage unit; and two that support businesses through the Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) Audit process. 

    To apply for reimbursement programs through SCDA, visit agriculture.sc.gov/grants. 

  • Farm Bureau Economist Encourages Producers to Apply Early for CFAP 2

    Nigh

    Applications continue to be accepted from fruit and vegetable crop producers looking to participate in the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program 2. Veronica Nigh, economist with American Farm Bureau, encourages producers in Georgia, Florida and Alabama to get signed up sooner rather than later.

    “Anytime there’s a limited amount of funds, a lot of folks would be interested in it. You never know how the rules on CFAP 2 are a little bit different. The commodities are a little bit different than the last time. You never know if the changes that have been implemented are enough to bring folks out of the woodwork who weren’t participating in the first program,” Nigh said. “There’s no need to wait. Get on in there and make sure you get applied for the program.”

    Fruits, Vegetables, Tree Nuts Included

    According to the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program 2 website, more than 230 fruit, vegetable, horticulture and tree nut commodities are eligible for CFAP 2. These includes blueberries, strawberries, pecans, cucumbers and squash.

    CFAP 2 follows the first round of CFAP, which had an application period of May 26 through Sept. 11. CFAP 2 has allocated $14 billion to aid producers who continue to face market disruptions and associated costs because of the coronavirus pandemic.

    “It never seems to be enough, whatever is allocated. There’s a lot of producers and our industry is one that’s high valued. We hope that it provides the emergency assistance that growers need,” Nigh said. “I think we should look a little bit to the first CFAP program which has yet to reach its full subscription for a variety of different reasons. So far, about $10 billion in support has been provided to cattle, hog, dairy, non-specialty crops, specialty crops and other producers for losses experienced through mid-April. Certainly, the $14 billion would suggest they’re in the ballpark of what makes sense for a limited window of damages, which is what the CFAP programs have to look at.”

    Vegetables List

    Vegetables eligible for CFAP 2 include: alfalfa sprouts, aloe vera, artichokes, arugula (greens), asparagus, bamboo shoots, batatas, bean sprouts, beans (including dry edible), beets, bok choy, broccoflower, broccoli, broccolini, broccolo-cavalo, Brussel sprouts, cabbage, calaloo, carrots, cauliflower, celeriac, celery, chickpea (see beans, garbanzo), chives, collard greens, coriander, corn, sweet, cucumbers, daikon, dandelion greens, dasheen (taro root, malanga), dill, eggplant, endive, escarole, frisee, gailon (gai lein, Chinese broccoli), garlic, gourds, greens, horseradish, Jerusalem artichokes (sunchoke), kale, kohlrabi, leeks, lentils, lettuce, melongene, mesculin mix, microgreens, mushrooms, okra, onions, parsnip, peas (including dry edible), pejibaye (heart of palm), peppers, potatoes, sweet potatoes, pumpkins, radicchio, radishes, rhubarb, rutabaga, salsify (oyster plant), scallions, seed – vegetable, shallots, spinach, squash, swiss chard, tannier, taro, tomatillos, tomatoes, truffles, turnip top (greens), turnips, yam, and yautia (malanga).

    Fruits List

    Fruits eligible for CFAP 2 include: abiu, acerola (Barbados cherry), achachairu, antidesma, apples, apricots, aronia (chokeberry), atemoya (custard apple), bananas, blueberries, breadfruit, cacao, caimito, calabaza melon, canary melon, canary seed, caneberries, canistel, cantaloupes, carambola (star fruit), casaba melon, cherimoya (sugar apple), cherries, Chinese bitter melon, citron, citron melon, coconuts, cranberries, crenshaw melon, dates, donaqua (winter melon), durian, elderberries, figs, genip, gooseberries, grapefruit, grapes, ground cherry, guamabana (soursop), guava, guavaberry, honeyberries, honeydew, huckleberries, Israel melons, jack fruit, jujube, juneberries, kiwiberry, kiwifruit, Korean golden melon, kumquats, langsat, lemons, limequats, limes, longan, loquats, lychee, mangos, mangosteen, mayhaw berries, mesple, mulberries, nectarines, oranges, papaya, passion fruits, pawpaw, peaches, pears, pineapple, pitaya (dragon fruit), plantain, plumcots, plums, pomegranates, prunes, pummelo, raisins, rambutan, sapodilla, sapote, schizandra berries, sprite melon, star gooseberry, strawberries, tangelos, tangerines, tangors, wampee, watermelon, wax jamboo fruit, and wolfberry (goji).

    “Certainly, there’s a lot to be excited about there for folks. Another $14 billion certainly won’t hurt,” Nigh said.

    The USDA will accept CFAP 2 applications through Dec. 11, 2020. Learn more at farmers.gov/cfap.

  • Clemson Extension Agents Provide Crop Updates

    Clemson Extension agents provided updates in The South Carolina Grower this week about the status of various crops being produced throughout the state.

    Weekly Field Update – 9/28/20

    Coastal

    Zack Snipes reports, “Cooler temperatures have really helped out the direct seeded fall crops. Carrots, beets, and arugula are looking great around the Lowcountry. We had about two inches of rain so many fields are soggy.  I am still seeing high numbers of whiteflies on just about every crop.  Whitefly feeding will lower yields so make sure to scout the underside of leaves. I expect to see an increase of disease, particularly downy mildew on cucurbits and black rot on brassicas with the cooler temperatures and abundance of moisture.”

    Arugula is looking great in this cooler weather. Photo from Zack Snipes.

    Midlands

    Justin Ballew reports, “It’s been cooler this week and we got a little rain from the remnants of Beta. Its been several days since we’ve seen the sun, also. Lots of brassicas are being harvested now, and more are being planted. There is a little black rot out there and plenty of caterpillars still. Strawberry plastic has been laid in a number of places and planting is just right around the corner.”

    Strawberry plastic being laid in the Midlands. Photo from Justin Ballew.

    Pee Dee

    Tony Melton reports, “Too wet to plant greens or harvest sweet potatoes & peas. Peas are falling down reducing yield due to the inability to combine harvest. Sweet potatoes are beginning to rot due to the wet soils reducing yields and quality. Farmers are having to mud through fields to harvest pickles. Downy Mildew, Pythium leak, and belly rot are bad!”

    Upstate

    Kerrie Roach reports, “With the end of September, most all the local farmers markets are finishing up for the season. Online markets and specialty/holiday markets will continue, but many produce growers have finished production until spring. Apples are continuing to be about 2 weeks ahead of schedule with decent crops across the board. Some growers have experienced high rates of fungal pathogens just because of the high rain incidence.” 

  • Sneak Peek: October 2020 VSCNews Magazine

    By Ashley Robinson

    The October issue of VSCNews magazine covers a variety of topics, including establishing an olive industry in Florida, the potential for hops and a strawberry spotlight.

    Currently, Florida has approximately 800 acres of olives under production. Although olives grow well in Florida’s warm climate, little formal research on Florida olive cultivation is available to support industry development. Michael O’Hara Garcia, president of the Florida Olive Council, explains what it will take to establish an olive industry in the Sunshine State. 

    There is a lot of hype surrounding hops production in Florida. According to Shinsuke Agehara, an assistant professor at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Gulf Coast Research and Education Center (GCREC), Florida hops show potential. The UF/IFAS hops research goal is to develop a viable industry for Florida growers and brewers.

    Furthermore, the crop spotlight returns in the October issue of VSCNews magazine, this time focusing on strawberries.

    Sriyanka Lahiri, an assistant professor at the UF/IFAS GCREC, shares pests that are problematic to Florida strawberries and effective management strategies.

    Also, two new strawberry selections have been approved for release by UF/IFAS and are in the commercialization process. Vance M. Whitaker, an associate professor at UF/IFAS, shares the specifics on the new releases. The first release is an early short-day variety with excellent fruit

    shape and quality. The second release is a white-fruited strawberry, it is expected to be the first such variety on the market in the United States.

    Severe outbreaks of Pestalotiopsis, a new strawberry disease, has threatened Florida strawberries the last two growing seasons. Natalia Peres, a professor at UF/IFAS, shares control strategies that growers can use to manage the disease.

    If you would like to receive future issues of VSCNews magazine, click here.

  • Cold Outbreak is Likely the First Week of October

    Photo from National Weather Service.

    According to the UGA Extension Viticulture Blog, Pam Knox, UGA Extension climatologist, said the nights of Oct. 2-4 could see temperatures in the 30s across the Southern Appalachians and into northern Georgia and Alabama.

    She said while most places won’t have temperatures that get down to freezing, areas that are frost pockets and prone to frost could freeze. A second outbreak could also happen the second week of October.

    It’s still a ways off, so the predictions are likely to change somewhat in strength and timing, but something to keep an eye on if you have tender plants that could be impacted by the cold air. You can view these probabilistic threats at https://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/predictions/threats/threats.php.