U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council Seeks Nominees for State Member Positions

Clint ThompsonFlorida

FOLSOM, Calif. – Members of the highbush (cultivated) blueberry industry are now seeking nominees to fill U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council (USHBC) state member and alternate positions for the 2026 to 2028 term. The nomination period will begin on March 21, 2025. Eight USHBC state member and alternate seats need to be filled for the term of office beginning Jan. 1, …

Watermelon Plantings ‘Highly Risky’ This Week in Suwanee Valley

Clint ThompsonFlorida

By Clint Thompson The calendar says it’s the third week of February. In previous years that has meant watermelon planting time for some growers in the Suwanee Valley region of Florida. This week’s low temperatures, however, could halt some of that planting time. Bob Hochmuth, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Regional Specialized Extension agent in …

AFVGA Conference Discussion: Labor Still Top Concern

Clint ThompsonAlabama

By Clint Thompson It might be a different year, but the concerns are the same for Blake Thaxton, executive director of the Alabama Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association (AFVGA). Speaking at the AFVGA Conference and Trade Show two weeks ago in Gulf Shores, Alabama, Thaxton discussed the No. 1 concern for him and his specialty crop producers. Not surprisingly, it …

Georgia Legislative Update: CUVA, HB 223

Clint ThompsonGeorgia

By Clint Thompson The 2025 Georgia State Legislative Session continues to focus on topics pertinent to Georgia’s specialty crop industry. Georgia Agribusiness Council (GAC) President Will Bentley highlighted a few important pieces of legislation, starting with the Conservation Use Valuation Assessment (CUVA). “There have been a lot of bills moving around the Capitol these past two weeks dealing with agriculture …

Drought Monitor Update: Dry Areas Expanding, Worsening Across Southeast

Clint ThompsonDrought

The most recent release of the U.S. Drought Monitor shows dry conditions expanding and worsening across the Southeast. Nearly all of central and northern Alabama is either abnormally dry, moderately dry or severely dry. Severe conditions start in Choctaw and Clarke counties in the southwest part of the state and expand northeastward to Clay and Randolph counties. Moderate conditions then …

Brooke L. Rollins Sworn in as Secretary of Ag

Clint ThompsonUSDA

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Brooke Rollins was sworn in as the 33rd U.S. Secretary of Agriculture by Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court Clarence Thomas in a private ceremony on Thursday at the Supreme Court building. The U.S. Senate confirmed Rollins by a vote of 72 to 28. “It is the honor of a lifetime to serve as the nation’s …

Specialty Crop Grower Magazine: AEWR Increases Threaten Food Security

Clint ThompsonSpecialty Crop Grower Magazine

By Tyler Harper It’s no secret that 2024 was a difficult year for Georgia’s No. 1 industry and farm families across our state. Inflation, sky-high input costs, depressed commodity prices, an unlevel playing field with our foreign competitors and bad policy coming from D.C. are among the reasons U.S. net farm income has declined by upward of $40 billion over …

Florida Farm Bill: Commissioner Simpson Discusses Recent Legislation

Clint ThompsonFlorida

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson, Senator Keith Truenow, and Representative Kaylee Tuck announced legislation to support Florida agriculture and Florida’s farmers, ranchers, and growers; prohibit ESG lending practices targeting agricultural producers; increase emergency preparedness; support FFA and 4-H programs; expand consumer protections and transparency across a number of regulated industries, and more. Commissioner Simpson “This legislation …

Specialty Crop Grower Magazine: Calls to Adjust H-2A Wage Rate Method

Clint ThompsonSpecialty Crop Grower Magazine

By Frank Giles Inflation has hit everyone’s pocketbook in recent years, but the agriculture sector has felt the squeeze more acutely than most. Increasing costs have impacted the H-2A visa program, which many specialty crop growers now rely on to source labor. For the past few years, significant increases in the adverse effect wage rate (AEWR) have been imposed on …

Updated Drought Conditions Across Southeast

Clint ThompsonFlorida

Parts of the Southeast are still experiencing dry conditions. They’re mostly concentrated in the northern areas of Alabama and Georgia, along with southern Florida. This is according to the most recent release of the U.S. Drought Monitor. Florida’s abnormally dry conditions are observed as far north as Dixie, Gilchrist, Alachua, Bradford, Clay and Saint Johns counties. Moderate drought stretches from …